Knox County, Illinois

Updated on Sep 20, 2024

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Founded 1825 Largest city Galesburg Time zone Central: UTC-6/-5 Area 1,865 km² County seat Galesburg		Named for Henry Knox Congressional district 17th Website www.knoxcountyil.com Population 52,078 (2013) Unemployment rate 5.1% (Apr 2015)

Colleges and Universities Knox College, Carl Sandburg College Cities Galesburg, Knoxville, Abingdon, Galesburg Township Points of interest Lake Storey Park, Lake Storey Beach, Rotary Park, Lincoln Park, Discovery Depot Children

Knox County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it had a population of 52,919. Its county seat is Galesburg.

Map of Knox County, IL, USA

Knox County comprises the Galesburg, IL Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Knox County was named in honor of Henry Knox, the first US Secretary of War.

The first "Knox County" in what today is Illinois was unrelated to the modern incarnation. In 1790, the land of the Indiana Territory that was to become Illinois was divided into two counties: St. Clair and Knox. The latter included land in what was to become Indiana. When Knox County, Indiana, was formed from this portion of the county in 1809, the Illinois portions were subdivided into counties that were given other names.

The modern Knox County, Illinois, was organized in 1825, from Fulton County, itself a portion of the original St. Clair County.

Like its neighbor to the south, Fulton County, for its Spoon River Drive, Knox County is also known for a similar scenic drive fall festival the first two weekends in October, the Knox County Drive.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 720 square miles (1,900 km²), of which 716 square miles (1,850 km²) is land and 3.4 square miles (8.8 km²) (0.5%) is water.

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Galesburg have ranged from a low of 13 °F (−11 °C) in January to a high of 85 °F (29 °C) in July, although a record low of −25 °F (−32 °C) was recorded in January 1982 and a record high of 102 °F (39 °C) was recorded in July 1983. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.41 inches (36 mm) in January to 4.37 inches (111 mm) in July.

Adjacent counties

Henry County - north

Stark County - east

Peoria County - southeast

Fulton County - south

Warren County - west

Mercer County - northwest

Demographics

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 52,919 people, 21,535 households, and 13,324 families residing in the county. The population density was 73.9 inhabitants per square mile (28.5/km²). There were 24,077 housing units at an average density of 33.6 per square mile (13.0/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 87.5% white, 7.2% black or African American, 0.6% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 1.9% from other races, and 2.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 4.8% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 23.1% were German, 14.9% were Irish, 11.7% were English, 11.6% were Swedish, and 8.0% were American.

Of the 21,535 households, 27.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.7% were married couples living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 38.1% were non-families, and 32.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.84. The median age was 42.0 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $39,545 and the median income for a family was $51,740. Males had a median income of $42,067 versus $25,380 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,908. About 10.9% of families and 15.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.7% of those under age 18 and 7.3% of those age 65 or over.