Clinton County, Illinois

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Clinton County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. At the 2020 census, the population was 36,899.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Its county seat is Carlyle.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 1960, the United States Census Bureau placed the mean center of U.S. population in Clinton County.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Clinton County is part of the St. Louis, MO-IL Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Template:Expand section In 1805, prior to the establishment of the county, the territorial government established a post road from its capital (Vincennes, Indiana) to St. Louis, Missouri, passing through the county.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

In 1808 a wagon road was laid out through the future Clinton County. It extended from the Goshen Settlement to the Ohio salt works and crossed the Kaskaskia River at Carlyle.<ref>1913 Commercial History of Clinton County, Illinois Template:Webarchive from clinton.ilgenweb.net. Retrieved November 10, 2010</ref> Clinton County became the home to early settlers by 1814, when the first land entries were made. <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Clinton County was created on December 27, 1824, from portions of Washington, Fayette, and Bond Counties. It was named for the seventh governor of New York, DeWitt Clinton, who helped build the Erie Canal.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Crossing the Kaskaskia became much easier when the bridge now known as the General Dean Suspension Bridge was built in 1859, at a cost of $40,000.<ref name=carlyle/> Before the bridge was constructed, crossings involved a ferry or a mud bridge.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Plaque on site, Photograph of plaque at Bridgemeister Template:Webarchive.</ref> The Illinois General Assembly set aside $20,000 for bridge restoration in 1951, and in 1953 the bridge was named after William F. Dean.<ref name=carlyle>Attractions & Outdoor Recreation Template:Webarchive, City of Carlyle, Official site</ref>

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 (5.8%) is water.<ref name="census-density"/> Eldon Hazlet State Recreation Area and South Shore State Park are in Clinton County. Its southern border is the Kaskaskia River.

Climate and weather

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In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Carlyle 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 1994 and a record high of Template:Convert was recorded in July 1980. Average monthly precipitation ranged from Template:Convert in January to Template:Convert in June.<ref name="weather"/>

Demographics

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File:USA Clinton County, Illinois age pyramid.svg

2000 census age pyramid for Clinton County

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 37,762 people, 14,005 households, and 9,760 families residing in the county.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The population density was Template:Convert. There were 15,311 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert.<ref name="census-density">Template:Cite web</ref> The racial makeup of the county was 93.4% white, 3.5% black or African American, 0.4% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 1.2% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.8% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 54.8% were German, 9.8% were Irish, 5.8% were English, and 5.6% were American.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Of the 14,005 households, 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.5% were married couples living together, 8.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 30.3% were non-families, and 25.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.02. The median age was 39.3 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $55,278 and the median income for a family was $66,682. Males had a median income of $45,119 versus $34,051 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,392. About 5.2% of families and 7.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.2% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 65 or over.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>