Adams County, Illinois

Adams County, Illinois
Adams County Courthouse
Location in the state of Illinois
Illinois's location in the U.S.
Founded	1825
Named for	John Quincy Adams
Seat	Quincy
Largest city	Quincy
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	871 sq mi (2,256 km²) 855 sq mi (2,214 km²) 16 sq mi (41 km²), 1.9
Population  - (2020)  - Density	65,737 auto/sq mi (/km²)
Congressional district	18th
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	www.co.adams.il.us

Adams County is the westernmost county in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of the 2020 census, the population was 65,737. Its county seat is Quincy. Adams County is part of the Quincy, IL–MO Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Adams County was formed in 1825 out of Pike County. Its name is in honor of the sixth President of the United States, John Quincy Adams.

When it was created, Hancock County was temporarily attached to Adams until it could organize a county government.

Adams County reduced to its current borders in 1829.

Geography

Climate chart for Quincy, Illinois
J	F	M	A	M	J	J	A	S	O	N	D
1.36   34 16	1.74   40 21	2.93   52 30	3.48   65 41	4.61   75 51	3.26   84 61	3.89   88 66	3.09   86 63	3.45   78 55	2.50   66 43	3.10   51 33	2.22   38 21
temperatures in °C • precipitation totals in mm source: The Weather Channel

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 871 square miles (2,260 km²), of which 855 square miles (2,210 km²) is land and 16 square miles (41 km²) (1.9%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Hancock County - north
• Brown County - east
• Schuyler County - east
• Pike County - south
• Marion County, Missouri - west
• Lewis County, Missouri - west

Major highways

• Interstate 172
• US Route 24
• US Route 36
• Illinois Route 57
• Illinois Route 61
• Illinois Route 94
• Illinois Route 96
• Illinois Route 104
• Illinois Route 336

National protected area

• Great River National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Quincy have ranged from a low of 16 °F (−9 °C) in January to a high of 88 °F (31 °C) in July, although a record low of −21 °F (−29.4 °C) was recorded in January 1979 and a record high of 105 °F (41 °C) was recorded in July 2005. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.36 inches (35 mm) in January to 4.61 inches (117 mm) in May.

Demographics

2000 Census Age Pyramid for Adams County.

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1830	2,186		—
1840	14,476		562.2%
1850	26,508		83.1%
1860	41,323		55.9%
1870	56,362		36.4%
1880	59,135		4.9%
1890	61,888		4.7%
1900	67,058		8.4%
1910	64,588		−3.7%
1920	62,188		−3.7%
1930	62,784		1.0%
1940	65,229		3.9%
1950	64,690		−0.8%
1960	68,467		5.8%
1970	70,861		3.5%
1980	71,622		1.1%
1990	66,090		−7.7%
2000	68,277		3.3%
2010	67,103		−1.7%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790-1960 1900-1990 1990-2000 2010-2020

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 67,103 people, 27,375 households, and 17,677 families residing in the county. The population density was 78.5 inhabitants per square mile (30.3 /km²). There were 29,842 housing units at an average density of 34.9 per square mile (13.5 /km²). The racial makeup of the county was 93.7% white, 3.5% black or African American, 0.7% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.4% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.2% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 43.5% were German, 13.1% were Irish, 10.7% were American, and 8.7% were English.

Of the 27,375 households, 29.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.0% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 35.4% were non-families, and 30.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.94. The median age was 40.7 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $43,824 and the median income for a family was $55,791. Males had a median income of $38,830 versus $29,371 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,308. About 8.3% of families and 12.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.5% of those under age 18 and 8.1% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Adams County, Illinois.

City

• Quincy (seat)

Villages

• Camp Point
• Clayton
• Coatsburg
• Columbus
• Golden
• La Prairie
• Liberty
• Lima
• Loraine
• Mendon
• Payson
• Plainville
• Ursa

Unincorporated communities

• Adams
• Beverly
• Bigneck
• Blacks
• Bloomfield
• Burton
• Chatton
• Cliola
• Country Meadows
• Ewbanks
• Fall Creek
• Fowler
• Hickory Grove
• Kellerville
• Kingston
• Marblehead
• Marcelline
• Meyer
• North Quincy
• Paloma
• Richfield
• Rock Creek
• Sheridan Estates
• Spring Valley
• Woodville

Townships

Adams County is divided into twenty-three townships:

• Beverly
• Burton
• Camp Point
• Clayton
• Columbus
• Concord
• Ellington
• Fall Creek
• Gilmer
• Honey Creek
• Houston
• Keene
• Liberty
• Lima
• McKee
• Melrose
• Mendon
• Northeast
• Payson
• Quincy
• Richfield
• Riverside
• Ursa

Politics

United States presidential election results for Adams County, Illinois

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	24,220	72.24%	8,633	25.75%	674	2.01%
2016	22,790	70.54%	7,676	23.76%	1,844	5.71%
2012	20,416	66.51%	9,648	31.43%	633	2.06%
2008	18,711	60.55%	11,794	38.17%	397	1.28%
2004	20,834	66.19%	10,511	33.39%	132	0.42%
2000	17,331	57.56%	12,197	40.51%	581	1.93%
1996	13,836	48.70%	11,336	39.90%	3,239	11.40%
1992	13,529	42.84%	11,748	37.20%	6,302	19.96%
1988	15,831	53.29%	13,768	46.34%	111	0.37%
1984	20,225	65.99%	10,336	33.72%	88	0.29%
1980	19,842	62.17%	10,606	33.23%	1,469	4.60%
1976	18,189	59.67%	11,926	39.12%	370	1.21%
1972	20,731	69.46%	9,055	30.34%	60	0.20%
1968	17,444	54.33%	11,521	35.88%	3,143	9.79%
1964	13,993	43.30%	18,321	56.70%	0	0.00%
1960	18,674	55.70%	14,827	44.22%	28	0.08%
1956	19,569	63.12%	11,402	36.78%	32	0.10%
1952	19,652	59.60%	13,301	40.34%	21	0.06%
1948	14,329	48.67%	14,960	50.81%	152	0.52%
1944	15,564	52.87%	13,733	46.65%	142	0.48%
1940	18,480	50.86%	17,361	47.78%	492	1.35%
1936	13,114	39.18%	18,857	56.33%	1,502	4.49%
1932	10,134	32.00%	21,098	66.62%	437	1.38%
1928	15,590	53.59%	13,215	45.42%	288	0.99%
1924	9,985	40.92%	8,628	35.35%	5,791	23.73%
1920	12,852	57.07%	7,222	32.07%	2,447	10.87%
1916	11,858	44.23%	14,268	53.22%	682	2.54%
1912	3,780	26.50%	6,952	48.74%	3,531	24.76%
1908	7,233	44.34%	8,294	50.84%	787	4.82%
1904	7,277	49.06%	6,149	41.45%	1,408	9.49%
1900	8,047	46.81%	8,844	51.44%	301	1.75%
1896	8,447	50.26%	8,025	47.75%	336	2.00%
1892	6,081	41.98%	7,746	53.48%	657	4.54%

Template:Illinois county elected officials Adams County, positioned in a primarily rural section of Illinois is culturally isolated from Chicago, and therefore more conservative than the state's northeastern corner. Quincy, the county seat, holds a high number of socially conservative Catholics and likewise is the home to the campus of Quincy University, a private Catholic liberal arts college, and the Western Catholic Union.

The county is part of the historic belt of German settlement extending into the Missouri Rhineland. Since it was antagonistic to the Yankee northeast of Illinois, it voted solidly Democratic until 1892. After being a swing county in the first half of the twentieth century, Adams County has been a Republican stronghold. It has gone Republican in all but five presidential elections since 1920. The county last supported a Democrat in 1964, when it voted for Lyndon Johnson. The county regularly rejects Democrats at the state level as well; it has not supported a Democrat for Governor of Illinois since Adlai Stevenson II in 1948, and there are no elected Democrats above the county level. Notably, while it voted for Barack Obama in his 2004 Senate campaign, he lost it by wide margins in both of his presidential bids.

The county is part of Illinois' 18th congressional district, currently represented by Republican Darin LaHood. For the Illinois House of Representatives, the county is located in the 94th district, represented by Republican Randy Frese. The county is located in the 47th district of the Illinois Senate, represented by Republican Jil Tracy.

Education

Unified school districts

• Central Community Unit School District 3
• Liberty Community Unit School District 2
• Mendon Community Unit School District 4
• Payson Community Unit School District 1
• Quincy Public School District 172

Private schools

• Blessed Sacrament Catholic School [2]
• Chaddock School [3]
• Quincy Christian School
• Quincy Notre Dame High School
• St. Dominic Catholic School [4]
• St. Francis Solanus Catholic School [5]
• St. James Lutheran School [6]
• St. Peter Catholic School [7]

Colleges and universities

• Blessing-Rieman College of Nursing
• John Wood Community College
• Quincy University

Attractions

• Adams County Fair [8]
• Bayview Bridge
• Burton Cave [9]
• Fall Creek Scenic Park
• Golden Windmill [10]
• John Wood Mansion
• Saukenauk Scout Reservation [11]
• Siloam Springs State Park
• Spirit Knob Winery [12]
• Villa Katharine [13]
• Wavering Park [14]

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Adams County, Illinois

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Adams County, Illinois

• Adams County website
• Adams County GIS Website
• Great River Genealogical Society
• United States Census Bureau 2007 TIGER/Line Shapefiles
• United States Board on Geographic Names (GNIS)
• United States National Atlas