Bureau County
County
Red Covered Bridge (1863)
Red Covered Bridge (1863)
Map of Illinois highlighting Bureau County
Location within the U.S. state of Illinois
Map of the United States highlighting Illinois
Illinois's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 41°25′N 89°32′W / 41.41°N 89.53°W / 41.41; -89.53
Country United States
State Illinois
Founded1837
SeatPrinceton
Largest cityPrinceton
Area
 • Total874 sq mi (2,260 km2)
 • Land869 sq mi (2,250 km2)
 • Water4.5 sq mi (12 km2)  0.5%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total33,244
 • Estimate 
(2021)
32,883
 • Density38/sq mi (15/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional districts14th, 16th
Websitebureaucounty-il.gov

Bureau County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 33,244.[1] Its county seat is Princeton.[2]

Bureau County is part of the Ottawa, IL Micropolitan Statistical Area, and the Hennepin Canal Parkway State Park is located partly in this county.

History

Bureau County was created from a portion of Putnam County in 1837. It is named for brothers Michel and Pierre Bureau, French Canadians who ran a trading post from 1776 until the 1780s near the conjunction of Big Bureau Creek with Illinois River. Their actual surname most likely was Belleau, but the local American Indians had difficulty pronouncing the "l" sound, which was not found in some local languages.[3][4] An early settler of this area was Bulbona, a man of mixed French and Native American descent with a Native American wife. Unlike most of the other Native Americans in the area, Bulbona remained after the area was settled by Euro-Americans and ran a trading post, where he sold whiskey among other necessities.[5]

The founders of Princeton, the area's oldest town, were settlers from New England, descendants of the English Puritans who settled New England in the 17th century. They were part of a wave of New England farmers who moved to the Northwest Territory in the early 19th century. Most of them came soon after of the completion of the Erie Canal.[5] When they arrived, they faced virgin forest and wild prairie. These New Englanders laid out farms, constructed roads, erected government buildings and established post routes. They brought with them many of their Yankee New England values, such as a passion for education, establishing many schools, and were staunch abolitionists. They were mostly members of the Congregationalist Church or Episcopalians. Early Bureau County, like much of northern Illinois, was culturally very continuous with early New England culture.[6][7][5]

Like so many other areas in the Midwest, this county was on a "line" of the Underground Railroad. There was a "station" at the home of Owen Lovejoy in Princeton, and several other locations in the county.

Geography

According to the US Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 874 square miles (2,260 km2), of which 869 square miles (2,250 km2) is land and 4.5 square miles (12 km2) (0.5%) is water.[8] Big Bureau Creek is the main body of water.

Adjacent counties

Major highways

Climate and weather

Princeton, Illinois
Climate chart (explanation)
J
F
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1.7
 
 
29
14
 
 
1.5
 
 
35
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2.5
 
 
47
30
 
 
3.8
 
 
61
40
 
 
4.1
 
 
73
51
 
 
4.4
 
 
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3.3
 
 
85
65
 
 
4.8
 
 
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3.7
 
 
75
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2.9
 
 
63
43
 
 
2.9
 
 
47
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2.5
 
 
33
19
█ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F
█ Precipitation totals in inches
Source:The Weather Channel[9]
Metric conversion
J
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42
 
 
−2
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38
 
 
2
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96
 
 
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104
 
 
23
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111
 
 
28
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85
 
 
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121
 
 
28
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93
 
 
24
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75
 
 
17
6
 
 
74
 
 
8
−1
 
 
62
 
 
1
−7
█ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C
█ Precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Princeton 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 −22 °F (−30 °C) was recorded in February 1996 and a record high of 102 °F (39 °C) was recorded in June 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.48 inches (38 mm) in February to 4.76 inches (121 mm) in August.[9]

Demographics

2000 census age pyramid for Bureau County
Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18403,067—
18508,841188.3%
186026,426198.9%
187032,41522.7%
188033,1722.3%
189035,0145.6%
190041,11217.4%
191043,9757.0%
192042,648−3.0%
193038,845−8.9%
194037,600−3.2%
195037,7110.3%
196037,594−0.3%
197038,5412.5%
198039,1141.5%
199035,688−8.8%
200035,503−0.5%
201034,978−1.5%
202033,244−5.0%
2021 (est.)32,883[1]−1.1%
US Decennial Census[10]
1790-1960[11] 1900-1990[12]
1990-2000[13] 2010-2013[1]

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 34,978 people, 14,262 households, and 9,605 families residing in the county.[14] The population density was 40.2 inhabitants per square mile (15.5/km2). There were 15,720 housing units at an average density of 18.1 per square mile (7.0/km2).[8] The racial makeup of the county was 94.2% white, 0.7% Asian, 0.6% black or African American, 0.3% American Indian, 3.0% from other races, and 1.3% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 7.7% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 32.8% were German, 13.8% were Irish, 12.1% were English, 9.2% were American, 8.8% were Italian, 7.6% were Swedish, and 5.8% were Polish.[15]

Of the 14,262 households, 29.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.6% were married couples living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.7% were non-families, and 28.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.94. The median age was 42.5 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $45,692 and the median income for a family was $55,217. Males had a median income of $42,327 versus $29,210 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,103. About 8.6% of families and 11.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.3% of those under age 18 and 7.5% of those age 65 or over.[16]

Communities

Cities

Villages

Unincorporated communities

Townships

Notable people

Politics

As part of Yankee-settled Northern Illinois, Bureau County became powerfully Republican for the century following the Civil War. The only Democrat to carry the county between 1856 and 1988 was Franklin D. Roosevelt during his landslide 1932 victory, although Progressive Theodore Roosevelt did carry the county during the 1912 election. Between 1988 and 2012, the county trended Democratic – Bill Clinton won pluralities in both his elections and Barack Obama won an absolute majority in 2008 and nearly did so in 2012 – however concern with lack of employment opportunities in the Rust Belt led to a powerful swing toward Donald Trump in 2016 for the best GOP result since Ronald Reagan’s 1984 landslide.

United States presidential election results for Bureau County, Illinois[17]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No. %No. %No. %
2020 10,411 59.51% 6,669 38.12% 414 2.37%
2016 9,281 56.01% 6,029 36.38% 1,261 7.61%
2012 8,164 48.93% 8,134 48.75% 388 2.33%
2008 7,911 46.12% 8,889 51.82% 353 2.06%
2004 9,822 54.87% 7,961 44.47% 119 0.66%
2000 8,526 50.68% 7,754 46.09% 543 3.23%
1996 6,528 40.61% 7,651 47.60% 1,894 11.78%
1992 6,836 38.18% 7,551 42.17% 3,520 19.66%
1988 8,896 54.41% 7,354 44.98% 101 0.62%
1984 11,741 62.57% 6,925 36.90% 99 0.53%
1980 11,484 61.79% 5,753 30.95% 1,350 7.26%
1976 10,854 58.20% 7,566 40.57% 228 1.22%
1972 12,786 67.47% 6,133 32.36% 33 0.17%
1968 11,216 59.97% 6,304 33.71% 1,183 6.33%
1964 9,552 51.25% 9,086 48.75% 0 0.00%
1960 12,597 61.73% 7,786 38.15% 24 0.12%
1956 13,909 70.56% 5,781 29.33% 21 0.11%
1952 14,300 69.76% 6,173 30.12% 25 0.12%
1948 11,207 63.15% 6,463 36.42% 78 0.44%
1944 11,802 62.68% 6,976 37.05% 51 0.27%
1940 13,258 61.36% 8,274 38.29% 75 0.35%
1936 10,462 51.48% 9,516 46.83% 344 1.69%
1932 8,721 45.23% 10,309 53.47% 250 1.30%
1928 11,557 63.73% 6,486 35.77% 90 0.50%
1924 9,457 60.38% 1,995 12.74% 4,211 26.89%
1920 9,968 74.94% 2,354 17.70% 980 7.37%
1916 8,213 56.20% 5,793 39.64% 608 4.16%
1912 1,816 19.84% 2,800 30.59% 4,537 49.57%
1908 5,280 57.48% 2,871 31.25% 1,035 11.27%
1904 5,624 64.31% 1,917 21.92% 1,204 13.77%
1900 5,478 56.90% 3,523 36.59% 626 6.50%
1896 5,474 56.31% 3,961 40.74% 287 2.95%
1892 3,924 47.96% 3,555 43.45% 702 8.58%

See also

References

Specific
  1. 1 2 3 "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 23, 2023.
  2. ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. ↑ Pierre de Beuro, an Indian trader Pioneers of Illinois by Nehemiah Matson, 1882, p. 229
  4. ↑ Jean Baptiste Point de Sable : the founder of modern Chicago Archived 26 January 2013 at the Wayback Machine by John F. Swenson, 1999- . Retrieved 11 November 2010.
  5. 1 2 3 Bradsby, Henry C. (May 11, 1885). "History of Bureau County, Illinois". Chicago : World Pub. Co. Archived from the original on January 31, 2010 – via Internet Archive.
  6. ↑ Nehemiah Matson (1872). Reminiscences of Bureau County [Illinois] in Two Parts. Republican book and job office. pp. 265–.
  7. ↑ Harrington, George B. (May 11, 2018). Past and Present of Bureau County, Illinois: Together with Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Prominent and Leading Citizens and Illustrious Dead. Pioneer Publishing Co. ISBN 9780608368887 – via Google Books.
  8. 1 2 "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County". US Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2015.
  9. 1 2 "Monthly Averages for Princeton IL". The Weather Channel. Archived from the original on October 23, 2012. Retrieved January 27, 2011.
  10. ↑ "US Decennial Census". US Census Bureau. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
  11. ↑ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Archived from the original on August 11, 2012. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
  12. ↑ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". US Census Bureau. Archived from the original on April 24, 2014. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
  13. ↑ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). US Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 18, 2014. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
  14. ↑ "Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data". US Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2015.
  15. ↑ "Selected Social Characteristics in the United States – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". US Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2015.
  16. ↑ "Selected Economic Characteristics – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". US Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2015.
  17. ↑ Leip, David. "Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Archived from the original on March 23, 2018.
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