Williamson County, Illinois

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Williamson County is a county in Southern Illinois. At the 2020 census, it had a population of 67,153.<ref name="QF">Template:Cite web</ref> The largest city and county seat is Marion.<ref name="GR6">Template:Cite web</ref> Williamson County is included in the Carbondale-Marion, IL Metropolitan Statistical Area. This area of Southern Illinois is known locally as "Little Egypt".Template:Citation needed Williamson is in the Metro Lakeland area, Template:Convert southeast of St. Louis, Missouri. Via the nearby intersection of Interstates 57 and 24, and Illinois Route 13, a primary east–west four-lane expressway, the city has access to the major communities of Murphysboro, Carbondale, Carterville, Herrin, Marion and Harrisburg. The Metro Lakeland area of Jackson-Williamson counties has a total of 120,000 residents. Carbondale (14 miles west), Herrin and Marion are the key urban areas in Metro Lakeland, with a combined population of more than 65,000. Over 235,000 people live within Template:Convert.

History

Williamson County was formed from Franklin County on February 28, 1839, and was named for Williamson County, Tennessee. Many of its settlers were from the Uplands South, traveling via the Ohio River from Kentucky and Virginia.<ref> Template:Citation</ref>

  • Williamson County at the time of its creation in 1839
    Williamson County at the time of its creation in 1839

It became a center of coal mining, attracting numerous European immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Labor tensions rose as workers sought to unionize and improve their wages and conditions. Mine owners resisted and several episodes of violence resulted during strikes and other work actions. Williamson County is often referred to as "Bloody Williamson," due to several outbreaks of violence that have few parallels in American history.<ref>Template:Citation</ref>

These include the Bloody Vendetta (1876), armed confrontation between families and associates during the waning days of Reconstruction; the Carterville Massacre (1899), a Coal Strike (1906), the Herrin Massacre (1922), the Klan War (1924–1926), and the Birger/Shelton Gang War (1926).

During the so-called Klan War, a mob of perhaps 1,300 men were deputized by the local sheriff. Starting on February 1, 1924, the posse began raiding the homes of local mine workers, mostly Italian immigrants. The Klan was inspired by both nativist and Prohibitionist fervor. Violence continued sporadically between bootleggers and the Klan. Twenty people were killed before peace was restored.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

In June 1915, a Sicilian miner accused of the fatal shooting of a wealthy local resident was lynched in Johnston City, Illinois by a mob.<ref name="daily">"SLAYER LYNCHED BY ILLINOIS MOB", Belvidere Daily Republican (Belvidere, Illinois), June 11, 1915; accessed February 2, 2017</ref> The Illinois National Guard was deployed to prevent rioting between the miner's supporters and opponents. They were also later ordered to various locations repeatedly during the 1920s to separate warring parties and attempt to keep order.

The northwest section of the county suffered extensive damage during the Tri-State Tornado of 1925. The county was also struck by two tornadoes on May 29, 1982, which killed 10 people in the Marion, Illinois tornado outbreak. On May 8, 2009, the cities of Carterville, Herrin, and Marion were severely damaged by the May 2009 Southern Midwest derecho.

Geography

Map of Williamson County, Illinois

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert is land and Template:Convert (5.4%) is water.<ref name="census-density"/>

Adjacent counties

National protected area

Major highways

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Airport

Veterans Airport of Southern Illinois in Marion is the local airport.

Climate and weather

Template:Climate chart Williamson County lies on the border between humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfa) and humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa), with neither large mountains nor large bodies of water to moderate its temperature. It is subject to both cold Arctic air and hot, humid tropical air from the Gulf of Mexico and, along with the rest of the midwestern United States, is home to some of the largest temperature extremes in the world.

The region has four distinct seasons. Spring is the wettest season and produces erratic severe weather ranging from tornadoes to winter storms. Summers are hot and humid, with only occasional and brief respite, and the humidity often makes the heat index rise to temperatures feeling well above Template:Convert. Fall is mild with lower humidity and can produce intermittent bouts of heavy rainfall, with the first snow flurries usually forming in late November. Winters are cold with periodic snow and temperatures often below freezing; however, thaws are usually frequent. Winter storm systems, such as Alberta clippers and Panhandle hooks, can bring days of heavy freezing rain, ice pellets, and snowfall.

The normal high temperature in July is Template:Convert, and the normal low temperature in January is Template:Convert, although this varies from year to year. Both Template:Convert temperatures can be seen on an average 2 or 3 days per year. In recent years, average temperatures have ranged from a low of Template:Convert in January to a high of Template:Convert in July, although a record low of Template:Convert was recorded in January 1977 and a record high of Template:Convert was recorded in August 1977. Average monthly precipitation ranged from Template:Convert in October to Template:Convert in May.<ref name="weather" />

Williamson County has thunderstorms about 50 days a year on average. Thunderstorms contribute over half of the annual precipitation. Especially in the spring, these storms can often be severe, with high winds, large hail and tornadoes.

Some late autumns feature the warm weather known as Indian summer; some years see roses in bloom as late as early December.

Demographics

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2020 census

Williamson County, Illinois – Racial and ethnic composition
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Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) Pop 1980<ref name=1980Census>Template:Cite web</ref> Pop 1990<ref name=1990Census>Template:Cite web</ref> Pop 2000<ref name=2000CensusP004>Template:Cite web</ref> Pop 2010<ref name=2010CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref> Pop 2020<ref name=2020CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref> % 1980 % 1990 % 2000 % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 55,106 55,802 58,006 60,719 58,193 97.47% 96.66% 94.63% 91.50% 86.66%
Black or African American alone (NH) 843 1,130 1,498 2,514 2,809 1.49% 1.96% 2.44% 3.79% 4.18%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 67 105 149 206 230 0.12% 0.18% 0.24% 0.31% 0.34%
Asian alone (NH) 161 235 304 557 771 0.28% 0.41% 0.50% 0.84% 1.15%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH) x <ref>included in the Asian category in the 1980 Census</ref> x <ref>included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census</ref> 16 8 9 x x 0.03% 0.01% 0.01%
Other race alone (NH) 66 13 32 56 207 0.12% 0.02% 0.05% 0.08% 0.31%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) x <ref>not an option in the 1980 Census</ref> x <ref>not an option in the 1990 Census</ref> 528 996 3,155 x x 0.86% 1.50% 4.70%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 295 448 763 1,301 1,779 0.52% 0.78% 1.24% 1.96% 2.65%
Total 56,538 57,733 61,296 66,357 67,153 100.00% 100.00% 100.00% 100.00% 100.00%

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 66,357 people, 27,421 households, and 17,999 families residing in the county.<ref name="census-dp1">Template:Cite web</ref> The population density was Template:Convert. There were 30,359 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert.<ref name="census-density">Template:Cite web</ref> The racial makeup of the county was 92.7% white, 3.8% black or African American, 0.8% Asian, 0.4% Native American, 0.5% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.0% of the population.<ref name="census-dp1"/> In terms of ancestry, 23.6% were German, 17.3% were Irish, 16.0% were English, 9.0% were American, and 6.1% were Italian.<ref name="census-dp2">Template:Cite web</ref>

Of the 27,421 households, 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.4% were married couples living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 34.4% were non-families, and 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.88. The median age was 40.1 years.<ref name="census-dp1"/>

The median income for a household in the county was $40,579 and the median income for a family was $50,929. Males had a median income of $41,428 versus $30,901 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,164. About 13.3% of families and 16.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.3% of those under age 18 and 9.9% of those age 65 or over.<ref name="census-dp3">Template:Cite web</ref>

Communities

Cities

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Villages

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Census-designated places

Other unincorporated communities

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Ghost towns

Precincts

The following precincts are not voting precincts, but represent the 12 Congressional townships in Williamson County. Most have multiple voting precincts.

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  • Blairsville
  • Carterville
  • Corinth
  • Crab Orchard
  • Creal Springs
  • East Marion
  • Grassy
  • Herrin
  • Lake Creek
  • Southern
  • Stonefort
  • West Marion

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Education

School districts include:<ref>Template:Cite web - Text list</ref>

K-12:

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Secondary:

Elementary:

Government and infrastructure

United States Penitentiary, Marion is located in Southern Precinct in Williamson County.<ref>Template:Cite map</ref>

Politics

Williamson County has been solidly Republican on the national level, voting for the Republican candidates for U.S. president since 2000. Template:PresHead Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresFoot

See also

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Further reading

  • Angle, Paul M. (1992). Bloody Williamson - A Chapter in American Lawlessness. University of Illinois Press. Template:ISBN.
  • Ayabe, Masatomo, “Ku Kluxers in a Coal Mining Community: A Study of the Ku Klux Klan Movement in Williamson County, Illinois, 1923–1926,” Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society, 102 (Spring 2009), 73–100.
  • Erwin, Milo. 1876, Rep. 1976. History of Williamson County, Illinois. Marion, Ill.: Williamson County Historical Society.
  • Erwin, Milo, and Jon Musgrave. 2006. The Bloody Vendetta of Southern Illinois. Marion, Ill.: IllinoisHistory.com. 240 pages.
  • Johnson, Ralph, and Jon Musgrave. 2010. Secrets of the Herrin Gangs. Marion, Ill.: IllinoisHistory.com. 96 pages.

References

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