Fayette County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of the 2020 census, the population was 21,488. Its county seat is Vandalia, the site of the Vandalia State House State Historic Site. Ramsey Lake State Recreation Area is located in the northwestern part of this county.

History Fayette County was formed in 1821 out of Bond, Clark, and Crawford counties; according to one source, the county was formed on February 14, 1812. It was named in honor of the Marquis de LaFayette, French hero of the American Revolutionary War.

In 1823, Marion County, Illinois was carved out from the southernmost part of Fayette County; this was followed by the creation of Clay, Clinton and Shelby Counties from Fayette County areas. Early Tazewell County also received acreage from Fayette County. The year 1831 saw the creation of Effingham County and the establishment of the modern Fayette County boundaries.

Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.2%) is water.

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Vandalia have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of was recorded in July 1980. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in February to in May.

Adjacent counties Shelby County - northeast Effingham County - east Clay County - southeast Marion County - south Clinton County - southwest Bond County - west Montgomery County - northwest

Major highways Interstate 57 Interstate 70 U.S. Route 40 U.S. Route 51 Illinois Route 33 Illinois Route 37 Illinois Route 128 Illinois Route 140 Illinois Route 185

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 21,488. The median age was 41.4 years. 20.7% of residents were under the age of 18 and 18.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 122.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 126.3 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 92.0% White, 3.7% Black or African American, 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.9% from some other race, and 2.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 3.1% of the population.

37.7% of residents lived in urban areas, while 62.3% lived in rural areas.

There were 7,935 households in the county, of which 28.6% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 51.3% were married-couple households, 18.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 23.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 28.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 8,829 housing units, of which 10.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 78.4% were owner-occupied and 21.6% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.5%.

Racial and ethnic composition

+Fayette County County, Illinois – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)21,66520,08920,38620,58519,42597.74%96.15%93.51%92.98%90.40%Black or African American alone (NH)2975811,0649697801.34%2.78%4.88%4.38%3.63%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)37372533800.17%0.18%0.11%0.15%0.37%Asian alone (NH)26313747670.12%0.15%0.17%0.21%0.31%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 Census441xx0.02%0.02%0.00%Other race alone (NH)9196310.04%0.00%0.04%0.03%0.14%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census103192447xx0.47%0.87%2.08%Hispanic or Latino (any race)1331541743046570.60%0.74%0.80%1.37%3.06%Total22,16720,89321,80222,14021,488 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2010 census As of the 2010 United States census, there were 22,140 people, 8,311 households, and 5,648 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 9,302 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 93.7% white, 4.4% black or African American, 0.2% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.4% from other races, and 1.0% 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, 10.5% were English, 9.4% were American, and 9.3% were Irish.

Of the 8,311 households, 31.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.3% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.0% were non-families, and 27.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.95. The median age was 39.9 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $41,269 and the median income for a family was $51,216. Males had a median income of $38,257 versus $27,188 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,663. About 10.8% of families and 16.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.6% of those under age 18 and 12.0% of those age 65 or over. Communities

Cities St. Elmo Vandalia (seat)

Villages Bingham Brownstown Farina Ramsey St. Peter

Census-designated place

La Clede

Unincorporated communities

Augsburg Avena Bayle City Bluff City Confidence Dressor Hagarstown Loogootee Pittsburg Saint James Saint Paul Shafter Shobonier Vera

Townships Fayette County is divided into twenty townships:

Avena Bear Grove Bowling Green Carson Hurricane Kaskaskia LaClede Lone Grove Loudon Otego Pope Ramsey Sefton Seminary Shafter Sharon South Hurricane Vandalia Wheatland Wilberton

Politics Until the beginning of the twentieth century, Fayette County was rock-ribbed Democratic. It was not won by a Republican until Theodore Roosevelt’s landslide win of 1904. The county voted after that for the winning candidate in every election until 1940, when opposition to Franklin D. Roosevelt’s economic and war policies gave the county to Wendell Willkie. Since then only two Democratic presidential candidates have gained an absolute majority in the county – the more recent of these two, Jimmy Carter in 1976, doing so by a single vote.

Donald Trump has won by more than 75% in each of his three campaigns.

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

References

United States Census Bureau 2007 TIGER/Line Shapefiles United States Board on Geographic Names (GNIS) United States National Atlas