Editing Brown County, Illinois

{{Short description|County in Illinois, United States}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox U.S. county
 | county         = Brown County
 | state              = Illinois
 | seal                 = 
 | founded              = 1839
 | seat wl      = Mount Sterling
 | largest city wl      = Mount Sterling
 | area_total_sq_mi     = 307
 | area_land_sq_mi      = 306
 | area_water_sq_mi     = 1.6
 | area percentage      = 0.5
 | population_as_of     = 2020
 | population_total     = 6244
 | pop_est_as_of        = 2023
 | population_est       = 6294 {{gain}}
 | density_sq_mi        = auto
 | time zone           = Central
 | footnotes            = 
 | web                  = 
 | district             = 15th
 | named for            = [[Jacob Brown (general)|Jacob Brown]]
 | ex image             = Brown County Courthouse, Mount Sterling.jpg
 | ex image cap         = [[Brown County Courthouse (Illinois)|Brown County Courthouse]] in Mount Sterling
 | website              = https://www.browncoil.org }}

'''Brown County''' is a [[County (United States)|county]] located in the [[U.S. state]] of [[Illinois]]. As of the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]], the population was 6,244.<ref>{{cite web|title=Brown County, Illinois|url=https://data.census.gov/profile/Brown_County,_Illinois?g=050XX00US17009|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=June 7, 2023}}</ref> Its [[county seat]] is [[Mount Sterling, Illinois|Mount Sterling]].<ref name="GR6">{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |access-date=June 7, 2011 |title=Find a County |publisher=National Association of Counties |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110531210815/http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |archive-date=May 31, 2011 }}</ref> [[Siloam Springs State Park]] is located partly in this county.

==History==
Brown County was formed out of [[Schuyler County, Illinois|Schuyler County]] in 1839. It is named in honor of U.S. General [[Jacob Brown (general)|Jacob Brown]], who defeated the British at the [[Battle of Sackett's Harbor]] in 1813.
<gallery>
File:Brown County Illinois 1839.png|Brown County at the time of its creation in 1839
</gallery>

==Geography==
According to the [[U.S. Census Bureau]], the county has a total area of {{convert|307|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|306|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|1.6|sqmi}} (0.5%) is water.<ref name="census-density"/> The [[Illinois River]] flows along part of the county's eastern border.

===Adjacent counties===
* [[Schuyler County, Illinois|Schuyler County]] - north
* [[Cass County, Illinois|Cass County]] - east
* [[Morgan County, Illinois|Morgan County]] - southeast
* [[Pike County, Illinois|Pike County]] - south
* [[Adams County, Illinois|Adams County]] - west

===Major highways===
* [[Image:US 24.svg|25px]] [[US Route 24]]
* [[Image:Illinois 99.svg|25px]] [[Illinois Route 99]]
* [[Image:Illinois 107.svg|25px]] [[Illinois Route 107]]

==Climate and weather==
{{climate chart
|[[Mount Sterling, Illinois]]
|15|32|1.55
|20|38|1.89
|30|50|3.05
|41|63|3.89
|51|73|5.14
|61|82|3.92
|65|87|3.87
|63|84|3.54
|54|78|3.63
|43|66|3.25
|31|50|3.16
|20|37|2.43
|float=right
|units=imperial
|clear=both
|source=The Weather Channel<ref name="weather">{{cite web
  |url=http://www.weather.com/weather/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/USIL0814
  |title=Monthly Averages for Mount Sterling, Illinois
  |access-date=January 27, 2011
  |publisher=The Weather Channel
}}</ref>}}
In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Mount Sterling have ranged from a low of {{convert|15|°F}} in January to a high of {{convert|87|°F}} in July, although a record low of {{convert|-26|°F}} was recorded in February 1905 and a record high of {{convert|113|°F}} was recorded in July 1936. Average monthly precipitation ranged from {{convert|1.55|in}} in January to {{convert|5.14|in}} in May.<ref name="weather"/>

==Demographics==
[[Image:USA Brown County, Illinois age pyramid.svg|thumb|left|2000 census age pyramid for Brown County]]
{{US Census population
|1840= 4183
|1850= 7198
|1860= 9938
|1870= 12205
|1880= 13041
|1890= 11951
|1900= 11557
|1910= 10397
|1920= 9336
|1930= 7892
|1940= 8053
|1950= 7132
|1960= 6210
|1970= 5586
|1980= 5411
|1990= 5836
|2000= 6950
|2010= 6937
|2020= 6244
|estyear=2023
|estimate=6294
|estref=<ref name="USCensusEst2023">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/data/tables.html|title=Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=April 2, 2024}}</ref>
|align-fn=center
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=U.S. Decennial Census|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=July 3, 2014}}</ref><br />1790-1960<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu|title=Historical Census Browser|publisher=University of Virginia Library|access-date=July 3, 2014}}</ref> 1900-1990<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/il190090.txt|title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=July 3, 2014}}</ref><br />1990-2000<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327165705/http://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf |archive-date=March 27, 2010 |url-status=live|title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=July 3, 2014}}</ref> 2010<ref name="QF">{{cite web|title=State & County QuickFacts|url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/17/17009.html|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=July 3, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110806004255/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/17/17009.html|archive-date=August 6, 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref>
}}

As of the [[2010 United States census]], there were 6,937&nbsp;people, 2,099&nbsp;households, and 1,346&nbsp;families living in the county.<ref name="census-dp1">{{cite web
  |url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/DPDP1/0500000US17009
  |title=DP-1 Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data
  |access-date=July 11, 2015
  |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]
  |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213011723/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/DPDP1/0500000US17009
  |archive-date=February 13, 2020
|url-status=dead
  }}</ref> The population density was {{convert|22.7|PD/sqmi}}. There were 2,462 housing units at an average density of {{convert|8.1|/sqmi}}.<ref name="census-density">{{cite web
  |url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/GCTPH1.CY10/0500000US17009
  |access-date=July 11, 2015
  |title=Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County
  |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]
  |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200212203834/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/GCTPH1.CY10/0500000US17009
  |archive-date=February 12, 2020
|url-status=dead
  }}</ref> The racial makeup of the county was 76.1% white, 18.5% black or African American, 0.2% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 4.4% from other races, and 0.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 5.8% of the population.<ref name="census-dp1"/> In terms of ancestry, 25.5% were [[Germans|German]], 15.6% were [[Americans|American]], 12.7% were [[Irish people|Irish]], and 6.1% were [[English people|English]].<ref name="census-dp2">{{cite web
  |url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP02/0500000US17009
  |title=DP02 SELECTED SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS IN THE UNITED STATES – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates
  |access-date=July 11, 2015
  |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]
  |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213020151/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP02/0500000US17009
  |archive-date=February 13, 2020
|url-status=dead
  }}</ref>

Of the 2,099&nbsp;households, 28.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.3% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 35.9% were non-families, and 32.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.88. The median age was 37.3 years.<ref name="census-dp1"/>

The median income for a household in the county was $38,696 and the median income for a family was $50,341. Males had a median income of $34,648 versus $27,288 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,133. About 9.9% of families and 12.0% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 15.0% of those under age 18 and 9.2% of those age 65 or over.<ref name="census-dp3">{{cite web
  |url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP03/0500000US17009
  |title=DP03 SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates
  |access-date=July 11, 2015
  |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]
  |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213084617/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP03/0500000US17009
  |archive-date=February 13, 2020
|url-status=dead
  }}</ref>

The [[Western Illinois Correctional Center]], a state prison located south east of Mount Sterling, has an average daily population of 2,066. The all-male population and racial makeup of the prison is so large compared to the rest of the county, that it skews the census demographic data. This is evidenced by the lopsided age pyramid.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.idoc.state.il.us/subsections/facilities/information.asp?instchoice=wil | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060923140610/http://www.idoc.state.il.us/subsections/facilities/information.asp?instchoice=wil | archive-date=September 23, 2006 | title=Illinois Department of Corrections - Correctional Facilities }}</ref>

==Communities==

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Community<br />
! Community<br />type
! Population
! Total<br />Area
! Water<br />Area
! Land<br />Area
! Pop.<br />Density
|-
|[[Mound Station, Illinois|Mound Station]] || village || 117 || 0.52 || 0.00 || 0.52 || 225.43 ||
|-
|[[Mount Sterling, Illinois|Mount Sterling]] (seat) || city || 2,006 || 1.11 || 0.00 || 1.11 || 1,810.47 ||
|-
|[[Ripley, Illinois|Ripley]] || village || 53 || 0.38 || 0.00 || 0.38 || 139.84 ||
|-
|[[Versailles, Illinois|Versailles]] || village || 446 || 0.94 || 0.01 || 0.93 || 470 ||
|-
|'''Brown County''' || county || 6,244 || 307 || 1.6 || 306 || 20 ||
|}

===Townships===
Brown County is divided into these nine [[Civil township|townships]]:
{{div col}}
* [[Buckhorn Township, Brown County, Illinois|Buckhorn]]
* [[Cooperstown Township, Brown County, Illinois|Cooperstown]]
* [[Elkhorn Township, Brown County, Illinois|Elkhorn]]
* [[Lee Township, Brown County, Illinois|Lee]]
* [[Missouri Township, Brown County, Illinois|Missouri]]
* [[Mount Sterling Township, Brown County, Illinois|Mount Sterling]]
* [[Pea Ridge Township, Brown County, Illinois|Pea Ridge]]
* [[Ripley Township, Brown County, Illinois|Ripley]]
* [[Versailles Township, Brown County, Illinois|Versailles]]
{{div col end}}

===Unincorporated Communities===
{{div col}}
* [[Benville, Illinois|Benville]]
* [[Buckhorn, Illinois|Buckhorn]]
* [[Cooperstown, Illinois|Cooperstown]]
* [[Damon, Illinois|Damon]]
* [[Fargo, Illinois|Fargo]]
* [[Gilbirds, Illinois|Gilbirds]]
* [[Hersman, Illinois|Hersman]]
* [[Jaques, Illinois|Jaques]]
* [[La Grange, Brown County, Illinois|La Grange]]
* [[Morrelville, Illinois|Morrelville]]
* [[Siloam, Illinois|Siloam]]
{{div col end}}

==Politics==
Brown County is located in [[Illinois's 15th congressional district|Illinois's 15th Congressional District]] and is currently represented by Republican [[Mary Miller (politician)|Mary Miller]]. For the [[Illinois House of Representatives]], the county is located in the 93rd district and is currently represented by Republican [[Norine Hammond]]. The county is located in the 47th district of the [[Illinois Senate]], and is currently represented by Republican [[Jil Tracy]].

Brown County is part of the German-settled area of western [[Central Illinois]] and the [[Missouri Rhineland]] centred on the St. Louis metropolitan area. This region was opposed both to southern [[planter (American South)|plantation owners]] and to anti-slavery [[Yankee]]s and consequently voted against the majority of people in their state. Brown County voted for the Democratic candidate in every presidential election from at least [[1840 United States presidential election|1840]] through [[1948 United States presidential election|1948]], with the sole exception of the [[1928 United States presidential election|1928 election]] when the county voted for the Republican candidate [[Herbert Hoover]]. From 1952 to 2024, Democrats have carried Brown County only three times (1964, 1976, and 1992) and have won a majority of the vote only once (1964).

{{PresHead|place=Brown County, Illinois|source=<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS|title=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections|last=Leip|first=David|website=uselectionatlas.org|access-date=October 29, 2018}}</ref>}}
<!-- PresRow should be {{PresRow|Year|Winning party|GOP vote #|Dem vote #|3rd party vote #|State}} -->
{{PresRow|2024|Republican|1,938|467|60|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|2020|Republican|1,931|486|108|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|2016|Republican|1,796|476|107|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|2012|Republican|1,513|787|64|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|2008|Republican|1,544|986|47|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|2004|Republican|1,679|895|11|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|2000|Republican|1,529|1,077|54|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1996|Republican|1,053|997|247|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1992|Democratic|1,029|1,146|514|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1988|Republican|1,373|1,267|6|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1984|Republican|1,478|959|9|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1980|Republican|1,660|950|82|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1976|Democratic|1,519|1,533|51|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1972|Republican|1,780|1,203|39|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1968|Republican|1,629|1,265|269|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1964|Democratic|1,355|2,083|0|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1960|Republican|1,889|1,849|2|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1956|Republican|2,026|1,748|1|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1952|Republican|2,137|1,557|5|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1948|Democratic|1,562|1,805|22|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1944|Democratic|1,738|1,849|20|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1940|Democratic|2,101|2,478|69|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1936|Democratic|1,591|2,873|85|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1932|Democratic|1,148|2,822|23|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1928|Republican|2,289|1,867|9|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1924|Democratic|1,637|2,149|160|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1920|Democratic|1,590|1,866|71|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1916|Democratic|1,579|2,856|137|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1912|Democratic|381|1,358|573|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1908|Democratic|947|1,609|87|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1904|Democratic|934|1,341|177|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1900|Democratic|988|1,968|49|Illinois}}
{{PresRow|1896|Democratic|1,024|2,063|30|Illinois}}
{{PresFoot|1892|Democratic|879|1,567|400|Illinois}}

==Education==
* [[Brown County Community Unit School District 1]]
* Meredosia-Chambersburg Community Unit School District 11
* Southeastern Community Unit School District 337

==See also==
* [[National Register of Historic Places listings in Illinois#Brown County|National Register of Historic Places listings in Brown County, Illinois]]

==References==
;Specific
{{Reflist|30em}}

;General
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070310144543/http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/irad/edgar.html United States Census Bureau 2007 TIGER/Line Shapefiles]
* [http://geonames.usgs.gov/domestic/ United States Board on Geographic Names (GNIS)]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20081205020547/http://www.nationalatlas.gov/ United States National Atlas]

==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline|Brown County, Illinois}}

{{Geographic Location
|Centre    = Brown County, Illinois
|North     = [[Schuyler County, Illinois|Schuyler County]]
|Northeast =
|East      = [[Cass County, Illinois|Cass County]]
|Southeast = [[Morgan County, Illinois|Morgan County]]
|South     = [[Pike County, Illinois|Pike County]]
|Southwest =
|West      = [[Adams County, Illinois|Adams County]]
|Northwest =
}}
{{Brown County, Illinois}}
{{Illinois}}
{{Authority control}}
{{Coord|39.95|-90.75|display=title|type:adm2nd_region:US-IL_source:UScensus1990}}

[[Category:Brown County, Illinois| ]]
[[Category:Illinois counties]]
[[Category:1839 establishments in Illinois]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1839]]