Ogle

Formed January 16, 1836 (65^th county)

Ogle County (51,788), Oregon (3,622), Rochelle (9,473)

The dark red brick and stone Romanesque Revival courthouse was built in 1892.  It is on a square at Washington, 4^th, Jefferson, and 5^th streets.  Washington Street is Illinois State Highway 64 in the city.  George O. Gamsey is the building architect.  A Judicial Center was added in 2005.  Ogle County was created on January 16, 1836 out of Jo Daviess and La Salle counties as the 65^th county with Oregon as the only county seat.  Revolutionary War hero Captain Joseph Ogle is the namesake for the county.  The county seat is Native American for “River of the West.” 

Ogle County government consists of a sheriff, an attorney, a coroner, a clerk, a treasurer, and an assessor (executive).  It has 24 Board Members (legislative.)  Thirteen Circuit Court Judges serve Ogle, Carroll, Jo Daviess, Lee, and Stephenson counties and a court clerk serves Ogle County (judicial.) The county is in northern Illinois directly south of Rockford, Illinois and west of Chicago, Illinois.  The Rock River flows through the middle of the county.  The county center is 1.7 miles Northeast of Oregon.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Winnebago, Boone, De Kalb, Lee, Whiteside, Carroll, and Stephenson counties. 

The area of the county is 758 square miles.  It is 17 out of 102 in the state.  It ranks 28 out of 102 in population in the state.  It has a density of 68.3 persons per square mile making it 36 out of 102 in the state.  Ogle County has 57.5% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 39 goes north to south through the eastern part of the county from Winnebago to Lee counties.  Interstate Highway 88 clips the southeast corner from De Kalb County, east, to Lee County, south.  United States Highway 51 is joined with Interstate Highway 39 from Winnebago to Lee counties.  United States Highway 52 crosses the southwest corner from Lee County, south, to Carroll County, west.  The county is rectangular with both the northeast and southwest corner notched out.  Oregon is located near the center of the county.  Rochelle is in the southeast corner of the county and extends into Lee County.  Oregon is the county seat and Rochelle is the largest city.  Oregon is 7.0% of the county population while Rochelle is 18.3% of the county population.  This county is in the Rochelle Micropolitan Statistical Area.