Richland County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 United States census, it had a population of 15,813. Its county seat is Olney.

History

Richland County was established in 1841 out of portions of East part of Clay and West part of Lawrence counties. It was named for Richland County, Ohio, where many of the early settlers migrated from.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 362 sqmi, of which 360 sqmi is land and 1.9 sqmi (0.5%) is water.

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Olney have ranged from a low of 19 °F in January to a high of 88 °F in July, although a record low of -25 °F was recorded in February 1951 and a record high of 112 °F was recorded in July 1936. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 2.73 in in February to 4.76 in in May.

Transit

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Demographics

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 16,233 people, 6,726 households, and 4,438 families residing in the county. By 2020, the population had decreased to 15,813 people. The 2010 population density was 45.1 PD/sqmi, which decreased to 43.1 PD/sqmi in the 2020 census. In 2010, there were 7,513 housing units, compared to 7,364 in 2020, at an average density of 20.9 /sqmi. The 2010 racial makeup of the county was 97.3% white (94.2%, 2020), 0.7% Asian (0.8%, 2020), 0.5% black or African American (same, 2020), 0.2% American Indian (same, 2020), 0.4% (0.5%, 2020) from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races (3.7%, 2020). Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.3% (1.7%, 2020) of the population. In terms of ancestry, 29.6% were German, 11.7% were American, 11.4% were English, and 9.2% were Irish. Of the 6,726 households, 28.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.7% were married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 34.0% were non-families, and 29.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.88. The median age was 42.1 years. The median income for a household in the county was $41,917 and the median income for a family was $53,853. Males had a median income of $41,058 versus $31,296 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,874. About 9.5% of families and 13.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.1% of those under age 18 and 11.9% of those age 65 or over. Richland is the top ranked most affordable county in Illinois to buy a car and is on average $932 less expensive than other Illinois counties.

Communities

City

Villages

Unincorporated communities

Townships

Richland County is divided into nine townships:

Notable people

Politics

Government