Perry County, Illinois

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Perry County is a county in Illinois. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 20,945.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Its county seat is Pinckneyville.<ref name="GR6">Template:Cite web</ref> It is located in the southern portion of Illinois known as "Little Egypt".

History

Perry County was formed in 1827 out of Jackson and Randolph counties. It was named in honor of Oliver Hazard Perry who defeated the British fleet at the decisive Battle of Lake Erie in the War of 1812.

Perry County at the time of its creation in 1827

Perry County at the time of its creation in 1827

In its early history, Perry County was mainly an inland pioneer outpost. Early settlers, including some Revolutionary War veterans bearing land grants, moved here from the Eastern United States. These were primarily Protestant settlers. Growth boomed in the 1850s for two reasons: construction of the Illinois Central Railroad through the eastern portion of the county, and the discovery of large coal reserves. Immigrants from Ireland, Poland, Germany, Italy and elsewhere steadily increased the county's population from 1850 through the 1920s. African Americans also were established in the county during northward migration following the Civil War.

Mining continued to be the dominant employment sector through the 1990s.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert is land and Template:Convert (1.2%) is water.<ref name="census-density"/>

Perry County is located in Southern Illinois. Pinckneyville, at the center of the county, is approximately Template:Convert southeast of St. Louis, Missouri and Template:Convert southwest of Chicago. The Mississippi River lies about Template:Convert west and southwest of the County at its closest point.

The county's topography is mainly flat with some rolling hills. The part of the county's eastern border, the part shared with Franklin County, is formed by the Little Muddy River. Beaucoup Creek runs north to south through the county and lies just east of Pinckneyville.

The county's topography also features many "strip cut" lakes, lakes left behind following above-ground coal mining. Lakes at two of the county's chief recreation areas, the Du Quoin State Fairgrounds and Pyramid State Recreation Area, were formed this way.

Climate and weather

Template:Climate chart In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Pinckneyville have ranged from a low of Template:Convert in January to a high of Template:Convert in July, although a record low of Template:Convert was recorded in January 1912 and a record high of Template:Convert was recorded in July 1934. Average monthly precipitation ranged from Template:Convert in February to Template:Convert in May.<ref name="weather"/>

Public transit

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Demographics

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As of the 2010 United States census, there were 22,350 people, 8,335 households, and 5,622 families residing in the county.<ref name="census-dp1">Template:Cite web</ref> The population density was Template:Convert. There were 9,426 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert.<ref name="census-density">Template:Cite web</ref> The racial makeup of the county was 87.9% white, 8.3% black or African American, 0.4% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 1.6% from other races, and 1.4% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.7% of the population.<ref name="census-dp1"/> In terms of ancestry, 32.8% were German, 14.3% were Irish, 10.6% were English, 8.1% were American, and 6.3% were Polish.<ref name="census-dp2">Template:Cite web</ref>

Of the 8,335 households, 30.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.5% were married couples living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.5% were non-families, and 28.6% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.90. The median age was 39.4 years.<ref name="census-dp1"/>

The median income for a household in the county was $40,696 and the median income for a family was $50,130. Males had a median income of $40,768 versus $28,377 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,926. About 11.5% of families and 14.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.6% of those under age 18 and 6.9% of those age 65 or over.<ref name="census-dp3">Template:Cite web</ref>

Communities

Perry County never adopted a township form of government. Federal township plats were prepared for each township which include legal descriptions of 14 townships.<ref>T4S_R1W_3PM (1). Perry County Township Plats. U.S. Surveyor General's Records for Illinois: Federal Township Plats. Illinois State Archives. Accessed July 25, 2021.</ref>

Perry County has been divided into precincts: Beaucoup, Cutler, Denmark, DuQuoin, Paradise, Pinckneyville, Sunfield, Swanwick, Tamaroa and Willisville.<ref name=PerryIL>Perry County, IL History. Accessed Jul 2021.</ref> To provide election precincts of similar population based on recent census data, precincts are divided or combined to form election precincts. The election precincts in 2020 were: Beaucoup, Cutler, Du Quoin Number 1, Du Quoin Number 2, Du Quoin Number 3, Du Quoin Number 4, Du Quoin Number 5, Du Quoin Number 6, Du Quoin Number 7, Du Quoin Number 8, Du Quoin Number 9, Du Quoin Number 10, Du Quoin Number 11, Du Quoin Number 12, Pinckneyville Number 1, Pinckneyville Number 2, Pinckneyville Number 3, Pinckneyville Number 4, Pinckneyville Number 5, Pinckneyville Number 6, Pinckneyville Number 7, Pinckneyville Number 8, Sunfield, Swanwick, Tamaroa Number 1, Tamaroa Number 2, and Willisville.<ref>Illinois Gazetteer: Perry County. Hometown Locator. Accessed July 2021.</ref>

Cities

Villages

Unincorporated communities

Politics

Perry County has been reliably Republican county since 2012, when it backed Mitt Romney (R) by nearly 18 points over Illinois native Barack Obama, even as Obama won both Illinois and the country. By 2020 it was so heavily Republican that incumbent Donald Trump beat Democrat Joe Biden by nearly 45 points in his bid for reelection, even as Biden won the race nationally (and Illinois). The county last voted blue, by a very narrow margin of 0.6%, in 2000. The table below includes a list of Perry County's election results at the presidential level. Template:PresHead As of February 2025, the county is one of 7 that voted to join the state of Indiana.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

References

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