Kendall County, Illinois

Kendall County, Illinois
Map
Map of Illinois highlighting Kendall County
Location in the state of Illinois
Map of the U.S. highlighting Illinois
Illinois's location in the U.S.
Statistics
Founded 1841
Seat Yorkville
Area
 - Total
 - Land
 - Water

323 sq mi (246 km²)
321 sq mi (830 km²)
2 sq mi (5 km²), 0.65%
Population
 - (2000)
 - Density

54,544
170/sq mi (66/km²)
Time zone 1 hor late : -6/-5.39
Website: www.co.kendall.il.us
none

Kendall County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of 2000, the population was 54,544. According to Census Bureau statistics released in March 2008, Kendall County's estimated population of 96,818 in 2007 made it the fastest growing county in the United States (among counties with a population of 10,000 or greater) between the years 2000 and 2007[1], as well as the county experiencing the second greatest job growth during the same period.[2]

. Its county seat is Yorkville, Illinois[3]. This county is part of the Chicago metropolitan area.

Contents

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 323 square miles (836 km²), of which, 321 square miles (830 km²) of it is land and 2 square miles (5 km²) of it (0.65%) is water.

Terminal Moraines such as this one in central Kendall County rise dramatically from the surrounding plain.

Kendall County is a small, but rapidly growing county that has the majority of its population in the north and east, and along the Fox River (the only river in the county) which runs through the northwestern section of the county. Many new subdivisions have been constructed in this county, which has produced considerable population growth. Southern Kendall still remains largely agricultural. Kendall County has two primary ranges of low-lying hills formed by what is known as an end moraine. Ransom, the more predominant of the two moraines, runs through the west and north-central part of the county. This moraine has created elevations of over 800 feet (240 m), in contrast to elevations in southern Kendall County that drop to the lower 500 feet (150 m) range. Minooka, the other major end moraine ridge in Kendall County, runs along its entire eastern border with Will County. The two moraines intersect at almost a right angle in the township of Oswego. The only designated state park in the county is Silver Springs State Park.

Townships

Big Grove, Bristol, Fox, Kendall, Lisbon, Little Rock, Na-Au-Say, Oswego, Seward

Adjacent counties

History

Kendall County was formed in 1841 out of LaSalle and Kane Counties.

The county is named after Amos Kendall. Kendall was the editor of the Frankfort, Kentucky newspaper, and went on to be an important advisor to President Andrew Jackson. Kendall became the U.S. Postmaster General in 1835.

Government

Elected Officials

(As of February 2007) County Board members run in two districts. All other officers run county-wide:

School Districts

The northern half of the county is in Community College District 516 and is served by Waubonsee Community College in Sugar Grove and Aurora. The southern half is in Community College District 525 and is served by Joliet Junior College in Joliet.[4]

Demographics

Kendall County
Population by year

2000 - 54,544
1990 - 39,413
1980 - 37,202
1970 - 26,374
1960 - 17,540
1950 - 12,115
1940 - 11,105
1930 - 10,555
1920 - 10,074
1910 - 10,777
1900 - 11,467
1890 - 12,106
1880 - 13,083
1870 - 12,399
1860 - 13,074
1850 - 7,730

2000 census age pyramid for Kendall County.

As of the census[5] of 2000, there were 54,544 people, 18,798 households, and 14,963 families residing in the county. The population density was 170 people per square mile (66/km²). There were 19,519 housing units at an average density of 61 per square mile (24/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 92.88% White, 1.32% Black or African American, 0.19% Native American, 0.88% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 3.38% from other races, and 1.34% from two or more races. 7.49% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 27.2% were of German, 12.5% Irish, 7.4% English, 5.9% Polish, 5.8% Norwegian, 5.1% American and 5.0% Italian ancestry according to Census 2000. 91.6% spoke English and 6.5% Spanish as their first language.

There were 18,798 households out of which 41.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.80% were married couples living together, 7.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.40% were non-families. 16.40% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.89 and the average family size was 3.27.

In the county the population was spread out with 29.50% under the age of 18, 7.50% from 18 to 24, 32.40% from 25 to 44, 22.10% from 45 to 64, and 8.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 98.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $64,625, and the median income for a family was $69,383. Males had a median income of $50,268 versus $30,415 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,188. About 2.00% of families and 3.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.50% of those under age 18 and 4.50% of those age 65 or over.

Townships

The county is an 18-mile (29 km) square which is divided up into 9 townships. Each township is divided into 36 1 mile square sections, except that the Fox River is used as a Township border, resulting in Bristol being the smallest township with the extra area being assigned to Oswego and Kendall Townships. There are also two exceptions to the section grid to reflect Indian land grants under the Treaty of Prairie du Chien in 1829: the Mo-Ah-Way Reservation in Oswego Township and the Waish-Kee-shaw Reservation in Na-Au-Say Township. These areas were eventually sold to European settlers.[6]

Cities and towns

External links

References

Specific references:

General references:

  • Forstall, Richard L. (editor) (1996). Population of states and counties of the United States: 1790 to 1990 : from the twenty-one decennial censuses. United States Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Population Division. ISBN 0-934213-48-8.