Herscher, Illinois

"Herscher" redirects here. For other uses, see Herscher (disambiguation).

Herscher is a village in Kankakee County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,521 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Kankakee–Bradley metropolitan area.

Herscher, Illinois
Village
Motto:  "Small Town America at Its Best"
Location of Herscher in Illinois
Location of Illinois in the United States
Coordinates: 41°02′57″N 88°06′02″W[1]
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Kankakee
Township	Pilot
Government
• Village president	Shannon Sweeney[citation needed]
Area [2]
• Total	1.81 sq mi (4.70 km2)
• Land	1.81 sq mi (4.70 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation [1]	659 ft (201 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	1,521
• Density	838.94/sq mi (323.86/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code	60941
Area codes	815 & 779
FIPS code	17-34384
GNIS feature ID	2398494[1]
Wikimedia Commons	Herscher, Illinois
Website	https://herscher.net/

Geography

Herscher is located in southwestern Kankakee County. Illinois Route 115 forms the northern edge of the village; the highway leads east 16 miles (26 km) to Kankakee, the county seat.

According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Herscher has a total area of 1.81 square miles (4.69 km²), all land.^[3]

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1880	103		—
1890	224		117.5%
1900	384		71.4%
1910	461		20.1%
1920	449		−2.6%
1930	426		−5.1%
1940	416		−2.3%
1950	515		23.8%
1960	658		27.8%
1970	988		50.2%
1980	1,214		22.9%
1990	1,278		5.3%
2000	1,523		19.2%
2010	1,591		4.5%
2020	1,521		−4.4%
U.S. Decennial Census[4]

As of the 2020 census^[5] there were 1,521 people, 609 households, and 402 families residing in the village. The population density was 838.94 inhabitants per square mile (323.92/km²). There were 643 housing units at an average density of 354.66 per square mile (136.93/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 92.97% White, 0.53% African American, 0.20% Native American, 0.46% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.85% from other races, and 5.00% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.70% of the population.

There were 609 households, out of which 26.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.34% were married couples living together, 8.54% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.99% were non-families. 29.39% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.08% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.01 and the average family size was 2.43.

The village's age distribution consisted of 22.5% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 22.8% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 24.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 103.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.8 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $67,404, and the median income for a family was $92,237. Males had a median income of $57,386 versus $40,647 for females. The per capita income for the village was $35,518. About 2.2% of families and 4.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.1% of those under age 18 and 8.6% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Herscher is the central location of the Herscher Community School District #2. Herscher has a grade school, junior high, and high school. It is the only high school in the district ^[6]

Notable people

• Chris Bisaillon, College Football Hall of Fame inductee
• Brooke Langton, model and actress
• Scott Meents, professional basketball player for Chicago Bulls, Seattle SuperSonics, Utah Jazz
• Steve Reick, member of the Illinois House of Representatives