McLean County, Illinois facts for kids

Quick facts for kids McLean County
U.S. county
Old McLean County Courthouse
Location within the U.S. state of Illinois
Illinois's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Illinois
Founded	December 25, 1830
Named for	John McLean
Seat	Bloomington
Largest city	Bloomington
Area
• Total	1,186 sq mi (3,070 km2)
• Land	1,183 sq mi (3,060 km2)
• Water	2.9 sq mi (8 km2)  0.2%
Population  (2020)
• Total	170,954
• Density	144.14/sq mi (55.654/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional districts	16th, 17th

McLean County is the largest county by land area in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 Census, it had a population of 170,954. Its county seat is Bloomington. McLean County is included in the Bloomington–Normal, IL Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Pronunciation

Locally, the second syllable of McLean is pronounced with a 'long a' (ā, IPA /ei/) sound (i.e. "muh-KLAIN") (as with native son McLean Stevenson), not with a 'long e' (ē, IPA /i/) sound ("muh-KLEEN").

History

The first white settlers in what became McLean County arrived around 1821. The first settlement was Blooming Grove, established in 1822 near present-day Bloomington. McLean County was formed on December 25, 1830, out of Tazewell County. It was named for John McLean, United States Senator for Illinois, who died in 1830.

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  McLean County from the time of its creation to 1837

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  McLean County between 1837 and 1841

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  McLean County in 1841, reduced to its present borders

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,186 square miles (3,070 km²), of which 1,183 square miles (3,060 km²) is land and 2.9 square miles (7.5 km²) (0.2%) is water. It is the largest county in Illinois by land area and third-largest by total area after Cook and Lake Counties, which have large portions of their areas on Lake Michigan. McLean County is actually larger than the land area of Rhode Island (1045 sq mi).

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Bloomington have ranged from a low of 14 °F (−10 °C) in January to a high of 86 °F (30 °C) in July, although a record low of −23 °F (−31 °C) was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of 103 °F (39 °C) was recorded in June 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.71 inches (43 mm) in February to 4.52 inches (115 mm) in May.

Adjacent counties

Major highways

Transit

• Connect Transit
• SHOW Bus
• Uptown Station
• List of intercity bus stops in Illinois

Demographics

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 169,572 people, 65,104 households, and 40,124 families residing in the county. The population density was 143.3 inhabitants per square mile (55.3/km²). There were 69,656 housing units at an average density of 58.9 per square mile (22.7/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 84.3% white, 7.3% black or African American, 4.3% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 1.5% from other races, and 2.3% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 4.4% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 31.2% were German, 15.4% were Irish, 11.4% were American, and 11.0% were English.

Of the 65,104 households, 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.5% were married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 38.4% were non-families, and 28.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.02. The median age was 32.1 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $57,642 and the median income for a family was $77,093. Males had a median income of $52,271 versus $39,685 for females. The per capita income for the county was $28,167. About 6.2% of families and 12.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.4% of those under age 18 and 5.5% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

• Bloomington (seat)
• Chenoa
• El Paso
• Le Roy
• Lexington

Town

• Normal

Villages

Map of McLean County, Illinois

Census-designated place

• Twin Grove

Other unincorporated communities

Townships

McLean County is divided into these townships:

Ghost towns

• Allin
• Benjaminville
• Kumler

Education

Here is a list of school districts (all fully K-12) with territory in the county, no matter how slight, even if the district's schools and/or administrative offices are not in the county:

• Blue Ridge Community Unit School District 18
• Bloomington School District 87
• El Paso-Gridley Community Unit School District 11
• Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley Community Unit School District 5
• Heyworth Community Unit School District 4
• Le Roy Community Unit School District 2
• Lexington Community Unit School District 7
• McLean County Unit School District 5
• Olympia Community Unit School District 16
• Prairie Central Community Unit School District 8
• Ridgeview Community Unit School District 19
• Tri-Valley Community Unit School District 3

Illinois State University is in the county.

Notable persons

• George J. Mecherle, founder of State Farm
• Adlai Stevenson II, Governor of Illinois (1949–53), two-time Democratic nominee for the U.S. presidency, and Ambassador to the United Nations (1961–65)
• Pokey LaFarge, musician and songwriter
• Bonnie Lou, recording artist and television celebrity
• William H. Rowe, farmer, businessman, and politician
• Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, host of popular 1950/60 T.V. program Life is Worth Living and Catholic Archbishop of the Diocese of Rochester, New York

See also

In Spanish: Condado de McLean (Illinois) para niños