Cumberland County was created on March 2, 1823, from parts of Coles County. It is named for the National Road (Cumberland Road), which was projected to run through it.[3]
Cumberland County at the time of its creation in 1823
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 347 square miles (900 km2), of which 346 square miles (900 km2) is land and 1.0 square mile (2.6 km2) (0.3%) is water.[4]
In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Toledo have ranged from a low of 17 °F (−8 °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 (jobs) and a record high of 111 °F (44 °C) was recorded in July 1954. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 2.03 inches (52 mm) in January to 4.21 inches (107 mm) in June.[5]
U.S. Decennial Census[7] 1790-1960[8] 1900-1990[9] 1990-2000[10] 2010[11]
2000 census age pyramid for Cumberland County
As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 11,048 people, 4,377 households, and 3,121 families living in the county.[12] The population density was 31.9 inhabitants per square mile (12.3/km2). There were 4,874 housing units at an average density of 14.1 per square mile (5.4/km2).[4] The racial makeup of the county was 98.3% white, 0.3% black or African American, 0.2% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.2% from other races, and 0.8% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.7% of the population.[12] In terms of ancestry, 30.6% were German, 17.4% were American, 11.7% were Irish, and 11.4% were English.[13]
Of the 4,377 households, 31.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.7% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 28.7% were non-families, and 24.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 2.95. The median age was 40.9 years.[12]
The median income for a household in the county was $42,101 and the median income for a family was $51,729. Males had a median income of $42,157 versus $29,142 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,262. About 8.1% of families and 12.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.4% of those under age 18 and 8.2% of those age 65 or over.[14]
Although predominantly Democratic in the years before World War I, in the aftermath of which Woodrow Wilson’s policies towards Germany were locally deplored, Cumberland County has since become powerfully Republican. Even in Franklin D. Roosevelt's 1932 and 1936 landslides, he won only small victories, and since then only three Democrats have carried the county. Bill Clinton, who won a plurality in 1992, is the last Democrat to reach forty percent of the county's vote, and in 2016, the rapid Upland South trend towards overwhelmingly Republican voting caused his wife Hillary to win less than twenty percent of the county's ballots.
United States presidential election results for Cumberland County, Illinois[15]
