Lawrence County, Illinois | |
|---|---|
 Lawrence County Courthouse in Lawrenceville | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofIllinois | |
 Illinois's location within theU.S. | |
| Coordinates:38°43′N87°44′W / 38.72°N 87.73°W /38.72; -87.73 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Illinois |
| Founded | 1821 |
| Named after | James Lawrence |
| Seat | Lawrenceville |
| Largest city | Lawrenceville |
| Area | |
• Total | 374 sq mi (970 km2) |
| • Land | 372 sq mi (960 km2) |
| • Water | 2.0 sq mi (5.2 km2) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 15,280 |
• Estimate (2024) | 14,801 [1] |
| • Density | 41.1/sq mi (15.9/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Congressional district | 12th |
| Website | www.lawrencecounty illinois.com |
Lawrence County is the easternmostcounty in theU.S. state ofIllinois. At the2020 census, the population was 15,280.[2] Itscounty seat isLawrenceville.[3]
Lawrence County was formed in 1821 out ofCrawford andEdwards counties. It was named for Capt.James Lawrence, who was killed in action during theWar of 1812 while commanding thefrigateUSS Chesapeake.[4] Mortally wounded, he gave his men the famous last order, "Don't give up the ship."
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 374 square miles (970 km2), of which 372 square miles (960 km2) is land and 2.0 square miles (5.2 km2) (0.5%) is water.[5]
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In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Lawrenceville 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 −26 °F (−32 °C) was recorded in January 1994 and a record high of 104 °F (40 °C) was recorded in June 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 2.51 inches (64 mm) in February to 5.13 inches (130 mm) in May.[6]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1830 | 3,668 | — | |
| 1840 | 7,092 | 93.3% | |
| 1850 | 6,121 | −13.7% | |
| 1860 | 9,214 | 50.5% | |
| 1870 | 12,533 | 36.0% | |
| 1880 | 13,663 | 9.0% | |
| 1890 | 14,693 | 7.5% | |
| 1900 | 16,523 | 12.5% | |
| 1910 | 22,661 | 37.1% | |
| 1920 | 21,380 | −5.7% | |
| 1930 | 21,885 | 2.4% | |
| 1940 | 21,075 | −3.7% | |
| 1950 | 20,539 | −2.5% | |
| 1960 | 18,540 | −9.7% | |
| 1970 | 17,522 | −5.5% | |
| 1980 | 17,807 | 1.6% | |
| 1990 | 15,972 | −10.3% | |
| 2000 | 15,452 | −3.3% | |
| 2010 | 16,833 | 8.9% | |
| 2020 | 15,280 | −9.2% | |
| 2024 (est.) | 14,801 | [7] | −3.1% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[8] 1790-1960[9] 1900-1990[10] 1990-2000[11] 2010-2013[2] | |||
| Race / Ethnicity(NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 1980[12] | Pop 1990[13] | Pop 2000[14] | Pop 2010[15] | Pop 2020[16] | % 1980 | % 1990 | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 17,522 | 15,709 | 15,053 | 14,491 | 12,777 | 98.40% | 98.35% | 97.42% | 86.09% | 83.62% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 138 | 151 | 118 | 1,583 | 1,393 | 0.77% | 0.95% | 0.76% | 9.40% | 9.12% |
| Native American orAlaska Native alone (NH) | 15 | 31 | 19 | 30 | 12 | 0.08% | 0.19% | 0.12% | 0.18% | 0.08% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 25 | 20 | 18 | 38 | 58 | 0.14% | 0.13% | 0.12% | 0.23% | 0.38% |
| Native Hawaiian orPacific Islander alone (NH) | x[17] | x[18] | 0 | 1 | 7 | x | x | 0.00% | 0.01% | 0.05% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 14 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 29 | 0.08% | 0.03% | 0.03% | 0.05% | 0.19% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | x[19] | x[20] | 102 | 129 | 490 | x | x | 0.66% | 0.77% | 3.21% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 93 | 56 | 137 | 553 | 514 | 0.52% | 0.35% | 0.89% | 3.29% | 3.36% |
| Total | 17,807 | 15,972 | 15,452 | 16,833 | 15,280 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
As of the2010 United States census, there were 16,833 people, 6,130 households, and 4,056 families living in the county.[21] The population density was 45.2 inhabitants per square mile (17.5/km2). There were 6,936 housing units at an average density of 18.6 per square mile (7.2/km2).[5] The racial makeup of the county was 87.3% white, 9.6% black or African American, 0.2% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 1.7% from other races, and 1.0% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 3.3% of the population.[21] In terms of ancestry, 12.7% wereGerman, 10.4% wereAmerican, 9.5% wereIrish, and 7.8% wereEnglish.[22]
Of the 6,130 households, 28.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.7% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 33.8% were non-families, and 30.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.88. The median age was 39.7 years.[21]
The median income for a household in the county was $38,771 and the median income for a family was $45,565. Males had a median income of $40,949 versus $25,991 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,297. About 14.8% of families and 17.5% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 26.9% of those under age 18 and 7.7% of those age 65 or over.[23]
Nine townships make up Lawrence County. They are:
In its early days, Lawrence County was a Democratic-leaning swing county, voting Republican only twice up to 1892 when it supportedUlysses S. Grant in 1872 andBenjamin Harrison in 1888. It did not vote for a losing Republican candidate untilWendell Willkie carried the county in 1940 due to isolationist sentiment. Since that time, however, Lawrence County – like so many in Southern Illinois – has become reliably Republican. The only Democrat to gain an absolute majority in the county since 1936 has beenLyndon Johnson in 1964, althoughBill Clinton obtained pluralities in both 1992 and 1996.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1892 | 1,523 | 45.30% | 1,572 | 46.76% | 267 | 7.94% |
| 1896 | 1,972 | 49.41% | 1,948 | 48.81% | 71 | 1.78% |
| 1900 | 1,961 | 48.03% | 2,021 | 49.50% | 101 | 2.47% |
| 1904 | 1,969 | 50.64% | 1,712 | 44.03% | 207 | 5.32% |
| 1908 | 2,197 | 47.16% | 2,253 | 48.36% | 209 | 4.49% |
| 1912 | 1,617 | 30.39% | 2,550 | 47.93% | 1,153 | 21.67% |
| 1916 | 4,481 | 44.47% | 5,052 | 50.14% | 543 | 5.39% |
| 1920 | 4,720 | 54.17% | 3,707 | 42.54% | 287 | 3.29% |
| 1924 | 4,607 | 51.50% | 4,103 | 45.87% | 235 | 2.63% |
| 1928 | 5,851 | 60.16% | 3,806 | 39.13% | 69 | 0.71% |
| 1932 | 4,194 | 40.17% | 6,100 | 58.42% | 147 | 1.41% |
| 1936 | 5,060 | 44.39% | 6,168 | 54.11% | 170 | 1.49% |
| 1940 | 6,061 | 51.22% | 5,625 | 47.54% | 147 | 1.24% |
| 1944 | 5,191 | 55.79% | 4,003 | 43.02% | 111 | 1.19% |
| 1948 | 4,472 | 49.38% | 4,391 | 48.48% | 194 | 2.14% |
| 1952 | 6,207 | 61.54% | 3,875 | 38.42% | 4 | 0.04% |
| 1956 | 6,104 | 61.89% | 3,751 | 38.03% | 7 | 0.07% |
| 1960 | 6,120 | 62.45% | 3,667 | 37.42% | 13 | 0.13% |
| 1964 | 4,176 | 44.85% | 5,136 | 55.15% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 4,883 | 54.58% | 3,075 | 34.37% | 988 | 11.04% |
| 1972 | 5,347 | 65.36% | 2,818 | 34.45% | 16 | 0.20% |
| 1976 | 4,345 | 51.47% | 4,044 | 47.90% | 53 | 0.63% |
| 1980 | 4,453 | 56.68% | 3,030 | 38.57% | 373 | 4.75% |
| 1984 | 4,686 | 61.35% | 2,924 | 38.28% | 28 | 0.37% |
| 1988 | 3,655 | 53.57% | 3,140 | 46.02% | 28 | 0.41% |
| 1992 | 2,681 | 35.80% | 3,270 | 43.67% | 1,537 | 20.53% |
| 1996 | 2,568 | 40.18% | 2,871 | 44.92% | 953 | 14.91% |
| 2000 | 3,594 | 54.64% | 2,822 | 42.90% | 162 | 2.46% |
| 2004 | 4,162 | 61.85% | 2,518 | 37.42% | 49 | 0.73% |
| 2008 | 3,403 | 51.89% | 3,016 | 45.99% | 139 | 2.12% |
| 2012 | 3,857 | 64.40% | 2,011 | 33.58% | 121 | 2.02% |
| 2016 | 4,521 | 74.19% | 1,290 | 21.17% | 283 | 4.64% |
| 2020 | 4,886 | 76.08% | 1,419 | 22.10% | 117 | 1.82% |
| 2024 | 4,715 | 76.97% | 1,283 | 20.94% | 128 | 2.09% |
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Municipalities and communities ofLawrence County, Illinois,United States | ||
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