Richland County, Illinois


Richland County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 United States census, it had a population of 15,813. Its county seat is Olney.

History

Richland County was established in 1841 out of portions of East part of Clay and West part of Lawrence counties. It was named for Richland County, Ohio, where many of the early settlers migrated from.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water.

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Olney have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in February 1951 and a record high of was recorded in July 1936. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in February to in May.

Transit

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 15,813. The median age was 43.2 years, with 22.6% of residents under the age of 18 and 21.7% aged 65 or older. For every 100 females there were 96.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.6 males age 18 and over. The population density was.
54.7% of residents lived in urban areas, while 45.3% lived in rural areas.
The racial makeup of the county was 94.2% White, 0.5% Black or African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.5% from some other race, and 3.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.7% of the population.
There were 6,621 households in the county, of which 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 47.8% were married-couple households, 19.1% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 26.1% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 31.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 7,364 housing units, of which 10.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 73.2% were owner-occupied and 26.8% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 10.9%.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 16,233 people, 6,726 households, and 4,438 families residing in the county.
The 2010 population density was. In 2010, there were 7,513 housing units at an average density of.
The 2010 racial makeup of the county was 97.3% white, 0.7% Asian, 0.5% black or African American, 0.2% American Indian, 0.4% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.3% of the population.
In terms of ancestry, 29.6% were German, 11.7% were American, 11.4% were English, and 9.2% were Irish.
Of the 6,726 households, 28.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.7% were married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 34.0% were non-families, and 29.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.88. The median age was 42.1 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $41,917 and the median income for a family was $53,853. Males had a median income of $41,058 versus $31,296 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,874. About 9.5% of families and 13.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.1% of those under age 18 and 11.9% of those age 65 or over. Richland is the top ranked most affordable county in Illinois to buy a car and is on average $932 less expensive than other Illinois counties.

Communities

City

Villages

Census-designated place

Unincorporated communities

Townships

Richland County is divided into nine townships:

Notable people