McLean County, Illinois

McLean County, Illinois
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.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (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 in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of was recorded in June 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in February to in May.
Adjacent counties
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
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
Illinois Route 251
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 . There were 69,656 housing units at an average density of . 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
Anchor
Arrowsmith
Bellflower
Carlock
Colfax
Cooksville
Danvers
Downs
Ellsworth
Gridley
Heyworth
Hudson
McLean
Saybrook
Stanford
Towanda
Census-designated place
Twin Grove
Other unincorporated communities
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
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
Allin
Benjaminville
Kumler
Government
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
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 since the 1990s. 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. Further solidifying the county's leftward shift, Governor JB Pritzker won the county by 1.3% in 2022, making it the first time since 1948 it supported a Democrat for governor.
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.
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
See also
National Register of Historic Places listings in McLean County, Illinois
Notes
References
External links
McLean County Government Web Site
Map of McLean Co., showing political subdivisions
Illinois counties
1830 establishments in Illinois
Populated places established in 1830