 pope county is a county located in the u.s. state of illinois. according to the 2010 census, it had a population of 4,470, making it the second-least populous county in illinois. its county seat is golconda. the county was organized in 1816 from portions of gallatin county and johnson county and named after nathaniel pope, a secretary of the illinois territory. ==history== first permanent settlement in 1798 at the modern-day site of golconda, operating as a ferry point across the ohio river. pope county was formed in 1816 from portions of gallatin and johnson counties. file:pope county illinois 1816.png|pope county from the time of its creation to 1839 file:pope county illinois 1839.png|pope county between 1839 and 1843 file:pope county illinois 1843.png|pope county between 1843 and 1847 file:pope county illinois 1847.png|in 1847, pope's border with hardin county was adjusted, bringing both to their present borders ==geography== according to the u.s. census bureau, the county has a total area of , of which  is land and  (1.5%) is water. the entire county is hilly and during rainy weather rivulets cascade down the hills in the park forming waterfalls of varying sizes and heights. the county contains dixon springs state park, one of many state parks in the illinois shawnee hills, and is part of the shawnee national forest. it is bordered to the south and east by the ohio river, which marks the state's border with kentucky. ===climate and weather=== {{climate chart |golconda, illinois |21|41|3.48 |24|47|3.68 |33|57|4.71 |42|68|4.75 |52|76|5.02 |60|84|4.19 |65|87|4.22 |63|87|3.49 |55|80|3.24 |43|70|3.22 |34|57|4.41 |25|46|4.29 |float=right |units=imperial |clear=both |source=the weather channel{{cite web |url=http://www.weather.com/weather/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/usil047
1816_establishments_in_Illinois_Territory Illinois_counties Illinois_counties_on_the_Ohio_River Little_Egypt Populated_places_established_in_1816 Pre-statehood_history_of_Illinois