Loading

  • 21 Aug, 2019

  • By, Wikipedia

Fayette County, Illinois
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.

  • Fayette County between the time of its creation and 1823
    Fayette County between the time of its creation and 1823
  • Fayette between 1823 and 1824
    Fayette between 1823 and 1824
  • Fayette between 1824 and 1827
    Fayette between 1824 and 1827
  • Fayette between 1827 and 1831
    Fayette between 1827 and 1831
  • Fayette in 1831, when the creation of Effingham County reduced it to its current size
    Fayette in 1831, when the creation of Effingham County reduced it to its current size

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 725 square miles (1,880 km), of which 716 square miles (1,850 km) is land and 8.9 square miles (23 km) (1.2%) is water.

Climate and weather

Vandalia, Illinois
Climate chart (explanation)
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
 
 
2.5
 
 
35
18
 
 
2.4
 
 
41
23
 
 
3.7
 
 
52
32
 
 
3.6
 
 
64
43
 
 
4.1
 
 
74
53
 
 
3.9
 
 
83
62
 
 
3.6
 
 
88
67
 
 
2.8
 
 
86
64
 
 
3
 
 
79
55
 
 
2.8
 
 
67
43
 
 
3.7
 
 
53
34
 
 
2.8
 
 
40
24
█ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F
█ Precipitation totals in inches
Source: The Weather Channel
Metric conversion
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
 
 
63
 
 
2
−8
 
 
61
 
 
5
−5
 
 
94
 
 
11
0
 
 
91
 
 
18
6
 
 
104
 
 
23
12
 
 
100
 
 
28
17
 
 
92
 
 
31
19
 
 
71
 
 
30
18
 
 
75
 
 
26
13
 
 
72
 
 
19
6
 
 
94
 
 
12
1
 
 
70
 
 
4
−4
█ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C
█ Precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Vandalia 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 −21 °F (−29 °C) was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of 104 °F (40 °C) was recorded in July 1980. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 2.41 inches (61 mm) in February to 4.11 inches (104 mm) in May.

Adjacent counties

Major highways

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18302,704—
18406,328134.0%
18508,07527.6%
186011,18938.6%
187019,63875.5%
188023,24118.3%
189023,3670.5%
190028,06520.1%
191028,0750.0%
192026,187−6.7%
193023,487−10.3%
194029,15924.1%
195024,582−15.7%
196021,946−10.7%
197020,752−5.4%
198022,1676.8%
199020,893−5.7%
200021,8024.4%
201022,1401.6%
202021,488−2.9%
2023 (est.)21,164−1.5%
U.S. Decennial Census
1790-1960 1900-1990
1990-2000 2010
2000 census age pyramid for Fayette County, skewed toward the male side by the Vandalia Correctional Center, an Illinois State prison, located in the county.

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 30.9 inhabitants per square mile (11.9/km). There were 9,302 housing units at an average density of 13.0 per square mile (5.0/km). 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

Villages

Unincorporated communities

Townships

Fayette County is divided into twenty townships:

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.

United States presidential election results for Fayette County, Illinois
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2020 8,055 79.94% 1,826 18.12% 195 1.94%
2016 7,372 76.86% 1,819 18.97% 400 4.17%
2012 5,951 66.03% 2,853 31.66% 208 2.31%
2008 5,499 56.64% 3,967 40.86% 242 2.49%
2004 5,880 61.58% 3,571 37.40% 98 1.03%
2000 5,200 55.69% 3,886 41.61% 252 2.70%
1996 3,881 44.14% 3,887 44.21% 1,024 11.65%
1992 3,508 34.67% 4,833 47.77% 1,777 17.56%
1988 5,452 53.88% 4,632 45.78% 34 0.34%
1984 6,607 63.09% 3,844 36.70% 22 0.21%
1980 6,523 62.67% 3,614 34.72% 271 2.60%
1976 5,059 49.33% 5,128 50.00% 68 0.66%
1972 6,574 61.05% 4,192 38.93% 2 0.02%
1968 5,449 52.38% 4,011 38.56% 943 9.06%
1964 4,492 41.64% 6,295 58.36% 0 0.00%
1960 6,586 57.25% 4,907 42.65% 11 0.10%
1956 6,739 57.81% 4,914 42.15% 5 0.04%
1952 7,028 56.96% 5,299 42.95% 12 0.10%
1948 5,717 49.25% 5,771 49.72% 120 1.03%
1944 6,332 53.27% 5,435 45.72% 120 1.01%
1940 7,486 50.19% 7,286 48.85% 143 0.96%
1936 6,419 48.01% 6,824 51.04% 128 0.96%
1932 5,122 41.44% 7,053 57.06% 185 1.50%
1928 6,545 61.65% 3,998 37.66% 73 0.69%
1924 5,010 48.43% 4,668 45.13% 666 6.44%
1920 5,758 58.48% 3,824 38.84% 264 2.68%
1916 5,316 46.55% 5,669 49.65% 434 3.80%
1912 1,481 24.51% 2,782 46.04% 1,779 29.44%
1908 3,261 48.67% 3,193 47.66% 246 3.67%
1904 3,253 51.62% 2,650 42.05% 399 6.33%
1900 2,920 44.79% 3,423 52.51% 176 2.70%
1896 2,769 42.46% 3,627 55.61% 126 1.93%
1892 1,980 36.66% 2,433 45.05% 988 18.29%

See also