DeKalb County, Illinois

DeKalb County, Illinois
DeKalb County's Legislative Center
Seal
Location in the U.S. state of Illinois
Illinois's location in the U.S.
Founded	March 4, 1837
Named for	Johann de Kalb
Seat	Sycamore
Largest city	DeKalb
Area
• Total	635 sq mi (1,645 km2)
• Land	631 sq mi (1,634 km2)
• Water	3.4 sq mi (9 km2), 0.5%
Population
• (2010)	105,160
• Density	167/sq mi (64/km2)
Congressional districts	14th, 16th
Time zone	Central: UTC−6/−5
Website	www.dekalbcounty.org

DeKalb County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the population was 105,160.^[1] Its county seat is Sycamore.^[2]

DeKalb County is part of the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Contents

• 
  1 History
  


• 
  2 Pronunciation
  


• 
  3 Geography
  
  
  
  • 
    3.1 Climate and weather
    
  
  
  • 
    3.2 Adjacent counties
    
  
  
  • 
    3.3 Major highways
    
  
  
  
  


• 
  4 Demographics
  


• 
  5 Communities
  
  
  
  • 
    5.1 Cities
    
  
  
  • 
    5.2 Town
    
  
  
  • 
    5.3 Villages
    
  
  
  • 
    5.4 Townships
    
  
  
  
  


• 
  6 Politics
  


• 
  7 See also
  


• 
  8 References
  


• 
  9 References
  


• 
  10 Further reading
  


• 
  11 External links
  

History

DeKalb County was formed on March 4, 1837,^[3] out of Kane County, Illinois. The County was named in honor of Johann de Kalb,^[4] a German (Bavarian) hero of the American Revolutionary War. DeKalb County is approximately 632.7 square miles, located 63 miles west of Chicago. There are 19 townships in the county with the county seat at Sycamore.

Between 1834 and 1837, early white men began to settle in DeKalb County along the streams and wooded areas because of the fertile soil, wild game, and food and water opportunities. Major growth stemmed from the introduction of the railroad which brought easier methods of transportation and opportunities for industrial growth. Some of the notable industries based in DeKalb County were: Sandwich Manufacturing Company, Marsh Harvester Company, Barbed Wire, Gurler Brothers Pure Milk and many more.

The county has always been noted for agriculture. In 1852, the first Agricultural Fair was held in Sycamore, under the supervision of the DeKalb Agricultural Society. Eventually farmers, businessmen, bankers and newspapermen organized to become the DeKalb County Soil Improvement Association. In later years the DeKalb County Soil Improvement Association would split into two and become DeKalb County Farm Bureau and DeKalb Agricultural Association (DEKALB AgResearch, Inc., Monsanto). DeKalb County is credited with being the birthplace of the Farm Bureau movement. DeKalb County is also the 2nd largest hog producing county in Illinois and the 66th largest in the nation.

Education has played an important role in the area with Northern Illinois University located in DeKalb and Kishwaukee Community College located in Malta. A major fair has been held each year since 1887 at the Sandwich Fairgrounds in Sandwich.

• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  DeKalb County at the time of its creation in 1837
  

  
  

  
  

Pronunciation

Unlike similarly spelled locations, such as DeKalb County, Georgia, DeKalb denizens from Illinois pronounce the county name /dɪˈkælb/ di-KALB, with an L sound, as in German.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 635 square miles (1,640 km²), of which 631 square miles (1,630 km²) is land and 3.4 square miles (8.8 km²) (0.5%) is water.^[5]

Climate and weather

Sycamore, Illinois
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     1.5     27 10     1.4     32 16     2.5     44 26     3.5     58 37     4.2     70 48     4.5     80 58     4.2     84 63     4.5     81 61     3.5     74 51     2.6     62 40     2.8     45 28     2.1     32 17 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation totals in inches Source: The Weather Channel[6]
Metric conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     39     −3 −12     36     0 −9     62     7 −3     89     14 3     107     21 9     114     27 14     107     29 17     114     27 16     89     23 11     66     17 4     72     7 −2     54     0 −8 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Sycamore have ranged from a low of 10 °F (−12 °C) in January to a high of 84 °F (29 °C) in July, although a record low of −27 °F (−33 °C) was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of 103 °F (39 °C) was recorded in August 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.40 inches (36 mm) in February to 4.49 inches (114 mm) in June.^[6]

Adjacent counties

• 
  Boone County - north


• 
  McHenry County - northeast


• 
  Kane County - east


• 
  Kendall County - southeast


• 
  LaSalle County - south


• 
  Lee County - west


• 
  Ogle County - west


• 
  Winnebago County - northwest

Major highways

• 
  Interstate 88
  


• 
  US Route 30
  


• 
  US Route 34
  


• 
  Illinois Route 23
  


• 
  Illinois Route 38
  


• 
  Illinois Route 64
  


• 
  Illinois Route 72
  


• 
  Illinois Route 110
  

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1840	1,697		—
1850	7,540		344.3%
1860	19,086		153.1%
1870	23,265		21.9%
1880	26,768		15.1%
1890	27,066		1.1%
1900	31,756		17.3%
1910	33,457		5.4%
1920	31,339		−6.3%
1930	32,644		4.2%
1940	34,388		5.3%
1950	40,781		18.6%
1960	51,714		26.8%
1970	71,654		38.6%
1980	74,624		4.1%
1990	77,932		4.4%
2000	88,969		14.2%
2010	105,160		18.2%
Est. 2017	104,733	[7]	−0.4%
U.S. Decennial Census[8] 1790-1960[9] 1900-1990[10] 1990-2000[11] 2010-2013[1]

2000 census age pyramid for DeKalb County with a marked spike in college-aged individuals due to Northern Illinois University

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 105,160 people, 38,484 households, and 23,781 families residing in the county.^[12] The population density was 166.6 inhabitants per square mile (64.3/km²). There were 41,079 housing units at an average density of 65.1 per square mile (25.1/km²).^[5] The racial makeup of the county was 85.1% white, 6.4% black or African American, 2.3% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 3.9% from other races, and 2.0% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 10.1% of the population.^[12] In terms of ancestry, 32.6% were German, 17.5% were Irish, 8.7% were English, 7.0% were Polish, 6.4% were Italian, 6.3% were Swedish, and 3.8% were American.^[13]

Of the 38,484 households, 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.2% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 38.2% were non-families, and 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.11. The median age was 29.3 years.^[12]

The median income for a household in the county was $54,002 and the median income for a family was $70,713. Males had a median income of $50,192 versus $35,246 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,179. About 7.7% of families and 14.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.2% of those under age 18 and 4.5% of those age 65 or over.^[14]

Communities

Cities

• DeKalb


• Genoa


• 
  Sandwich (mostly)


• Sycamore

Town

• Cortland

Villages

• Hinckley


• Kingston


• Kirkland


• 
  Lee (part)


• Malta


• 
  Maple Park (part)


• Shabbona


• 
  Somonauk (mostly)


• Waterman

Townships

DeKalb County is divided into nineteen townships:

• Afton


• Clinton


• Cortland


• DeKalb


• Franklin


• Genoa


• Kingston


• Malta


• Mayfield


• Milan


• Paw Paw


• Pierce


• Sandwich


• Shabbona


• Somonauk


• South Grove


• Squaw Grove


• Sycamore


• Victor

Politics

As part of Northern Illinois, DeKalb County was a stronghold for the Free Soil Party in its early elections – being among nine Illinois counties to support Martin Van Buren in 1848 – and became overwhelmingly Republican for the century following that party’s formation. The only time it did not back the official GOP nominee between 1856 and 1988 was in 1912 when the Republican Party was mortally divided and Progressive Theodore Roosevelt won almost half the county’s vote. Alf Landon, who lost 46 of 48 states in 1936, won DeKalb County by double digits, whilst even Barry Goldwater – renowned for his antagonism towards the establishment – won by seven percent despite losing sixteen percent of the vote compared to Richard Nixon in 1960.

Beginning in 1972, DeKalb County has shown a strong trend towards the Democratic Party owing to the growth of its powerfully Democratic student population. In that year’s election George McGovern, who was to lose all but 130 counties nationwide, managed to exceed his nationwide vote percentage in this county that had not voted Democratic since giving a plurality to Franklin Pierce in 1852. In 1980, Illinois native John B. Anderson won over fifteen percent of the county’s vote and this was to shift towards the Democratic Party in subsequent elections. In 1992 and 1996, Bill Clinton became the first Democrat to carry the county in 140 years, and in 2008 another Illinoian, Barack Obama, became the first Democrat to win an absolute majority since Van Buren in the county’s first-ever Presidential election of 1840. Obama repeated this in 2012, but economic concerns in the rust belt caused a sizeable swing away from Hillary Clinton in 2016, but she still narrowly won the county.

Presidential elections results

Presidential elections results^[15]

Year	Republican	Democratic	Third parties
2016	43.8% 19,091	46.9% 20,466	9.3% 4,043
2012	45.9% 18,934	51.4% 21,207	2.7% 1,100
2008	40.6% 18,266	57.3% 25,784	2.1% 924
2004	51.7% 21,095	47.3% 19,263	1.0% 410
2000	51.6% 17,139	44.5% 14,798	3.9% 1,296
1996	43.4% 12,380	44.6% 12,715	12.0% 3,432
1992	37.0% 12,655	40.2% 13,744	22.9% 7,833
1988	58.9% 17,182	40.5% 11,811	0.7% 197
1984	64.5% 20,294	34.8% 10,942	0.7% 229
1980	53.9% 16,370	29.4% 8,913	16.7% 5,082
1976	59.2% 18,193	37.5% 11,535	3.3% 1,000
1972	60.3% 18,910	39.4% 12,375	0.3% 99
1968	63.2% 14,535	30.3% 6,974	6.5% 1,490
1964	53.5% 11,791	46.5% 10,257	0.0% 1
1960	69.6% 15,586	30.3% 6,783	0.1% 19
1956	75.7% 15,078	24.2% 4,826	0.1% 25
1952	74.2% 14,807	25.6% 5,110	0.2% 30
1948	68.7% 11,380	30.7% 5,082	0.6% 105
1944	66.8% 12,157	33.0% 6,004	0.3% 49
1940	64.0% 12,577	35.5% 6,989	0.5% 102
1936	53.8% 9,826	43.2% 7,899	3.0% 550
1932	56.4% 9,356	41.7% 6,923	1.9% 315
1928	74.2% 11,501	25.4% 3,940	0.4% 62
1924	76.4% 10,500	11.2% 1,540	12.4% 1,704
1920	83.9% 10,374	13.8% 1,700	2.3% 287
1916	71.3% 9,764	24.7% 3,386	4.0% 547
1912	24.3% 1,776	21.4% 1,568	54.3% 3,970
1908	72.5% 5,866	21.4% 1,732	6.1% 493
1904	77.4% 5,957	14.8% 1,137	7.8% 599
1900	73.0% 5,923	23.2% 1,881	3.8% 306
1896	72.4% 5,598	24.3% 1,881	3.3% 255
1892	60.7% 3,789	30.9% 1,926	8.4% 525

See also

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

References

1. 
   ^ ^ab "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on July 9, 2011. Retrieved July 4, 2014..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
   


2. 
   ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on 2011-05-31. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
   


3. 
   ^ Illinois Regional Archives Depository System. "Name Index to Illinois Local Governments". Illinois State Archives. Illinois Secretary of State. Retrieved 30 August 2013.
   


4. 
   ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. p. 103.
   


5. 
   ^ ^ab "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2015-07-11.
   


6. 
   ^ ^ab "Monthly Averages for Sycamore, Illinois". The Weather Channel. Retrieved 2011-01-27.
   


7. 
   ^ "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Retrieved May 3, 2018.
   


8. 
   ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on May 12, 2015. Retrieved July 4, 2014.
   


9. 
   ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved July 4, 2014.
   


10. 
    ^ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 4, 2014.
    


11. 
    ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 4, 2014.
    


12. 
    ^ ^abc "DP-1 Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2015-07-11.
    


13. 
    ^ "DP02 SELECTED SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS IN THE UNITED STATES – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2015-07-11.
    


14. 
    ^ "DP03 SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2015-07-11.
    


15. 
    ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
    

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.CS1 maint: Extra text: authors list (link)
  


• United States Census Bureau 2007 TIGER/Line Shapefiles


• U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: DeKalb County, Illinois


• United States National Atlas

Further reading

• Eric W. Mogren. Native Soil: A History of the DeKalb County Farm Bureau (DeKalb: Northern Illinois University Press, 2005), 288 pp.

External links

• Official website


• History pages for DeKalb County towns and cities


• 
  De Kalb County at Curlie
  


• DeKalb County Youth Service Bureau


• Taming the Wild Prairie: A History of DeKalb County, Illinois, 1837-1900, Illinois Historical Digitization Projects at Northern Illinois University Libraries


• DeKalb County Online Newspaper

Places adjacent to DeKalb County, Illinois
Winnebago County Boone County McHenry County Lee County and Ogle County DeKalb County, Illinois Kane County LaSalle County Kendall County

v t e Municipalities and communities of DeKalb County, Illinois, United States
County seat: Sycamore
Cities	DeKalb Genoa Sandwich‡ Sycamore
Town	Cortland
Villages	Hinckley Kingston Kirkland Lee‡ Malta Maple Park‡ Shabbona Somonauk‡ Waterman
Townships	Afton Clinton Cortland DeKalb Franklin Genoa Kingston Malta Mayfield Milan Paw Paw Pierce Sandwich Shabbona Somonauk South Grove Squaw Grove Sycamore Victor
Unincorporated communities	Afton Center Charter Grove Clare Colvin Park East Paw Paw‡ Elva Esmond Fairdale Five Points Franks McGirr New Lebanon Rollo Shabbona Grove Wilkinson
Ghost towns	Brush Point Coltonville
Footnotes	‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

v t e Chicago metropolitan area
Major city	Chicago
Cities (over 30,000 in 2010)	Aurora Berwyn Calumet City Chicago Heights Crystal Lake DeKalb Des Plaines Elgin Elmhurst Evanston Gary Hammond Joliet Kenosha Naperville North Chicago Park Ridge Portage St. Charles Valparaiso Waukegan Wheaton
Towns and villages (over 30,000 in 2010)	Addison Algonquin Arlington Heights Bartlett Bolingbrook Buffalo Grove Carol Stream Carpentersville Cicero Downers Grove Elk Grove Village Glendale Heights Glenview Gurnee Hanover Park Hoffman Estates Lombard Merrillville Mount Prospect Mundelein Northbrook Oak Lawn Oak Park Orland Park Oswego Palatine Plainfield Romeoville Schaumburg Skokie Streamwood Tinley Park Wheeling Woodridge
Counties	Cook DeKalb DuPage Grundy Jasper Kane Kendall Kenosha Lake, IL Lake, IN McHenry Newton Porter Will
Regions	Great Lakes Northern Illinois Northern Indiana
Sub-regions	Chicago Southland Eastern Ridges and Lowlands Fox Valley (Illinois) Golden Corridor Illinois Technology and Research Corridor North Shore (Chicago) Northwest Indiana
Illinois, United States

v t e  State of Illinois
Springfield (capital)
Topics	Index Buildings and structures Census areas Communications Culture Delegations Earthquakes Economy Education Energy Environment Geography Government Health History Languages Law Music People Politics Portal Protected areas Society Sports Tourism Transportation Windmills	Seal of Illinois
Regions	American Bottom Central Illinois Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area Chicago metropolitan area Collar counties Corn Belt Driftless Area Forgottonia Fox Valley Illinois-Indiana-Kentucky tri-state area Metro East Metro Lakeland Mississippi Alluvial Plain North Shore Northern Illinois Northwestern Illinois Peoria metropolitan area Quad Cities River Bend Rockford metropolitan area Southern Illinois Streatorland Wabash Valley
Cities, towns and villages	Alton/Granite City/Edwardsville Arlington Heights/Palatine Aurora/Naperville/Oswego/Plainfield Bartlett/Hanover Park/Streamwood Belleville/East St. Louis/Collinsville/O'Fallon Berwyn/Cicero Bloomington/Normal Bolingbrook/Romeoville Buffalo Grove/Wheeling Calumet City Canton Carbondale Carol Stream/Glendale Heights Centralia Champaign/Urbana Charleston/Mattoon Chicago Chicago Heights Crystal Lake/Algonquin Danville Decatur DeKalb/Sycamore Des Plaines/Mount Prospect/Park Ridge Dixon Downers Grove/Woodridge Effingham Elgin/Carpentersville Elmhurst/Lombard/Addison Evanston/Skokie Freeport Galesburg Glenview/Northbrook Harrisburg Jacksonville Joliet Kankakee/Bradley/Bourbonnais Lincoln Macomb Marion/Herrin Moline/East Moline/Rock Island Mount Vernon Mundelein Oak Lawn Oak Park Orland Park/Tinley Park Ottawa/Streator/LaSalle/Peru Peoria/Pekin/East Peoria/Morton/Washington Pontiac Quincy Rochelle Rockford/Belvidere/Machesney Park/Loves Park St. Charles Schaumburg/Hoffman Estates/Elk Grove Village Springfield Sterling/Rock Falls Taylorville Waukegan/North Chicago/Gurnee Wheaton
Counties	Adams Alexander Bond Boone Brown Bureau Calhoun Carroll Cass Champaign Christian Clark Clay Clinton Coles Cook Crawford Cumberland DeKalb DeWitt Douglas DuPage Edgar Edwards Effingham Fayette Ford Franklin Fulton Gallatin Greene Grundy Hamilton Hancock Hardin Henderson Henry Iroquois Jackson Jasper Jefferson Jersey Jo Daviess Johnson Kane Kankakee Kendall Knox LaSalle Lake Lawrence Lee Livingston Logan Macon Macoupin Madison Marion Marshall Mason Massac McDonough McHenry McLean Menard Mercer Monroe Montgomery Morgan Moultrie Ogle Peoria Perry Piatt Pike Pope Pulaski Putnam Randolph Richland Rock Island Saline Sangamon Schuyler Scott Shelby St. Clair Stark Stephenson Tazewell Union Vermilion Wabash Warren Washington Wayne White Whiteside Will Williamson Winnebago Woodford

Coordinates: 41°53′37″N 88°46′13″W / 41.89361°N 88.77028°W / 41.89361; -88.77028

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