Vermilion County is a county in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Illinois, between the Indiana border and Champaign County. It was established in 1826 and was the 45th of Illinois' 102 counties. According to the 2020 United States census, it had a population of 74,188. It contains 21 incorporated settlements; the county seat and largest city is Danville.

Vermilion County is part of the Danville, IL Micropolitan Statistical Area, as well as the larger Champaign–Urbana–Danville combined statistical area.

History

Vermilion County is named after the Vermilion River, which passes through the county and empties into the Wabash River in Indiana near Cayuga; the river was so named because of the color of the earth along its route.

The area which became Vermilion County was under the flag of France from 1682 to 1763, as part of New France.

It was taken over by Great Britain for fifteen years after the French and Indian War; it then became part of the colonies after the Revolutionary War when the area was ceded to Virginia, titled "the Illinois County of Virginia". Later it was part of the Indiana Territory, then the Illinois Territory, and finally the state of Illinois. The county was created on January 18, 1826, from a portion of Edgar County. There was an unorganized territory to the north and west which was attached to the county; Champaign and Iroquois counties were formed from part of this territory in 1833. The remainder was used to create Ford County in 1859, the last Illinois county to be formed.

The county's saline springs were a strong attraction to early explorers; they were mentioned as early as 1801. Joseph Barron, an interpreter fluent in several Native American languages, stated in an affidavit that he was present at the "Vermilion Salines" that year. The production required 100 gallons of water for one bushel of salt and proved to be profitable from the first run (1822–1829), when salt became less expensive and the venture was no longer economical.

The area's first settlement was made in 1819 near these saline springs, by the Treat, Beckwith, and Whitcomb. James Butler, from Ohio, followed in 1820 and settled in the Catlin area; within a few years, the settlement grew to encompass several families and became known as "Butler's Point". In the southern part of the county, Henry Johnson built a cabin west of present-day Georgetown; this area was known as "Johnson's Point". The southern portion of the county was soon filled with small settlements. Most settlers in Vermilion County came from Kentucky, East Tennessee, Virginia, and Western North Carolina, and those settlers left the South as they were opposed to slavery.

Some of the early settlers were of the Religious Society of Friends, or Quakers. They founded the settlement of Vermilion Grove in the south part of the county, one of the county's first settlements and the site of the county's second public school.

The county has strong ties to Abraham Lincoln, who practiced law in Danville from 1841 to 1859 with Ward Hill Lamon; Lamon later served as Lincoln's bodyguard. Lincoln spoke in Danville during his 1858 campaign for a seat in the US Senate. Lincoln gave the speech in his stocking feet from the balcony of Dr. William Fithian, a prominent local physician. The Fithian home is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places and serves as the Vermilion County Museum; visitors can see Lincoln memorabilia including a bed in which Lincoln slept.

The various stages in the evolution of Vermilion County are shown below.

<gallery>

File:Vermilion_County_Illinois_1826.png|Vermilion County from the time of its creation to 1831, including a large tract of unorganized territory temporarily attached to it.

File:Vermilion_County_Illinois_1831.png|Vermilion between 1831 and 1833

File:Vermilion County Illinois 1833.png|The county between 1833 and 1836, after creation of Champaign and Iroquois Counties

File:Vermilion County Illinois 1836.png|Vermilion County between 1836 and 1837

File:Vermilion County Illinois 1837.png|Vermilion County between 1837 and 1853

File:Vermilion County Illinois 1853.png|Vermilion County after 1853, when the unorganized territory was reduced to its current size.

File:Vermilion County Illinois 1859.png|In 1859, the additional territory was split off as Ford County, reducing Vermilion to its current borders.

</gallery>

Geography

thumb|right|400px|Map of Vermilion County

Vermilion County is located along the eastern border of Illinois; its northern border is about south of Chicago.

Vermilion County in Illinois and Vermillion County in Indiana are two of twenty-two counties or parishes in the United States with the same name to border each other across state lines. According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of , of which (or 99.68%) is land and (or 0.32%) is water. Lake Vermilion, a man-made reservoir, is the county's largest body of water, located northwest of Danville. It provides the city's culinary water, and also provides recreation opportunities.

Adjacent counties

  • Iroquois County – north
  • Benton County, Indiana – northeast
  • Warren County, Indiana – east
  • Vermillion County, Indiana – southeast
  • Edgar County – south
  • Douglas County - southwest
  • Champaign County – west
  • Ford County – northwest

Cities

  • Danville (county seat)
  • Hoopeston
  • Georgetown

Villages

  • Allerton – at SW corner of county; extends into Champaign County
  • Alvin – north of Danville
  • Belgium – on Route 1
  • Bismarck – north of Danville
  • Catlin – southwest of Danville
  • Fairmount – southwest of Danville
  • Fithian – west of Danville on US 150
  • Henning – north of Danville on US 136
  • Indianola – southwest of Danville
  • Muncie – west of Danville on US 150
  • Oakwood – west of Danville on US 150
  • Potomac – on US 136 north of Danville
  • Rankin – at NW corner of county
  • Ridge Farm
  • Rossville – on Route 1, south of Hoopeston
  • Sidell – east of Allerton
  • Tilton
  • Westville

Census-designated places

  • East Lynn
  • Olivet

Unincorporated communities

  • Armstrong
  • Batestown
  • Cheneyville
  • Collison
  • Hartshorn
  • Hegeler
  • Hillery
  • Hope
  • Illiana
  • Jamaica
  • Jamesburg
  • Midway
  • Newtown
  • Ryan
  • Unionville

Previous settlements

Several towns were established in the county which no longer survive. In some cases, the coming of the railroads helped to define the best locations for settlements, and as a result some existing towns were abandoned. When Lake Vermilion was created, the town of Denmark was flooded and now lies at the bottom of the reservoir.

  • Archie (south of Sidell)
  • Blue Grass City and eight townships were created:
  • Carroll
  • Danville
  • Elwood
  • Georgetown
  • Middlefork
  • Newell (first called Richland)
  • Pilot
  • Ross

Eleven additional townships were created in the following decades:

  • Blount
  • Butler
  • Catlin
  • Grant
  • Jamaica
  • Love
  • McKendree
  • Oakwood
  • Sidell
  • South Ross
  • Vance

Parks

The Vermilion County Conservation District operates four parks:

  • Forest Glen Preserve
  • Heron County Park
  • Kennekuk Cove County Park
  • Lake Vermilion County Park

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources manages three areas in the county:

  • Kickapoo State Recreation Area
  • Harry "Babe" Woodyard State Natural Area
  • Middle Fork State Fish and Wildlife Area

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 74,188. The median age was 41.7 years. 22.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 20.2% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 99.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 97.7 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 77.2% White, 14.0% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.2% from some other race, and 5.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 5.1% of the population.

There were 30,568 households in the county, of which 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 41.2% were married-couple households, 20.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 30.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 32.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

!Pop 1990

!Pop 2000

!Pop 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" | Pop 2020

!% 1980

!% 1990

!% 2000

!% 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |% 2020

|-

|White alone (NH)

|86,358

|78,345

|71,038

|65,590

|style='background: #ffffe6; |56,186

|90.69%

|88.77%

|84.65%

|80.36%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |75.73%

|-

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|6,723

|7,799

|8,802

|10,394

|style='background: #ffffe6; |10,247

|7.06%

|8.84%

|10.49%

|12.73%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |13.81%

|-

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|129

|149

|161

|138

|style='background: #ffffe6; |140

|0.14%

|0.17%

|0.19%

|0.17%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.19%

|-

|Asian alone (NH)

|344

|484

|494

|559

|style='background: #ffffe6; |568

|0.36%

|0.55%

|0.59%

|0.68%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.77%

|-

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|x

|x

|13

|12

|style='background: #ffffe6; |10

|x

|x

|0.02%

|0.01%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.01%

|-

|Other race alone (NH)

|318

|75

|74

|52

|style='background: #ffffe6; |249

|0.33%

|0.08%

|0.09%

|0.06%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.34%

|-

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|x

|x

|833

|1,439

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2,972

|x

|x

|0.99%

|1.76%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |4.01%

|-

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|1,350

|1,405

|2,504

|3,441

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3,816

|1.42%

|1.59%

|2.98%

|4.22%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |5.14%

|-

|Total

|95,222

|88,257

|83,919

|81,625

|style='background: #ffffe6; |74,188

|100.00%

|100.00%

|100.00%

|100.00%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%

|}

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 81,625&nbsp;people, 32,655&nbsp;households, and 21,392&nbsp;families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 36,318 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 82.5% white, 13.0% black or African American, 0.7% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 1.5% from other races, and 2.2% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 4.2% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 21.2% self-identified as American, 18.9% as German, 10.1% as Irish, and 9.1% as English.

Of the 32,655&nbsp;households, 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.7% were married couples living together, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 34.5% were non-families, and 29.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.96. The median age was 39.8 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $39,456 and the median income for a family was $49,429. Males had a median income of $40,107 versus $30,104 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,218. About 14.6% of families and 18.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.0% of those under age 18 and 9.1% of those age 65 or over.

Climate and weather