Marion County, Illinois

For counties with a similar name, see Marion County (disambiguation).

Marion County, Illinois
Location in the state of Illinois
Illinois's location in the U.S.
Founded	1823
Seat	Salem
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	576.04 sq mi (1,492 km²) 572.36 sq mi (1,482 km²) 3.67 sq mi (10 km²), 0.64%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	39,437 73/sq mi (28/km²)
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5

Marion County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 39,437, which is a decrease of 5.4% from 41,691 in 2000.^[1] Its county seat is Salem.^[2]

The Centralia Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Marion County.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 576.04 square miles (1,491.9 km²), of which 572.36 square miles (1,482.4 km²) (or 99.36%) is land and 3.67 square miles (9.5 km²) (or 0.64%) is water.^[3]

The southwest corner of Marion County is the intersection of the Baseline with the Third Principal Meridian, the point of origin for the third survey of the Northwest Territory under the Land Ordinance of 1785. The origin is marked with a boulder south of Centralia just off U.S. 51.

Major highways

• Interstate 57
• U.S. Highway 50
• U.S. Highway 51
• Illinois Route 37
• Illinois Route 161

Adjacent counties

• Fayette County - north
• Clay County - east
• Wayne County - southeast
• Jefferson County - south
• Washington County - southwest
• Clinton County - west

History

Marion County was organized in 1823 from portions of Jefferson and Fayette Counties. It was named in honor of Revolutionary War Gen. Francis Marion, the "Swamp Fox".

• 

  Marion County at the time of its creation in 1823

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1900	30,446		—
1910	35,094		15.3%
1920	37,497		6.8%
1930	35,635		−5.0%
1940	47,989		34.7%
1950	41,700		−13.1%
1960	39,349		−5.6%
1970	38,986		−0.9%
1980	43,523		11.6%
1990	41,561		−4.5%
2000	41,691		0.3%
IL Counties 1900-1990

As of the census^[4] of 2000, there were 41,691 people, 16,619 households, and 11,483 families residing in the county. The population density was 73 people per square mile (28/km²). There were 18,022 housing units at an average density of 32 per square mile (12/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 94.05% White, 3.83% Black or African American, 0.22% Native American, 0.57% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.22% from other races, and 1.07% from two or more races. 0.91% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 25.6% were of German, 23.2% American, 11.3% English and 10.6% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 16,619 households out of which 31.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.30% were married couples living together, 11.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.90% were non-families. 27.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the county the population was spread out with 25.50% under the age of 18, 8.10% from 18 to 24, 26.60% from 25 to 44, 23.30% from 45 to 64, and 16.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 93.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,227, and the median income for a family was $41,427. Males had a median income of $31,459 versus $21,967 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,235. About 8.60% of families and 11.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.70% of those under age 18 and 8.60% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and villages

• Alma
• Central City
• Centralia (part, including downtown)
• Iuka
• Junction City
• Kell
• Kinmundy
• Odin
• Patoka
• Salem
• Sandoval
• Vernon
• Walnut Hill

Census designated places

• Cartter
• Fairman
• Finney Heights
• Glen Ridge
• Helm
• Slap Out
• Suburban

Climate and weather

Salem, Illinois
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     2.5   37 18     2.5   43 22     4   54 33     4   65 44     4.4   75 54     4.2   84 63     3.9   88 68     3.4   87 66     3.2   80 57     3.1   69 45     4.1   54 34     3.3   42 24 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     62   3 -8     64   6 -6     101   12 1     102   18 7     111   24 12     105   29 17     99   31 20     87   31 19     82   27 14     79   21 7     105   12 1     83   6 -4 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Salem have ranged from a low of 18 °F (−8 °C) in January to a high of 88 °F (31 °C) in July, although a record low of −23 °F (−31 °C) was recorded in January 1994 and a record high of 105 °F (41 °C) was recorded in August 1983. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 2.46 inches (62 mm) in January to 4.37 inches (111 mm) in May.^[5]

See also

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

References

1. ^ "Marion County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/17/17121.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 Salem, Illinois". The Weather Channel. http://www.weather.com/weather/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/USIL1047. Retrieved 2011-01-27. 

Coordinates: 38°39′N 88°55′W / 38.65°N 88.92°W / 38.65; -88.92