Putnam County, Illinois

Putnam County is the least extensive county in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 5,637.^[1] The county seat is Hennepin.^[2] The county was formed in 1825 out of Fulton County and named after Israel Putnam,^[3] who was a general in the American Revolution. Putnam County is part of the Ottawa, IL Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Putnam County
County
Putnam County Courthouse, Hennepin
Location within the U.S. state of Illinois
Illinois's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 41°12′N 89°17′W
Country	United States
State	Illinois
Founded	1825
Named for	Israel Putnam
Seat	Hennepin
Largest village	Granville
Area
• Total	172 sq mi (450 km2)
• Land	160 sq mi (400 km2)
• Water	12 sq mi (30 km2)  7.0%
Population  (2020)
• Total	5,637
• Estimate  (2023)	5,561
• Density	33/sq mi (13/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional districts	14th, 16th
Website	www.co.putnam.il.us

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 172 square miles (450 km²), of which 160 square miles (410 km²) is land and 12 square miles (31 km²) (7.0%) is water.^[4] It is the smallest county in Illinois by area.

Climate and weather

Hennepin, Illinois
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     1.1     30 13     1.2     36 19     2.2     48 29     3.2     62 39     3.6     73 50     4.2     83 59     3.8     86 64     4.3     84 62     3.6     77 53     2.7     65 41     2.5     49 31     2     36 19 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F █ Precipitation totals in inches Source: The Weather Channel[5]
Metric conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     29     −1 −11     29     2 −7     55     9 −2     82     17 4     92     23 10     107     28 15     96     30 18     110     29 17     92     25 12     69     18 5     63     9 −1     52     2 −7 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C █ Precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Hennepin have ranged from a low of 13 °F (−11 °C) in January to a high of 86 °F (30 °C) in July, although a record low of −30 °F (−34 °C) was recorded in January 1999 and a record high of 104 °F (40 °C) was recorded in June 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.14 inches (29 mm) in January to 4.32 inches (110 mm) in August.^[5]

Major highways

• Interstate 180
• Illinois Route 18
• Illinois Route 26
• Illinois Route 29
• Illinois Route 71
• Illinois Route 89

Adjacent counties

• Bureau County (northwest)
• LaSalle County (east)
• Marshall County (south)

• 
  Putnam County at the time of its creation in 1825
• 
  The county split in two portions, 1827-1831
• 
  Putnam County between 1831 and 1837
• 
  Putnam between 1837 and 1839
• 
  Putnam in 1839, reduced to its present borders

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1840	2,131		—
1850	3,924		84.1%
1860	5,587		42.4%
1870	6,280		12.4%
1880	5,554		−11.6%
1890	4,730		−14.8%
1900	4,746		0.3%
1910	7,561		59.3%
1920	7,579		0.2%
1930	5,235		−30.9%
1940	5,289		1.0%
1950	4,746		−10.3%
1960	4,570		−3.7%
1970	5,007		9.6%
1980	6,085		21.5%
1990	5,730		−5.8%
2000	6,086		6.2%
2010	6,006		−1.3%
2020	5,637		−6.1%
2023 (est.)	5,561	[6]	−1.3%
U.S. Decennial Census[7] 1790-1960[8] 1900-1990[9] 1990-2000[10] 2010[11]

As of the 2010 census, there were 6,006 people, 2,509 households, and 1,734 families residing in the county.^[12] The population density was 37.5 inhabitants per square mile (14.5/km²). There were 3,074 housing units at an average density of 19.2 per square mile (7.4/km²).^[4] The racial makeup of the county was 96.6% white, 0.5% black or African American, 0.2% Asian, 0.1% American Indian, 1.4% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 4.2% of the population.^[12] In terms of ancestry, 46.5% were German, 16.7% were Irish, 16.3% were Italian, 10.9% were Polish, 10.1% were English, 5.1% were Swedish, and 3.5% were American.^[13]

Of the 2,509 households, 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.6% were married couples living together, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 30.9% were non-families, and 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.85. The median age was 45.2 years.^[12]

The median income for a household in the county was $56,458 and the median income for a family was $68,875. Males had a median income of $50,205 versus $31,886 for females. The per capita income for the county was $27,004. About 6.2% of families and 10.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.8% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.^[14]

Communities

Villages

• Granville
• Hennepin
• Magnolia
• Mark
• McNabb
• Standard

Unincorporated communities

• Florid
• Moronts
• Mount Palatine (partially in LaSalle)
• Putnam
• Walnut Grove

Townships

Putnam County is divided into four townships:

• Granville
• Hennepin
• Magnolia
• Senachwine

Politics

Prior to 1988, Putnam County was a Republican Party stronghold in presidential elections, backing the Republican candidate in all but three elections from 1892 to 1984. From 1988 to 2012, the county consistently backed Democratic Party presidential candidates, but none fared better than Illinois resident Barack Obama's 56.9% in 2008. However, he failed to win a majority of the county's votes four years later despite winning it overall in his 2012 reelection bid. This foreshadowed what was to come in the 2016 election, as the county swung 21.8 points Republican to back Donald Trump over Illinois-born Hillary Clinton by a margin of 19.9%.^[15]

United States presidential election results for Putnam County, Illinois^[16]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	1,993	58.70%	1,338	39.41%	64	1.89%
2016	1,767	56.78%	1,147	36.86%	198	6.36%
2012	1,502	47.79%	1,559	49.60%	82	2.61%
2008	1,378	41.23%	1,900	56.85%	64	1.92%
2004	1,623	48.42%	1,704	50.84%	25	0.75%
2000	1,437	45.20%	1,657	52.12%	85	2.67%
1996	987	35.71%	1,425	51.56%	352	12.74%
1992	969	29.29%	1,574	47.58%	765	23.13%
1988	1,516	48.30%	1,601	51.00%	22	0.70%
1984	1,912	56.02%	1,487	43.57%	14	0.41%
1980	1,959	57.38%	1,158	33.92%	297	8.70%
1976	1,572	53.13%	1,344	45.42%	43	1.45%
1972	1,665	59.74%	1,112	39.90%	10	0.36%
1968	1,351	53.93%	988	39.44%	166	6.63%
1964	1,131	45.42%	1,359	54.58%	0	0.00%
1960	1,457	55.63%	1,160	44.29%	2	0.08%
1956	1,724	65.28%	913	34.57%	4	0.15%
1952	1,691	62.56%	1,010	37.37%	2	0.07%
1948	1,405	60.15%	905	38.74%	26	1.11%
1944	1,521	63.48%	865	36.10%	10	0.42%
1940	1,778	59.56%	1,195	40.03%	12	0.40%
1936	1,435	49.47%	1,437	49.53%	29	1.00%
1932	1,050	39.61%	1,554	58.62%	47	1.77%
1928	1,387	61.10%	869	38.28%	14	0.62%
1924	1,364	61.50%	260	11.72%	594	26.78%
1920	1,623	74.04%	362	16.51%	207	9.44%
1916	1,444	62.48%	785	33.97%	82	3.55%
1912	583	39.88%	424	29.00%	455	31.12%
1908	834	62.99%	413	31.19%	77	5.82%
1904	753	65.03%	355	30.66%	50	4.32%
1900	738	60.29%	450	36.76%	36	2.94%
1896	706	58.06%	479	39.39%	31	2.55%
1892	561	49.04%	514	44.93%	69	6.03%

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Putnam County
• Putnam County, New York

References

1. "Putnam County, Illinois". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 10, 2023.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. "About Putnam County". Putnam County, Illinois. Retrieved July 27, 2012.
4. "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved July 12, 2015.
5. "Monthly Averages for Hennepin, Illinois". The Weather Channel. Retrieved January 27, 2011.
6. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
7. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 8, 2014.
8. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved July 8, 2014.
9. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 8, 2014.
10. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 8, 2014.
11. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved July 8, 2014.
12. "DP-1 Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved July 12, 2015.
13. "DP02 SELECTED SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS IN THE UNITED STATES – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved July 12, 2015.
14. "DP03 SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved July 12, 2015.
15. "Here's a map of the US counties that flipped to Trump from Democrats". www.cnbc.com. Retrieved October 19, 2019.
16. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved November 12, 2018.

External links

• Putnam Information

41.20°N 89.28°W / 41.20; -89.28