Whiteside County, Illinois | |
|---|---|
 Whiteside County Courthouse, Morrison | |
 Logo | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofIllinois | |
 Illinois's location within theU.S. | |
| Coordinates:41°45′N89°55′W / 41.75°N 89.91°W /41.75; -89.91 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Illinois |
| Founded | 1836 |
| Named after | Samuel Whiteside |
| Seat | Morrison |
| Largest city | Sterling |
| Area | |
• Total | 697 sq mi (1,810 km2) |
| • Land | 684 sq mi (1,770 km2) |
| • Water | 12 sq mi (31 km2) 1.8% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 55,691 |
• Estimate (2024) | 54,657 [1] |
| • Density | 81.4/sq mi (31.4/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Congressional district | 17th |
| Website | www |
Whiteside County is acounty located in theU.S. state ofIllinois. According to the2020 census, it had a population of 55,691.[2] Itscounty seat isMorrison.[3] The county is bounded on the west by the Mississippi River. Whiteside County comprises theSterling, ILMicropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in theDixon-Sterling, ILCombined Statistical Area. U.S. PresidentRonald Reagan was born in 1911 in the Whiteside County community ofTampico.
This area was long occupied by varying cultures of Native Americans.
Whiteside County was organized by European Americans in 1836 from parts ofJo Daviess andHenry counties. It was named for GeneralSamuel Whiteside, an Illinois officer in theWar of 1812 andBlack Hawk War.
Whiteside County's boundaries have remained unchanged since its creation in 1836.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 697 square miles (1,810 km2), of which 684 square miles (1,770 km2) is land and 12 square miles (31 km2) (1.8%) is water.[4]
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In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Morrison have ranged from a low of 10 °F (−12 °C) in January to a high of 85 °F (29 °C) in July, although a record low of −30 °F (−34 °C) was recorded in February 1905 and a record high of 112 °F (44 °C) was recorded in July 1936. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.51 inches (38 mm) in February to 4.69 inches (119 mm) in August.[5]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1840 | 2,514 | — | |
| 1850 | 5,361 | 113.2% | |
| 1860 | 18,737 | 249.5% | |
| 1870 | 27,503 | 46.8% | |
| 1880 | 30,885 | 12.3% | |
| 1890 | 30,854 | −0.1% | |
| 1900 | 34,710 | 12.5% | |
| 1910 | 34,507 | −0.6% | |
| 1920 | 36,174 | 4.8% | |
| 1930 | 39,019 | 7.9% | |
| 1940 | 43,338 | 11.1% | |
| 1950 | 49,336 | 13.8% | |
| 1960 | 59,887 | 21.4% | |
| 1970 | 62,877 | 5.0% | |
| 1980 | 65,970 | 4.9% | |
| 1990 | 60,186 | −8.8% | |
| 2000 | 60,653 | 0.8% | |
| 2010 | 58,498 | −3.6% | |
| 2020 | 55,691 | −4.8% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 54,498 | [6] | −2.1% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[7] 1790-1960[8] 1900-1990[9] 1990-2000[10] 2010[11] | |||
| 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) | 60,821 | 55,058 | 53,946 | 50,263 | 45,341 | 92.19% | 91.48% | 88.94% | 85.92% | 81.42% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 314 | 379 | 577 | 705 | 741 | 0.48% | 0.63% | 0.95% | 1.21% | 1.33% |
| Native American orAlaska Native alone (NH) | 75 | 74 | 102 | 90 | 60 | 0.11% | 0.12% | 0.17% | 0.15% | 0.11% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 167 | 167 | 247 | 269 | 306 | 0.25% | 0.28% | 0.41% | 0.46% | 0.55% |
| Native Hawaiian orPacific Islander alone (NH) | x[17] | x[18] | 3 | 2 | 9 | x | x | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.02% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 69 | 46 | 17 | 35 | 149 | 0.10% | 0.08% | 0.03% | 0.06% | 0.27% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | x[19] | x[20] | 414 | 679 | 1,954 | x | x | 0.68% | 1.16% | 3.51% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 4,524 | 4,462 | 5,347 | 6,455 | 7,131 | 6.86% | 7.41% | 8.82% | 11.03% | 12.80% |
| Total | 65,970 | 60,186 | 60,653 | 58,498 | 55,691 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
As of the2010 United States census, there were 58,498 people, 23,740 households, and 16,005 families residing in the county.[21] The population density was 85.5 inhabitants per square mile (33.0/km2). There were 25,770 housing units at an average density of 37.7 per square mile (14.6/km2).[4] The racial makeup of the county was 92.2% white, 1.3% black or African American, 0.5% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 3.5% from other races, and 2.2% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 11.0% of the population.[21] In terms of ancestry, 32.5% wereGerman, 15.5% wereIrish, 8.7% wereDutch, 8.6% wereEnglish, and 6.0% wereAmerican.[22]
Of the 23,740 households, 30.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.5% were married couples living together, 11.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.6% were non-families, and 27.7% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.92. The median age was 41.8 years.[21]
The median income for a household in the county was $45,266 and the median income for a family was $54,242. Males had a median income of $41,862 versus $29,157 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,405. About 8.2% of families and 11.2% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 17.6% of those under age 18 and 5.8% of those age 65 or over.[23]
Whiteside County is divided into thesetownships:
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1892 | 3,819 | 54.00% | 2,779 | 39.30% | 474 | 6.70% |
| 1896 | 5,577 | 65.43% | 2,788 | 32.71% | 159 | 1.87% |
| 1900 | 5,663 | 65.19% | 2,758 | 31.75% | 266 | 3.06% |
| 1904 | 5,636 | 71.17% | 1,546 | 19.52% | 737 | 9.31% |
| 1908 | 5,257 | 65.74% | 2,140 | 26.76% | 600 | 7.50% |
| 1912 | 1,437 | 18.64% | 1,996 | 25.89% | 4,278 | 55.48% |
| 1916 | 10,045 | 69.24% | 3,839 | 26.46% | 623 | 4.29% |
| 1920 | 10,923 | 81.74% | 1,927 | 14.42% | 513 | 3.84% |
| 1924 | 11,532 | 74.04% | 1,957 | 12.56% | 2,087 | 13.40% |
| 1928 | 13,580 | 76.60% | 4,079 | 23.01% | 69 | 0.39% |
| 1932 | 11,388 | 61.14% | 7,010 | 37.64% | 228 | 1.22% |
| 1936 | 12,666 | 59.62% | 7,982 | 37.57% | 595 | 2.80% |
| 1940 | 15,752 | 67.77% | 7,356 | 31.65% | 134 | 0.58% |
| 1944 | 14,162 | 71.21% | 5,555 | 27.93% | 171 | 0.86% |
| 1948 | 12,922 | 70.32% | 5,299 | 28.84% | 154 | 0.84% |
| 1952 | 17,294 | 73.28% | 6,238 | 26.43% | 67 | 0.28% |
| 1956 | 17,589 | 73.95% | 6,158 | 25.89% | 37 | 0.16% |
| 1960 | 17,434 | 65.56% | 9,112 | 34.27% | 46 | 0.17% |
| 1964 | 12,940 | 50.79% | 12,536 | 49.21% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 15,177 | 61.86% | 8,132 | 33.15% | 1,225 | 4.99% |
| 1972 | 17,305 | 68.40% | 7,909 | 31.26% | 87 | 0.34% |
| 1976 | 14,308 | 55.34% | 11,255 | 43.53% | 291 | 1.13% |
| 1980 | 17,389 | 66.72% | 7,191 | 27.59% | 1,484 | 5.69% |
| 1984 | 16,743 | 59.59% | 11,226 | 39.96% | 127 | 0.45% |
| 1988 | 12,978 | 53.05% | 11,328 | 46.31% | 156 | 0.64% |
| 1992 | 10,146 | 37.37% | 12,329 | 45.41% | 4,678 | 17.23% |
| 1996 | 8,859 | 37.95% | 11,913 | 51.03% | 2,572 | 11.02% |
| 2000 | 11,252 | 45.30% | 12,886 | 51.88% | 699 | 2.81% |
| 2004 | 12,959 | 48.22% | 13,723 | 51.07% | 191 | 0.71% |
| 2008 | 10,883 | 40.32% | 15,607 | 57.82% | 504 | 1.87% |
| 2012 | 10,448 | 40.45% | 14,833 | 57.43% | 547 | 2.12% |
| 2016 | 12,615 | 49.31% | 11,035 | 43.14% | 1,932 | 7.55% |
| 2020 | 14,527 | 52.95% | 12,253 | 44.67% | 653 | 2.38% |
| 2024 | 14,898 | 56.11% | 11,012 | 41.48% | 640 | 2.41% |
Whiteside County has a political history typical of Northern Illinois. Between its first election in 1840, and 1852, it always favoredthe Whig Party, and although Whiteside was not as strong for theFree Soil Party as counties to the east likeBoone andLake, it gave substantial votes to that party in 1848[25] and 1852[26] and became powerfully Republican for the next century-and-a-quarter. Between 1856 and 1988 the only time Whiteside failed to vote for the Republican candidate was in 1912, when Progressive Party nominee and former PresidentTheodore Roosevelt won it by a 2-to-1 margin over conservative incumbentWilliam Howard Taft. Between at least 1880 and 1960, no Democratic presidential nominee ever won 40 percent of Whiteside's vote, and evenAlf Landon in 1936 carried the county by 22 percent when losing 46 of 48 states.
In 1964, the Republican Party nominatedBarry Goldwater, whose hostility to the Yankee establishment and strongly conservative policies were sufficient to leave many traditional Republicans to stay home or even to vote forLyndon Johnson.[27] In this climate, Goldwater managed to keep the Republican Party's winning streak in Whiteside alive, but by just 1.6%, or 404 votes.
The county continued to vote comfortably more Republican than the nation for the next four elections, including for county nativeRonald Reagan. But in 1984, even as Reagan increased his national margin by over 8%, his margin in Whiteside was more than halved, from a little over 40% in 1980 to 19.6% in 1984. The county was only marginally more Republican than the nation in 1984. The Democratic trend continued in 1988, as George H. W. Bush carried it by 6.8%, a somewhat smaller margin than he won the national popular vote by, making it election the first one in which Whiteside voted more Democratic than the nation in at least a century. In 1992, it gave Bill Clinton a plurality win, with a comfortable 8.0% margin over George H. W. Bush. In 1996, the county gave Bill Clinton an outright majority. The county went on to vote Democratic for the next four consecutive elections, giving Gore, Kerry, and Obama four straight majorities.
However, in 2016, concerns over long-term economic decline saw much of the Rust Belt swing heavily towards Donald Trump,[28] and Whiteside flipped from a 16.9% Obama win in 2012 to a Trump plurality in 2016. In 2020, Trump won a majority—the first for a Republican since 1988—and increased his margin from 6.2% to 8.3%.
K-12 School districts include:[29]
There is one secondary school district,Rock Falls Township High School District 301.[29]
Elementary school districts include:[29]
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Municipalities and communities ofWhiteside County, Illinois,United States | ||
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