Calhoun County, Illinois
History
Calhoun County was organized in 1825, and was named for John C. Calhoun, who was the Vice President of the United States at the time, and was also a proponent of States' rights.Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 284 square miles (735 km²), of which 254 square miles (657 km²) is land and 30 square miles (77 km²) (10.53%) is water.Calhoun County is a narrow finger of mostly high ground located between the Mississippi River and the Illinois River. It is serviced by two state operated free ferry boats crossing the Illinois River (the Brussels Ferry and the Kampsville ferry) and one privately operated toll ferry boat crossing the Mississippi River into Missouri (the Golden Eagle ferry). There is also one bridge that spans the Illinois River at Hardin as well as land routes to the north into bordering Pike County.
The county had many prosperous farms and orchards at a time when transportation was mainly by river. It is very popular with sight seers in the fall due to the natural beauty of the Illinois River valley and its proximity to the Great River Road. Calhoun County was added to the St. Louis Metropolitan Statistical Area in 2003, along with Bond and Macoupin counties in Illinois, and in Washington County, Missouri.
Calhoun County is home to the Center for American Archeology, located in Kampsville.
Adjacent counties
- Greene County - northeast
- Jersey County - east
- St. Charles County, Missouri - south
- Lincoln County, Missouri - west
- Pike County, Illinois - northwest
- Pike County, Missouri - northwest
National protected area
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 5,084 people, 2,046 households, and 1,438 families residing in the county. The population density was 20 people per square mile (8/km²). There were 2,681 housing units at an average density of 11 per square mile (4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.80% White, 0.04% Black or African American, 0.31% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 0.16% from other races, and 0.51% from two or more races. 0.63% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 53.5% were of German, 13.5% American, 6.3% Irish and 6.0% English ancestry according to Census 2000. 98.5% spoke English and 1.3% Spanish as their first language.There were 2,046 households out of which 29.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.80% were married couples living together, 5.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.70% were non-families. 26.50% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the county the population was spread out with 22.90% under the age of 18, 7.60% from 18 to 24, 25.90% from 25 to 44, 24.40% from 45 to 64, and 19.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 100.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.40 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $34,375, and the median income for a family was $43,107. Males had a median income of $32,281 versus $20,943 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,785. About 7.30% of families and 9.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.10% of those under age 18 and 9.80% of those age 65 or over.
Settlements
Villages
Unincorporated communities
External links
- Illinois Genealogy Trails: Calhoun County, Illinois
- History of Calhoun County, Illinois
- Calhoun County Unit 40
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Last updated on Monday September 29, 2008 at 10:09:18 PDT (GMT -0700)
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