Mason County, Illinois

Mason County, Illinois
Location in the state of Illinois
Illinois's location in the U.S.
Founded	1841
Seat	Havana
Largest city	Havana
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	563.46 sq mi (1,459 km²) 539.24 sq mi (1,397 km²) 24.23 sq mi (63 km²), 4.30%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	14,666 30/sq mi (11/km²)
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	www.masoncountyil.org

Mason County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 14,666, which is a decrease of 8.6% from 16,038 in 2000.^[1] Its county seat is Havana.^[2] The county is named in honor of George Mason, a member of the Virginia legislature who campaigned for the adoption of the United States Bill of Rights.

History

Mason County was created in 1841 out of portions of Tazewell and Menard Counties.

• 

  Mason County at the time of its creation in 1841

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 563.46 square miles (1,459.4 km²), of which 539.24 square miles (1,396.6 km²) (or 95.70%) is land and 24.23 square miles (62.8 km²) (or 4.30%) is water.^[3]

Mason County is bounded on the south by the Sangamon River, and on the west by the Illinois River. These rivers join at the southwest tip of the County.

The soil covering much of Mason County is very sandy in composition. This was formed during the melting of the Wisconsin Glacier about 10,000 years before present. Meltwater from the glacier deposited large amounts of sand in a delta region near at the junction of the Sangamon and Illinois Rivers.

The sandy soil does not hold water well, quickly exposing crops to drought conditions as the water table drops during periods of low precipitation. The soil is, however, very good for growing vegetables that are otherwise not common in Illinois. Modern irrigation has made this a highly productive agricultural area.

A sand wetland on the Illinois River is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as the Chautauqua National Wildlife Refuge.

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 136
• Illinois Route 10
• Illinois Route 29
• Illinois Route 78
• Illinois Route 97

Townships

Allens Grove, Bath, Crane Creek, Forest City, Havana, Kilbourne, Lynchburg, Manito, Mason City, Pennsylvania, Quiver, Salt Creek, Sherman

Adjacent counties

• Fulton County - north
• Tazewell County - northeast
• Logan County - southeast
• Menard County - south
• Cass County - southwest
• Schuyler County - west

National protected area

• Chautauqua National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1900	17,491		—
1910	17,377		−0.7%
1920	16,634		−4.3%
1930	15,115		−9.1%
1940	15,358		1.6%
1950	15,326		−0.2%
1960	15,193		−0.9%
1970	16,161		6.4%
1980	19,492		20.6%
1990	16,269		−16.5%
2000	16,038		−1.4%
IL Counties 1900-1990

As of the census^[4] of 2000, there were 16,038 people, 6,389 households, and 4,561 families residing in the county. The population density was 30 people per square mile (11/km²). There were 7,033 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile (5/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.82% White, 0.12% Black or African American, 0.26% Native American, 0.21% Asian, 0.09% from other races, and 0.50% from two or more races. 0.50% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 34.6% were of German, 17.9% American, 13.1% English and 9.0% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 6,389 households out of which 30.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.40% were married couples living together, 9.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.60% were non-families. 24.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the county the population was spread out with 24.40% under the age of 18, 7.70% from 18 to 24, 26.30% from 25 to 44, 24.20% from 45 to 64, and 17.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 96.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,985, and the median income for a family was $42,239. Males had a median income of $33,426 versus $21,093 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,357. About 7.80% of families and 9.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.60% of those under age 18 and 9.60% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

• Bath
• Biggs
• Bishop
• Easton
• Forest City
• Havana
• Kilbourne
• Manito
• Mason City
• Matanzas
• Natrona
• Poplar City
• San Jose
• Saldora
• Snicarte
• Teheran
• Topeka
• Union

Climate and weather

Havana, Illinois
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     1.9   32 14     1.9   38 19     3   50 30     3.5   63 40     4.4   74 51     3.8   84 60     3.9   88 64     3.5   86 61     3.2   80 52     2.9   68 41     3.3   51 30     2.6   37 19 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     47   0 -10     49   3 -7     77   10 -1     88   17 4     113   23 11     97   29 16     98   31 18     88   30 16     82   27 11     73   20 5     83   11 -1     67   3 -7 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Havana have ranged from a low of 14 °F (−10 °C) in January to a high of 88 °F (31 °C) in July, although a record low of −30 °F (−34 °C) was recorded in January 1999 and a record high of 106 °F (41 °C) was recorded in July 1983. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.85 inches (47 mm) in January to 4.43 inches (113 mm) in May.^[5]

See also

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

References

1. ^ "Mason County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/17/17125.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 Havana, Illinois". The Weather Channel. http://www.weather.com/weather/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/USIL0521. Retrieved 2011-01-27. 

Coordinates: 40°14′N 89°55′W / 40.24°N 89.91°W / 40.24; -89.91