Massac County, Illinois

Massac County, Illinois
Location in the state of Illinois
Illinois's location in the U.S.
Founded	information needed
Seat
Largest city	Metropolis
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	241.81 sq mi (626 km²) 237.22 sq mi (614 km²) 4.60 sq mi (12 km²), 1.90%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	15,429 63/sq mi (24/km²)
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5

Massac County is a county located on the Ohio River in the state of Illinois, USA. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 15,429, which is an increase of 1.8% from 15,161 in 2000.^[1] Its county seat is Metropolis.^[2]

Massac County is part of the Paducah, KY-IL Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

Fort Massac on the Ohio River

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 241.81 square miles (626.3 km²), of which 237.22 square miles (614.4 km²) (or 98.10%) is land and 4.60 square miles (11.9 km²) (or 1.90%) is water.^[3]

Major highways

• Interstate 24
• U.S. Highway 45
• Illinois Route 169
• Interstate 57 (Illinois)

Adjacent counties

• Pope County - north
• Livingston County, Kentucky - east
• McCracken County, Kentucky - south
• Pulaski County - west
• Johnson County - northwest

National protected area

• Shawnee National Forest (part)

History

This area was occupied by various cultures of indigenous peoples for thousands of years before European contact. The most complex and last was that of the Mississippian culture, which built the complex mounds and plaza at the Kincaid Site (now a National Historic Landmark). They abandoned the site in about 1500, centuries before European contact.

Part of the Illinois Country was claimed by French explorers, this area was barely settled, with most French colonial villages close to the Mississippi River. During the French and Indian War against the British, the French built a fort here in 1757. It was named Fort Massac after Claude Louis d'Espinchal, Marquis de Massiac, the French Naval Minister. Massiac is a commune in Cantal, France. Although beginning to be settled by European Americans after the American Revolution, Massac County was formally organized in 1843, out of territory from both Johnson and Pope counties. In the mid-19th century, after the revolutions of 1848, the Midwest received many German immigrants. Their self-identified descendants today comprise nearly one-third of the population of the county.

• 

  Massac County at the time of its creation in 1843

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1900	13,110		—
1910	14,200		8.3%
1920	13,559		−4.5%
1930	14,081		3.8%
1940	14,937		6.1%
1950	13,594		−9.0%
1960	14,341		5.5%
1970	13,889		−3.2%
1980	14,990		7.9%
1990	14,752		−1.6%
2000	15,161		2.8%
2010	15,429		1.8%
IL Counties 1900-1990

2010

Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:

• 91.0% White
• 5.9% Black
• 0.4% Native American
• 0.3% Asian
• 0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
• 2.0% Two or more races
• 0.4% Other races
• 1.9% Hispanic or Latino (of any race)

2000

As of the census^[4] of 2000, there were 15,161 people, 6,261 households, and 4,320 families residing in the county. The population density was 63 people per square mile (24/km²). There were 6,951 housing units at an average density of 29 per square mile (11/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 92.57% White, 5.48% Black or African American, 0.20% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.33% from other races, and 1.16% from two or more races. 0.81% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 26.9% were of German, 19.3% American, 12.2% English and 10.1% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 6,261 households out of which 29.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.50% were married couples living together, 10.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.00% were non-families. 28.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.88.

In the county the population was spread out with 23.00% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 27.50% from 25 to 44, 23.80% from 45 to 64, and 17.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 91.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $31,498, and the median income for a family was $39,068. Males had a median income of $32,793 versus $20,399 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,334. About 10.40% of families and 13.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.40% of those under age 18 and 14.10% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

• Brookport
• Joppa
• Metropolis

Unincorporated communities

• Bargerville
• New Liberty
• Round Knob
• Shady Grove
• Unionville

Climate and weather

Metropolis, Illinois
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     3.5   42 25     3.9   48 29     4.4   58 38     4.7   69 47     4.8   77 56     4   86 64     4.3   90 68     3   88 66     3.3   82 59     3.2   71 47     4.5   58 38     4.4   47 29 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation totals in inches Source: The Weather Channel[5]
Metric conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     89   6 -4     99   9 -2     112   14 3     119   21 8     121   25 13     102   30 18     109   32 20     76   31 19     83   28 15     82   22 8     113   14 3     111   8 -2 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Metropolis have ranged from a low of 25 °F (−4 °C) in January to a high of 90 °F (32 °C) in July, although a record low of −21 °F (−29 °C) was recorded in January 1984 and a record high of 105 °F (41 °C) was recorded in July 1999. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 3.00 inches (76 mm) in August to 4.76 inches (121 mm) in May.^[5]

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Massac County, Illinois

References

1. ^ "Massac County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/17/17127.html. Retrieved 2011-11-05. 
2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
3. ^ "Census 2010 U.S. Gazetteer Files: Counties". United States Census. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/files/Gaz_counties_national.txt. Retrieved 2011-11-05. 
4. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
5. ^ ^{a b} "Monthly Averages for Metropolis, Illinois". The Weather Channel. http://www.weather.com/weather/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/USIL0764. Retrieved 2011-01-27. 

Coordinates: 37°13′N 88°43′W / 37.22°N 88.71°W / 37.22; -88.71