Alexander County, Illinois

Alexander County
County
Alexander County Courthouse in Cairo
Location within the U.S. state of Illinois
Illinois's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 37°11′N89°20′W / 37.19°N 89.34°W / 37.19; -89.34
Country	United States
State	Illinois
Founded	1819
Named for	William M. Alexander
Seat	Cairo
Largest city	Cairo
Area
• Total	253 sq mi (660 km2)
• Land	236 sq mi (610 km2)
• Water	17 sq mi (40 km2)  6.8%
Population  (2020)
• Total	5,240
• Estimate  (2023)	4,695
• Density	21/sq mi (8.0/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	12th
Website	www.alexandercountyil.com

Alexander County is the southernmost and southwesternmost county in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,240. ^[1] Its county seat is Cairo ^[2] and its western boundary is formed by the Mississippi River.

Alexander County is part of the Cape Girardeau, MO-IL Metropolitan Statistical Area which is made up of jurisdictions on both sides of the Mississippi River.

History

Alexander County was organized from part of Union County in 1819. It was named for William M. Alexander, a physician who practiced in the town of America (the first county seat). ^[3] Alexander was elected as a representative to the state House, where he became Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives in 1822.

The county was initially developed for agriculture and settled by numerous migrants from the Upper South. The county seat was moved to Unity in 1833, then to Thebes in 1843, and finally to Cairo in 1860. America, the first county seat, is now within Pulaski County, which was formed from Alexander and Johnson counties in 1843. ^[4]

• 
  Alexander County between 1819 and 1843.
• 
  Alexander County reduced to its current borders in 1843 with the creation of Pulaski County.

Settled largely by white migrants from the Upland South, southern Illinois had many racial attitudes of the South. As African Americans settled in Cairo to seek jobs on steamboats, ferries, in shipping and railroads, there were tensions between the racial groups. White residents sometimes used violence and terrorism, as well as discrimination, to keep black residents in second-class positions. They excluded them from the city government and the police and fire departments, and relatively few African Americans were hired to work in the local stores.

There were three lynchings of blacks in Alexander County in the years between Reconstruction and the early 20th century. The county had the second-highest number of lynchings of African Americans in all of Illinois. ^[5] The most notorious of these was the lynching of Will James before a crowd of white spectators estimated at 10,000, in the county seat of Cairo on November 11, 1909. James was accused of murdering a young white woman. Later that same evening, the mob lynched a white man named Henry Salzner, hanging him in the courthouse square for allegedly killing his wife. Neither man had had a trial, nor was anyone ever prosecuted for the lynchings, even though Illinois had passed an anti-lynching law four years earlier. ^[6]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 253 square miles (660 km²), of which 236 square miles (610 km²) is land and 17 square miles (44 km²) (6.8%) is water. ^[7] Its borders are partly defined by the Mississippi River and the Ohio River. The lowest point in the state of Illinois is located on the Mississippi River in Cairo in Alexander County, where it flows out of Illinois and into Kentucky.

Adjacent counties

• Union County - north
• Ballard County, Kentucky - southeast
• Pulaski County - east
• Mississippi County, Missouri - south
• Scott County, Missouri - west
• Cape Girardeau County, Missouri - northwest

National protected areas

• Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge (part)
• Shawnee National Forest (part)

Major highways

• Interstate 57
• U.S. Route 51
• U.S. Route 60
• U.S. Route 62
• Illinois Route 3
• Illinois Route 37
• Illinois Route 127
• Illinois Route 146

Climate and weather

Cairo, Illinois
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     3.2     41 26     3.6     48 30     4.4     58 39     4.7     69 50     4.8     78 59     4.2     86 67     4.4     90 71     3.6     87 69     3     81 61     3.4     71 49     4.4     57 39     4.2     46 30 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F █ Precipitation totals in inches Source: The Weather Channel [8]
Metric conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     82     5 −3     90     9 −1     112     14 4     120     21 10     121     26 15     105     30 19     111     32 22     92     31 21     77     27 16     87     22 9     112     14 4     106     8 −1 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C █ Precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Cairo have ranged from a low of 26 °F (−3 °C) in January to a high of 90 °F (32 °C) in July, although a record low of −12 °F (−24 °C) was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of 104 °F (40 °C) was recorded in June 1954. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 3.04 inches (77 mm) in September to 4.76 inches (121 mm) in May. ^[8]

Law enforcement

The Tamms Correctional Center, a now shuttered super-maximum correctional facility operated by the Illinois Department of Corrections, was located in Tamms, ^{[9] [10]} as was the State of Illinois execution chamber. ^[11] Prior to the January 11, 2003, commutation of death row sentences, male death row inmates were housed in Tamms, Menard, and Pontiac correctional centers. After that date, only Pontiac continued to host the male death row. ^[12] On January 4, 2013, after years of controversy over inmate conditions, the prison officially closed, negatively impacting the county's economy. ^{[13] [14] [15]}

In late September 2009, press reports indicated that the Alexander County Sheriff's office had five of its seven squad cars repossessed as payments had not been made. The sheriff once had 29 deputies, but was reduced to just five at the time of the reports. The Illinois State Police have provided assistance to the county with additional patrols. ^[16]

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1820	626		—
1830	1,390		122.0%
1840	3,313		138.3%
1850	2,484		−25.0%
1860	4,707		89.5%
1870	10,564		124.4%
1880	14,808		40.2%
1890	16,563		11.9%
1900	19,384		17.0%
1910	22,741		17.3%
1920	23,980		5.4%
1930	22,542		−6.0%
1940	25,496		13.1%
1950	20,316		−20.3%
1960	16,061		−20.9%
1970	12,015		−25.2%
1980	12,264		2.1%
1990	10,626		−13.4%
2000	9,590		−9.7%
2010	8,238		−14.1%
2020	5,240		−36.4%
2023 (est.)	4,695		−10.4%
U.S. Decennial Census [17] 1790-1960 [18] 1900-1990 [19] 1990-2000 [20] 2010-2020 [21] 2020 [1]

2000 census age pyramid for Alexander County.

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 8,238 people, 3,329 households, and 2,093 families residing in the county. ^[22] The population density was 35.0 inhabitants per square mile (13.5/km²). There were 4,006 housing units at an average density of 17.0 per square mile (6.6/km²). ^[7] The racial makeup of the county was 60.9% white, 35.4% black or African American, 0.3% American Indian, 0.2% Asian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 1.4% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.9% of the population. ^[22] In terms of ancestry, 13.9% were German, 6.8% were Irish, 5.3% were English, and 4.7% were American. ^[23]

Of the 3,329 households, 29.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.6% were married couples living together, 18.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 37.1% were non-families, and 33.6% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.94. The median age was 41.1 years. ^[22]

The median income for a household in the county was $28,833 and the median income for a family was $44,699. Males had a median income of $35,880 versus $25,743 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,858. About 11.8% of families and 20.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 33.1% of those under age 18 and 14.7% of those age 65 or over. ^[24]

2020 census

Between 2010 and 2020, the population of Alexander County decreased to 5,240. The 36.4% decline was the largest of any of the 3,138 U.S. counties. ^[25] Although the population of the county had been decreasing for decades, the closure of the Tamms Correctional Center in 2013 probably caused an acceleration of the decline in the 2010s. ^[14]

Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.

Alexander County racial composition
(NH = Non-Hispanic) ^{[26] [27]}

Race	Pop 2010	Pop 2020	% 2010	% 2020
White (NH)	4,983	3,274	60.49%	62.48%
Black or African American (NH)	2,908	1,612	35.3%	30.76%
Native American or Alaska Native (NH)	25	22	0.3%	0.42%
Asian (NH)	16	6	0.19%	0.11%
Pacific Islander (NH)	6	0	0.07%	0.0%
Some Other Race (NH)	5	8	0.06%	0.15%
Mixed/Multi-Racial (NH)	140	236	1.7%	4.5%
Hispanic or Latino	155	82	1.88%	1.56%
Total	8,238	5,240

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 5,240 people, 2,154 households, and 1,357 families residing in the county.

Education

Here is a list of school districts with any territory in the county, no matter how slight, even if the schools and/or administrative offices are located in other counties: ^[28]

• Cairo Unified School District 1
• Century Community Unit School District 100
• Egyptian Community Unit School District 5
• Meridian Community Unit School District 101
• Shawnee Community Unit School District 84

Communities

City

• Cairo (seat)

Villages

• East Cape Girardeau
• McClure
• Tamms
• Thebes

Census-designated place

• Olive Branch

• Cache
• Clank
• Dawleys
• Diswood
• Elco
• Fayville
• Future City
• Gale
• Golden Lily
• Klondike
• Miller City
• Roth
• Sandusky
• Tankville
• Tatumville
• Unity
• Urbandale
• Willard

Forts

• Fort Defiance

Politics

April 15, 2004, Barack Obama speaks at a luncheon in the city of Cairo, during his US Senate campaign

Alexander County is unique among antebellum free state rural counties in having a postbellum political history largely determined by a previously disfranchised black electorate. It is most similar in this respect to – though still substantially different from – some counties of the south and the Eastern Shore of Maryland. The county was thus solidly Republican until the New Deal, and gradually turned solidly Democratic up through the presidency of Bill Clinton.^{[ citation needed ]}

In the twenty-first century, the county has shown a trend towards the GOP due to large-scale black emigration and a rapid swing of its Caucasian population toward Republican candidates.^{[ citation needed ]} This became clear in 2016, when Donald Trump carried the county by 8.3 points—a hard swing from favorite son Obama's 13.6-point victory four years earlier, and the first time the county voted Republican since 1972. An even harder swing was taken in 2020, when he carried Alexander again by 14.2 points, even as the nation as a whole trended slightly leftward. Furthermore, Dick Durbin lost the county in the simultaneous U.S. Senate election, making it his first Senate election in which he failed to win the county and the first Senate election since 1972 in which a Republican won the county.^{[ citation needed ]}

Despite the rightward swing taken by the county, the city and county seat of Cairo remains overwhelmingly Democratic.^{[ citation needed ]}

United States presidential election results for Alexander County, Illinois ^[29]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	1,486	56.70%	1,114	42.50%	21	0.80%
2016	1,496	53.05%	1,262	44.75%	62	2.20%
2012	1,487	42.47%	1,965	56.13%	49	1.40%
2008	1,692	42.87%	2,189	55.46%	66	1.67%
2004	1,831	47.28%	2,016	52.05%	26	0.67%
2000	1,588	39.48%	2,357	58.60%	77	1.91%
1996	1,212	28.16%	2,753	63.96%	339	7.88%
1992	1,301	29.83%	2,566	58.83%	495	11.35%
1988	1,954	41.90%	2,693	57.75%	16	0.34%
1984	2,574	47.08%	2,872	52.53%	21	0.38%
1980	2,650	46.67%	2,925	51.51%	103	1.81%
1976	2,349	41.52%	3,246	57.37%	63	1.11%
1972	3,669	59.09%	2,482	39.97%	58	0.93%
1968	2,540	36.63%	2,929	42.24%	1,465	21.13%
1964	2,895	37.80%	4,763	62.20%	0	0.00%
1960	4,143	47.96%	4,477	51.83%	18	0.21%
1956	4,425	51.38%	4,167	48.38%	21	0.24%
1952	5,219	54.63%	4,305	45.06%	29	0.30%
1948	4,561	49.05%	4,641	49.91%	96	1.03%
1944	4,792	49.73%	4,767	49.47%	78	0.81%
1940	6,260	48.20%	6,591	50.75%	137	1.05%
1936	5,553	43.89%	6,972	55.10%	128	1.01%
1932	4,729	44.90%	5,653	53.67%	151	1.43%
1928	5,666	61.24%	3,558	38.46%	28	0.30%
1924	4,465	58.10%	2,639	34.34%	581	7.56%
1920	5,287	61.92%	3,167	37.09%	85	1.00%
1916	5,395	56.76%	3,940	41.45%	170	1.79%
1912	2,003	41.79%	1,936	40.39%	854	17.82%
1908	3,790	63.85%	2,027	34.15%	119	2.00%
1904	3,203	63.11%	1,686	33.22%	186	3.67%
1900	2,790	60.76%	1,760	38.33%	42	0.91%
1896	2,802	60.35%	1,813	39.05%	28	0.60%
1892	2,053	53.93%	1,674	43.97%	80	2.10%

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Alexander County, Illinois
• List of counties in Illinois

References

Specific

1. "2020 Census Data". data.census.gov.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. Perrin 1883, p. 455.
4. Callary, Edward (2009). Place Names of Illinois. Urbana and Chicago, Illinois: University of Illinois Press. p. 4.
5. Lynching in America/"Supplement: Lynchings by County" Archived October 23, 2017, at the Wayback Machine , 3rd edition, 2017; Montgomery, Alabama: Equal Justice Institute, 2015/2017, p. 4
6. McDermott, Stacy Pratt (1999). ""An Outrageous Proceeding": A Northern Lynching and the Enforcement of Anti-Lynching Legislation in Illinois, 1905-1910". The Journal of Negro History. 84 (1): 61–78. doi:10.2307/2649083. JSTOR   2649083. S2CID   150209743.
7. "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2015.
8. "Monthly Averages for Cairo, Illinois". The Weather Channel. Retrieved January 27, 2011.
9. "Tamms village, Illinois Archived 2011-06-08 at the Wayback Machine ." U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on August 15, 2010.
10. "Tamms Correctional Center." Illinois Department of Corrections. Retrieved on September 1, 2010.
11. "Tamms Closed Maximum Security Unit: Ten-Point Plan Brief Archived 2010-08-21 at the Wayback Machine ." Illinois Department of Corrections. 3 (9/51). September 3, 2009. Retrieved on September 1, 2010.
12. "DOC Report Online Archived 2011-07-18 at the Wayback Machine ." Illinois Department of Corrections. Retrieved on September 1, 2010.
13. "Tamms "Supermax" Prison, with its Inhumane and Ridiculously Expensive Solitary Confinement Practices, is Officially a Thing of the Past!". American Civil Liberties Union. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
14. Ruch, Amber. "Tamms closure impact on town months later". KFVS12. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
15. Moser, Whet (February 27, 2013). "Why Labor Is Fighting the Tamms Prison Closure". Chicago magazine. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
16. Reynolds, Dean (September 28, 2009). "Repo Man Visits an Illinois Police Dept". CBS. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
17. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
18. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
19. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
20. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
21. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
22. "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 11, 2015.
23. "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 11, 2015.
24. "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 11, 2015.
25. "2020 Population and Housing Data". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 21, 2021.
26. "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
27. "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
28. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Alexander County, IL" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 23, 2022. Retrieved July 19, 2022. - Text list
29. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved October 29, 2018.

General

• Perrin, William Henry, ed. (1883). History of Alexander, Union and Pulaski Counties, Illinois. Chicago: O. L. Baskin and Company, Historical Publishers.
• United States Census Bureau 2007 TIGER/Line Shapefiles
• United States Board on Geographic Names (GNIS)
• United States National Atlas

External links

• Rootsweb - Alexander County
• Alexander County Website

37°11′N89°20′W / 37.19°N 89.34°W / 37.19; -89.34