Douglas County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 19,740. The county seat is Tuscola.

History Douglas County was formed in 1859 out of Coles County. It was named for Stephen A. Douglas, who was elected to the United States Senate in 1858, following the Lincoln–Douglas debates.

Geography

According to the US Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.1%) is water.

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Tuscola have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in December 1989 and a record high of was recorded in July 1954. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in February to in July.

Adjacent counties

Champaign County - north Vermilion County - northeast Edgar County - east Coles County - south Moultrie County - west Piatt County - northwest

Major highways

Interstate 57 US Route 36 US Route 45 Illinois Route 49 Illinois Route 130 Illinois Route 133

Demographics

2020 census As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 19,740. The median age was 39.6 years, 24.8% of residents were under the age of 18, and 18.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 97.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.1 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 90.5% White, 0.3% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 3.9% from some other race, and 4.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 7.9% of the population.

25.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 75.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 7,749 households in the county, of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 53.5% were married-couple households, 17.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 23.1% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 27.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 8,469 housing units, of which 8.5% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 74.6% were owner-occupied and 25.4% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.8%.

Racial and ethnic composition +Douglas County, Illinois – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)19,49119,10218,99318,42717,42098.57%98.14%95.34%92.23%88.25%Black or African American alone (NH)6155953670.03%0.08%0.30%0.27%0.34%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)24182931280.12%0.09%0.15%0.16%0.14%Asian alone (NH)343749821030.17%0.19%0.25%0.41%0.52%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 Census206xx0.01%0.00%0.03%Other race alone (NH)10016340.05%0.00%0.01%0.03%0.17%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census99171517xx0.50%0.86%2.62%Hispanic or Latino (any race)2092926901,2101,5651.06%1.50%3.46%6.06%7.93%Total19,77419,46419,92219,98019,740 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2010 census As of the 2010 United States census, there were 19,980 people, 7,720 households, and 5,377 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 8,390 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 95.7% white, 0.4% Asian, 0.3% black or African American, 0.2% American Indian, 2.3% from other races, and 1.2% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 6.1% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 29.6% were German, 12.6% were American, 12.1% were English, and 10.7% were Irish.

Of the 7,720 households, 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.0% were married couples living together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 30.3% were non-families, and 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.11. The median age was 38.7 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $46,941 and the median income for a family was $60,352. Males had a median income of $41,318 versus $28,731 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,438. About 7.1% of families and 10.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.0% of those under age 18 and 7.2% of those age 65 or over. Communities

Cities

Arcola Newman Tuscola (seat) Villa Grove

Villages

Arthur (partial) Atwood (partial) Camargo Garrett Hindsboro

Unincorporated communities

Bourbon Chesterville Chicken Bristle Fairland Ficklin Filson Hugo Hayes Hillcrest Kemp Murdock Patterson Springs

Townships

Arcola Bourbon Bowdre Camargo Garrett Murdock Newman Sargent Tuscola

Politics Douglas is a strongly Republican county. Apart from a narrow plurality of thirty-two votes to Bill Clinton in 1992, it has voted Republican in every Presidential election since 1968, and in all but five overall since 1880. Despite its long-time Republican leanings, Hillary Clinton's 2016 performance of gaining a mere 23.8 percent of the county's vote stands over six percent worse than any Democrat since the Civil War.

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

References

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

External links

Douglas County Fact Sheet