Illinois

Edgar County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the population was 18,576. Its county seat is Paris. Edgar County was formed out of Clark County in 1823 and named for John Edgar, an Irish-born officer in the Royal Navy who resigned rather than fight against the Americans in the Revolutionary War. Edgar moved to Kaskaskia, Illinois in 1784, becoming a miller and merchant in that town.

Census Data

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 624 square miles (1,620 km²), of which 623 square miles (1,610 km²) is land and 0.6 square miles (1.6 km²) (0.1%) is water.

As of the U.S. Census of 2000, there were 19,704 people, 7,874 households, and 5,322 families residing in the county. The population density was 32 people per square mile (12/km²). There were 8,611 housing units at an average density of 14 per square mile (5/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.12% White, 1.84% Black or African American, 0.19% Native American, 0.19% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.25% from other races, and 0.40% from two or more races. 0.78% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 32.2% were of American, 20.0% German, 12.6% English and 11.2% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000. 98.7% spoke English and 1.1% Spanish as their first language.

There were 7,874 households out of which 29.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.00% were married couples living together, 9.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.40% were non-families. 28.50% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the county the population was spread out with 23.90% under the age of 18, 8.30% from 18 to 24, 27.00% from 25 to 44, 23.20% from 45 to 64, and 17.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 95.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,203, and the median income for a family was $41,245. Males had a median income of $30,214 versus $21,097 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,857. About 7.60% of families and 10.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.20% of those under age 18 and 9.90% of those age 65 or over.

Page and information source: Edgar County Illinois on Wikipedia.