Piatt County, Illinois

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Piatt County, Illinois
Piatt County Illinois Courthouse in Monticello
Map of Illinois highlighting Piatt County
Location in the state of Illinois
Map of the United States highlighting Illinois
Illinois's location in the U.S.
Founded 1841
Seat Monticello
Largest city Monticello
Area
 • Total 439.46 sq mi (1,138 km2)
 • Land 439.20 sq mi (1,138 km2)
 • Water 0.26 sq mi (1 km2), 0.06%
Population
 • (2010) 16,729
 • Density 37/sq mi (14/km²)
Time zone Central: UTC-6/-5
Website www.piattcounty.org

Piatt County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 16,729, which is an increase of 2.2% from 16,365 in 2000.[1] Its county seat is Monticello.[2]

Piatt County is part of the Champaign–Urbana Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 439.46 square miles (1,138.2 km2), of which 439.20 square miles (1,137.5 km2) (or 99.94%) is land and 0.26 square miles (0.67 km2) (or 0.06%) is water.[3]

Major highways

Adjacent counties

History

The first settler was a Quaker named George Haworth, followed by James Martin, Abraham Hanline, Solomon Carter, and William Cordell.

Piatt County was formed in 1841 from Macon and Dewitt counties. Two local residents: James A. Piatt and Jesse Warner, were instrumental in forming the county. It was named after James A. Piatt after winning a coin flip against Jesse Warner.

  • Piatt County at the time of its creation in 1841

Abraham Lincoln practiced law in Piatt County as a circuit lawyer. Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas planned their presidential debates in Piatt County in 1858. One of which is ornamented by a marker just south of Monticello.

The first courthouse was built in 1843 but replaced by the current courthouse which was finished in 1904.

Illinois Power Company was a major electric utility in Central Illinois, centered in Decatur, Illinois, to the west of Piatt County. At one time, Illinois had a "personal property tax", an ad valorem tax levied by the counties on property that was not real estate. The personal property tax was a major expense for the electric utilities, since their generators and transmission lines were "personal property". Under Illinois law, a corporation, such as Illinois Power, paid personal property tax to the county in which the corporate headquarters was located. Because Piatt County offered a low tax rate, Illinois Power moved its corporate headquarters to that county. This allowed Piatt County to tax utility assets over half of the State, providing a rich source of revenue which was responsible for much of the wealth of this tiny county.[citation needed]

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop. %±
18501,606
—
18606,127281.5%
187010,95378.8%
188015,58342.3%
189017,0629.5%
190017,7063.8%
191016,376−7.5%
192015,714−4.0%
193015,588−0.8%
194014,659−6.0%
195013,970−4.7%
196014,9607.1%
197015,5093.7%
198016,5816.9%
199015,548−6.2%
200016,3655.3%
201016,7292.2%
Est. 201216,504−1.3%
U.S. Decennial Census[4]
2012 Estimate[5]

As of the census of 2000,[6] there were 16,365 people, 6,475 households, and 4,726 families residing in the county. The population density was 37 people per square mile (14/km²). There were 6,798 housing units at an average density of 15 per square mile (6/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.83% White, 0.24% Black or African American, 0.08% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.14% from other races, and 0.57% from two or more races. 0.62% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 29.9% were of German, 16.1% American, 14.5% English and 13.0% Irish ancestry.

There were 6,475 households out of which 32.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.30% were married couples living together, 6.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.00% were non-families. 23.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the county the population was spread out with 25.10% under the age of 18, 6.80% from 18 to 24, 27.60% from 25 to 44, 25.00% from 45 to 64, and 15.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 95.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $45,752, and the median income for a family was $52,218. Males had a median income of $36,762 versus $23,606 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,075. About 3.60% of families and 5.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.80% of those under age 18 and 6.20% of those age 65 or over.

Cities, towns and villages

Map of Piatt County, Illinois

Cities

Villages

Unincorporated towns

Extinct towns

  • Blue Ridge
  • Centerville
  • Combs
  • Harris
  • Unity
  • Voorhies
  • Willow Branch

Townships

Piatt County is divided into eight townships:

Climate and weather

Monticello, Illinois
Climate chart (explanation)
JFMAMJJASOND
 
 
1.6
 
32
14
 
 
1.7
 
37
19
 
 
3
 
49
30
 
 
3.4
 
62
40
 
 
4
 
73
51
 
 
4
 
83
60
 
 
3.8
 
85
64
 
 
4
 
84
62
 
 
2.9
 
78
54
 
 
2.6
 
66
42
 
 
2.9
 
49
31
 
 
2.4
 
36
21
Average max. and min. temperatures in °F
Precipitation totals in inches
Source: The Weather Channel[7]

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Monticello have ranged from a low of 14 °F (−10 °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 1999 and a record high of 105 °F (41 °C) was recorded in July 1966. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.61 inches (41 mm) in January to 3.99 inches (101 mm) in August.[7]

See also

  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Piatt County

References

  1. ↑ "Piatt County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2011-11-05. 
  2. ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
  3. ↑ "Census 2010 U.S. Gazetteer Files: Counties". United States Census. Retrieved 2011-11-05. 
  4. ↑ "U.S. Decennial Census". Census.gov. Retrieved July 28, 2013. 
  5. ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2012". Census.gov. Retrieved July 28, 2013. 
  6. ↑ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Monthly Averages for Monticello, Illinois". The Weather Channel. Retrieved 2011-01-27. 
 McLean County
De Witt County Champaign County
   Piatt County, Illinois  
Macon County Moultrie County Douglas County
Municipalities and communities of Piatt County, Illinois, United States
City
Villages
Townships
CDPs
Other
unincorporated
communities
Footnotes
‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties
Springfield (capital)
Topics
Regions
Cities,
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and villages
Counties

Coordinates: 40°01′N 88°35′W / 40.01°N 88.59°W / 40.01; -88.59

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