McLean County, Illinois

County in Illinois, United States

U.S. county in Illinois

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

(2010)

• Total| 169,572
• Estimate

(2019)

| 171,517
• Density| 140/sq mi (55/km2)
Time zone| UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)| UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional districts| 13th, 18th
Website| www.mcleancountyil.gov

McLean County is the largest county by land area in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it had a population of 169,572.[1] Its county seat is Bloomington.[2] McLean County is included in the Bloomington–Normal, IL Metropolitan Statistical Area.

## Contents

* 1 Pronunciation
* 2 History
* 3 Geography
* 3.1 Climate and weather
* 3.2 Adjacent counties
* 3.3 Major highways
* 3.4 Transit
* 4 Demographics
* 5 Communities
* 5.1 Cities
* 5.2 Town
* 5.3 Villages
* 5.4 Census-designated place
* 5.5 Other unincorporated communities
* 5.6 Townships
* 5.7 Ghost towns
* 6 Government
* 6.1 Politics
* 7 Education
* 8 Notable persons
* 9 See also
* 10 Notes
* 11 References
* 12 External links

## Pronunciation

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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

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McLean County was formed late in 1830 out of Tazewell County. It was named for John McLean, United States Senator for Illinois, who died in 1830.[3]

* McLean County from the time of its creation to 1837

* McLean County between 1837 and 1841

* McLean County in 1841, reduced to its present borders

## Geography

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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.[4] It is the largest county in Illinois by land area and third-largest by total area. McLean County is actually larger than the land area of Rhode Island (1045 sq mi).

### Climate and weather

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Bloomington, Illinois

Climate chart (explanation)

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1.7

1.7

2.9

3.8

4.5

3.9

3.8

2.7

3.1

2.4

Average max. and min. temperatures in °F
Precipitation totals in inches
Source: The Weather Channel[5]
| Metric conversion

−10

115

100

Average max. and min. temperatures in °C
Precipitation totals in mm

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.[5]

### Adjacent counties

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* Woodford County \- northwest
* Livingston County \- northeast
* Ford County \- east
* Champaign County \- southeast
* Piatt County \- south
* DeWitt County \- south
* Logan County \- southwest
* Tazewell County \- west

### Major highways

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* Interstate 39
* Interstate 55
* Interstate 74
* U.S. Highway 24
* U.S. Highway 51
* U.S. Highway 66
* U.S. Highway 136
* U.S. Highway 150
* Illinois Route 9
* Illinois Route 54
* Illinois Route 122
* Illinois Route 165
* File:Illinois 251.svg Illinois Route 251

### Transit

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* Connect Transit
* Uptown Station
* List of intercity bus stops in Illinois

## Demographics

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Historical population

Census | Pop. |  | %±
1840| 6,565| | —
1850| 10,163| | 54.8%
1860| 28,772| | 183.1%
1870| 53,988| | 87.6%
1880| 60,100| | 11.3%
1890| 63,036| | 4.9%
1900| 67,843| | 7.6%
1910| 68,008| | 0.2%
1920| 70,107| | 3.1%
1930| 73,117| | 4.3%
1940| 73,930| | 1.1%
1950| 76,577| | 3.6%
1960| 83,877| | 9.5%
1970| 104,389| | 24.5%
1980| 119,149| | 14.1%
1990| 129,180| | 8.4%
2000| 150,433| | 16.5%
2010| 169,572| | 12.7%
2019 (est.)| 171,517| [6]| 1.1%
U.S. Decennial Census[7]
1790-1960[8] 1900-1990[9]
1990-2000[10] 2010-2019[1]

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 169,572 people, 65,104 households, and 40,124 families residing in the county.[11] 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).[4] 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.[11] In terms of ancestry, 31.2% were German, 15.4% were Irish, 11.4% were American, and 11.0% were English.[12]

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.[11]

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.[13]

## Communities

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### Cities

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

### Town

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* Normal

### Villages

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* Anchor
* Arrowsmith
* Bellflower
* Carlock
* Colfax
* Cooksville
* Danvers
* Downs
* Ellsworth
* Gridley
* Heyworth
* Hudson
* McLean
* Saybrook
* Stanford
* Towanda

Map of McLean County, Illinois

### Census-designated place

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* Twin Grove

### Other unincorporated communities

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* Barnes
* Bentown
* Bloomington Heights
* Covell
* Cropsey
* Fletcher
* Funks Grove
* Gillum
* Hendrix
* Holder
* Kerrick
* Laurette
* Lytleville
* Meadows
* Merna
* Padua
* Randolph
* Sabina
* Shirley
* Watkins
* Weedman
* Weston
* Yuton

### Townships

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McLean County is divided into these townships:

* Allin
* Anchor
* Arrowsmith
* Bellflower
* Bloomington
* Bloomington City
* Blue Mound
* Cheney's Grove
* Chenoa
* Cropsey
* Dale
* Danvers
* Dawson
* Downs
* Dry Grove
* Empire
* Funk's Grove
* Gridley
* Hudson
* Lawndale
* Lexington
* Martin
* Money Creek
* Mount Hope
* Normal
* Old Town
* Randolph
* Towanda
* West
* White Oak
* Yates

### Ghost towns

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* Allin[14]
* Benjaminville
* Kumler

## Government

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McLean County has a twenty-member board representing ten districts within the county. Each district elects two members. Districts 1-3 encompass all of the county outside of Bloomington and Normal. Districts 4-6 are within the town limits of Normal, and districts 7-10 are within Bloomington city limits.

### Politics

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Like most of central Illinois, McLean County is historically Republican-leaning. The only Democrats to gain an absolute majority of the county's vote since the Civil War have been Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932 and 1936, Lyndon Johnson by a mere 1.2% in 1964, and Joe Biden in 2020. Illinois resident Barack Obama in 2008 and Woodrow Wilson in 1912 both carried the county by narrow pluralities.

The county has not swung as heavily to the Democrats as other counties dominated by college towns. In recent years, however, McLean has trended sufficiently Democratic that Hillary Clinton in 2016 lost the county by just 1.3 percent, while Biden won the county in 2020 with a narrow majority.

McLean County is one of only thirteen counties to have voted for Obama in 2008, Romney in 2012, Trump in 2016, and Biden in 2020.[a]

United States presidential election results for McLean County, Illinois[15] Year  | Republican | Democratic | Third party

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No. | % | No. | % | No. | %
2020 | 40,502  | 46.45%  | 43,933  | 50.39% | 2,755  | 3.16%
2016 | 37,237  | 45.79% | 36,196  | 44.51%  | 7,891  | 9.70%
2012 | 39,947  | 54.37% | 31,883  | 43.40%  | 1,639  | 2.23%
2008 | 36,767  | 48.46%  | 37,689  | 49.67% | 1,422  | 1.87%
2004 | 41,276  | 57.63% | 29,877  | 41.72%  | 467  | 0.65%
2000 | 34,008  | 55.84% | 24,936  | 40.95%  | 1,954  | 3.21%
1996 | 26,428  | 49.46% | 22,708  | 42.50%  | 4,299  | 8.05%
1992 | 25,726  | 43.39% | 23,090  | 38.95%  | 10,469  | 17.66%
1988 | 30,572  | 61.75% | 18,659  | 37.69%  | 280  | 0.57%
1984 | 32,221  | 66.64% | 15,880  | 32.84%  | 248  | 0.51%
1980 | 30,096  | 61.13% | 13,587  | 27.60%  | 5,549  | 11.27%
1976 | 28,493  | 62.10% | 16,601  | 36.18%  | 785  | 1.71%
1972 | 31,060  | 67.59% | 14,824  | 32.26%  | 71  | 0.15%
1968 | 22,284  | 59.22% | 12,779  | 33.96%  | 2,567  | 6.82%
1964 | 19,120  | 49.44%  | 19,550  | 50.56% | 0  | 0.00%
1960 | 24,758  | 63.87% | 13,971  | 36.04%  | 32  | 0.08%
1956 | 25,758  | 67.59% | 12,332  | 32.36%  | 21  | 0.06%
1952 | 24,494  | 64.75% | 13,296  | 35.15%  | 36  | 0.10%
1948 | 18,430  | 58.48% | 12,904  | 40.94%  | 183  | 0.58%
1944 | 19,366  | 57.70% | 14,011  | 41.75%  | 185  | 0.55%
1940 | 21,865  | 54.44% | 18,024  | 44.87%  | 277  | 0.69%
1936 | 16,826  | 43.00%  | 21,508  | 54.96% | 798  | 2.04%
1932 | 15,450  | 43.07%  | 19,535  | 54.46% | 886  | 2.47%
1928 | 20,780  | 65.37% | 10,742  | 33.79%  | 267  | 0.84%
1924 | 16,550  | 55.95% | 6,826  | 23.07%  | 6,206  | 20.98%
1920 | 16,680  | 65.27% | 6,411  | 25.09%  | 2,464  | 9.64%
1916 | 14,988  | 53.22% | 11,699  | 41.54%  | 1,473  | 5.23%
1912 | 4,624  | 30.23%  | 5,356  | 35.02% | 5,314  | 34.75%
1908 | 8,953  | 55.88% | 5,982  | 37.33%  | 1,088  | 6.79%
1904 | 8,772  | 58.66% | 4,149  | 27.74%  | 2,034  | 13.60%
1900 | 9,487  | 56.41% | 6,613  | 39.32%  | 718  | 4.27%
1896 | 9,964  | 59.62% | 6,328  | 37.87%  | 420  | 2.51%
1892 | 7,445  | 50.43% | 6,487  | 43.94%  | 832  | 5.64%

## Education

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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:[16]

* 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

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* 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

## See also

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* National Register of Historic Places listings in McLean County, Illinois

## Notes

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1. ^ The other twelve are Butte County, California; Teton County, Idaho; Kent County, Maryland; Kendall County, Illinois; Tippecanoe County, Indiana; Kent County, Michigan; Leelanau County, Michigan; Carroll County, New Hampshire; Rockingham County, New Hampshire; Marion County, Oregon; Grand County, Utah; and Albany County, Wyoming.

## References

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1. ^ a b "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved July 7, 2014.
2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 194.
4. ^ a b "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. ^ a b "Monthly Averages for Bloomington, Illinois". The Weather Channel. Archived from the original on December 6, 2010. Retrieved January 27, 2011.
6. ^ "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Retrieved May 21, 2020.
7. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 7, 2014.
8. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Archived from the original on August 11, 2012. Retrieved July 7, 2014.
9. ^ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on April 24, 2014. Retrieved July 7, 2014.
10. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 18, 2014. Retrieved July 7, 2014.
11. ^ a b c "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.
12. ^ "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.
13. ^ "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.
14. ^ Gannett, Henry (May 6, 2018). "The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States". U.S. Government Printing Office. Retrieved May 6, 2018 - via Google Books.
15. ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Archived from the original on March 23, 2018. Retrieved May 6, 2018.
16. ^ (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st17_il/schooldistrict_maps/c17113_mclean/DC20SD_C17113.pdf. Retrieved July 20, 2022. `{{cite web}}`: Missing or empty `|title=` (help)

## External links

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to McLean County, Illinois.

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

The History of McLean County, Illinois

* McLean County Government Web Site
* McLean County Divorce
* Map of McLean Co., showing political subdivisions

Places adjacent to McLean County, Illinois

| Woodford County |  | Livingston County

|
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|  |
Tazewell County |

McLean County, Illinois

| Ford County
|  |
Logan County | Piatt County and De Witt County | Champaign County

* v
* t
* e

Municipalities and communities of McLean County, Illinois, United States

County seat: Bloomington

Cities|

* Bloomington
* Chenoa
* El Paso‡
* Le Roy
* Lexington

Map of Illinois highlighting McLean County

Town|

* Normal

Villages|

* Anchor
* Arrowsmith
* Bellflower
* Carlock
* Colfax
* Cooksville
* Danvers
* Downs
* Ellsworth
* Gridley
* Heyworth
* Hudson
* McLean
* Saybrook
* Stanford
* Towanda

Townships|

* Allin
* Anchor
* Arrowsmith
* Bellflower
* Bloomington
* Blue Mound
* Cheney's Grove
* Chenoa
* Cropsey
* Dale
* Danvers
* Dawson
* Downs
* Dry Grove
* Empire
* Funk's Grove
* Gridley
* Hudson
* Lawndale
* Lexington
* Martin
* Money Creek
* Mount Hope
* Normal
* Old Town
* Randolph
* Towanda
* West
* White Oak
* Yates

CDPs|

* Shirley
* Twin Grove

Other
communities|

* Barnes
* Bentown
* Bloomington Heights
* Cropsey
* Covell
* Fletcher
* Funks Grove
* Gillum
* Hendrix
* Holder
* Kerrick
* Laurette
* Lytleville
* Meadows
* Merna
* Padua
* Randolph
* Sabina
* Watkins‡
* Weedman‡
* Weston
* Yuton

Ghost towns|

* Ballard
* Benjaminville
* Kumler

* United States portal

* v
* t
* e

State of Illinois

Springfield (capital)

Topics|

* Index
* Buildings and structures
* Census areas
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* Portal
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Regions|

* American Bottom
* Bloomington–Normal metropolitan area
* Central Illinois
* Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area
* Chicago metropolitan area
* Collar counties
* Corn Belt
* Driftless Area
* Forgottonia
* Fox Valley
* Illinois–Indiana–Kentucky tri-state area
* Metro East
* Metro Lakeland
* Mississippi Alluvial Plain
* North Shore
* Northern Illinois
* Northwestern Illinois
* Peoria metropolitan area
* Quad Cities
* River Bend
* Rockford metropolitan area
* Southern Illinois
* Wabash Valley

Municipalities|

* Alton/Granite City/Edwardsville
* Arlington Heights/Palatine
* Aurora/Naperville/Oswego/Plainfield
* Bartlett/Hanover Park/Streamwood
* Belleville/East St. Louis/Collinsville/O'Fallon
* Berwyn/Cicero
* Bloomington/Normal
* Bolingbrook/Romeoville
* Buffalo Grove/Wheeling
* Calumet City
* Canton
* Carbondale
* Carol Stream/Glendale Heights
* Centralia
* Champaign/Urbana
* Charleston/Mattoon
* Chicago
* Chicago Heights
* Crystal Lake/Algonquin
* Danville
* Decatur
* DeKalb/Sycamore
* Des Plaines/Mount Prospect/Park Ridge
* Dixon
* Downers Grove/Woodridge
* Effingham
* Elgin/Carpentersville
* Elmhurst/Lombard/Addison
* Evanston/Skokie
* Freeport
* Galesburg
* Glenview/Northbrook
* Harrisburg
* Jacksonville
* Joliet
* Kankakee/Bradley/Bourbonnais
* Lincoln
* Macomb
* Marion/Herrin
* Moline/East Moline/Rock Island
* Mount Vernon
* Mundelein
* Oak Lawn
* Oak Park
* Orland Park/Tinley Park
* Ottawa/Streator/LaSalle/Peru
* Peoria/Pekin/East Peoria/Morton/Washington
* Pontiac
* Quincy
* Rochelle
* Rockford/Belvidere/Machesney Park/Loves Park
* St. Charles
* Schaumburg/Hoffman Estates/Elk Grove Village
* Springfield
* Sterling/Rock Falls
* Taylorville
* Waukegan/North Chicago/Gurnee
* Wheaton

Counties|

* Adams
* Alexander
* Bond
* Boone
* Brown
* Bureau
* Calhoun
* Carroll
* Cass
* Champaign
* Christian
* Clark
* Clay
* Clinton
* Coles
* Cook
* Crawford
* Cumberland
* DeKalb
* DeWitt
* Douglas
* DuPage
* Edgar
* Edwards
* Effingham
* Fayette
* Ford
* Franklin
* Fulton
* Gallatin
* Greene
* Grundy
* Hamilton
* Hancock
* Hardin
* Henderson
* Henry
* Iroquois
* Jackson
* Jasper
* Jefferson
* Jersey
* Jo Daviess
* Johnson
* Kane
* Kankakee
* Kendall
* Knox
* Lake
* LaSalle
* Lawrence
* Lee
* Livingston
* Logan
* Macon
* Macoupin
* Madison
* Marion
* Marshall
* Mason
* Massac
* McDonough
* McHenry
* McLean
* Menard
* Mercer
* Monroe
* Montgomery
* Morgan
* Moultrie
* Ogle
* Peoria
* Perry
* Piatt
* Pike
* Pope
* Pulaski
* Putnam
* Randolph
* Richland
* Rock Island
* Saline
* Sangamon
* Schuyler
* Scott
* Shelby
* St. Clair
* Stark
* Stephenson
* Tazewell
* Union
* Vermilion
* Wabash
* Warren
* Washington
* Wayne
* White
* Whiteside
* Will
* Williamson
* Winnebago
* Woodford

Coordinates: 40°29′N 88°51′W﻿ / ﻿40.49°N 88.85°W﻿ / 40.49; -88.85
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