Marion County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois, in the southern half of the state known as "Little Egypt". According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 37,729. Its county seat is Salem. Marion County comprises the Centralia, IL Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the St. Louis-St. Charles-Farmington, MO-IL Combined Statistical Area.

History Marion County was organized on January 24, 1823, from portions of Jefferson and Fayette counties. It was named in honor of Revolutionary War Gen. Francis Marion, the "Swamp Fox".

Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.6%) is water.

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.

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Salem have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1994 and a record high of was recorded in August 1983. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in January to in May.

Transit South Central Transit

Major highways Interstate 57 U.S. Route 50 U.S. Route 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

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 37,729. The median age was 42.7 years, with 22.7% of residents under the age of 18 and 21.2% aged 65 or older. For every 100 females there were 96.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.1 males age 18 and over.

52.2% of residents lived in urban areas, while 47.8% lived in rural areas.

There were 15,620 households in the county, of which 28.0% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 44.8% were married-couple households, 19.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 28.2% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 30.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 17,358 housing units, of which 10.0% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 73.7% were owner-occupied and 26.3% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.1%.

Racial and ethnic composition +Marion County, Illinois – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)41,48739,47738,95136,45633,15095.32%94.99%93.43%92.44%87.86%Black or African American alone (NH)1,5181,5071,5931,5361,5093.49%3.63%3.82%3.89%4.00%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)6810685105940.16%0.26%0.20%0.27%0.25%Asian alone (NH)1382272352243490.32%0.55%0.56%0.57%0.93%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census1591xx0.04%0.02%0.00%Other race alone (NH)42122611970.10%0.03%0.06%0.03%0.26%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census4085541,817xx0.98%1.40%4.82%Hispanic or Latino (any race)2702323785427120.62%0.56%0.91%1.37%1.89%Total43,52341,56141,69139,43737,729 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2010 census As of the 2010 United States census, there were 39,437 people, 16,148 households, and 10,746 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 18,296 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 93.1% white, 3.9% black or African American, 0.6% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 0.4% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.4% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 27.5% were German, 15.8% were Irish, 13.6% were English, and 10.8% were American.

Of the 16,148 households, 30.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.9% were married couples living together, 12.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 33.5% were non-families, and 28.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.91. The median age was 41.4 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $38,974 and the median income for a family was $50,518. Males had a median income of $41,428 versus $28,042 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,493. About 12.2% of families and 16.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.9% of those under age 18 and 9.6% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities Centralia Kinmundy Salem Wamac

Villages

Alma Central City Iuka Junction City Kell Odin Patoka Sandoval Vernon Walnut Hill

Townships Marion County is divided into seventeen townships:

Alma Carrigan Centralia Foster Haines Iuka Kinmundy Meacham Odin Omega Patoka Raccoon Romine Salem Sandoval Stevenson Tonti

Unincorporated communities

Greendale Tonti

Politics Initially a strongly Democratic anti-Yankee county, Marion County has undergone two transitions. Between 1912 and 2004 it was a perfect bellwether apart from the Catholicism-influenced 1960 election when substantial anti-Catholic voting by its largely southern white population caused it to support Republican Richard Nixon. Since the beginning of the twenty-first century it has voted consistently for Republican presidential candidates.

See also National Register of Historic Places listings in Marion County, Illinois

References