Randolph

Formed January 1, 1795 (2^nd county)

Randolph County (30,165), Chester (6,828)

The Modern style brown brick and concrete structure, built in 1975, replaced an 1850 facility.  It sits on Taylor Street at State Street.  Illinois State Highway 150 passes in front of the courthouse as Taylor Street.  The architects are Hanner, Breitweiser, and McLaughlin.  Randolph County was established on January 1, 1795 out of Saint Clair County as the 2^nd county.  Kaskaskia was the first county seat followed by Chester in 1847.  Perry County was later cut from Randolph County.  The county is named for Virginia Governor Edmund Randolph who ceded the land for the Illinois Territory.  The county seat is named for Chester, England. 

Randolph County government consists of a sheriff, an attorney, a coroner, a clerk, a treasurer, and an assessor (executive).  It has 3 Board Members (legislative.)  Twenty-four Circuit Court Judges serve Randolph, Monroe, Perry, St. Clair, and Washington counties and a court clerk serves Randolph County (judicial.) The county is in southwest Illinois on the Mississippi River.  It borders Missouri to its south and west.  Saint Louis, Missouri is northwest and Paducah, Kentucky is southeast of the county.  The county center is 12.4 miles North-Northwest of Chester nearer Walsh.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Saint Clair, Washington, Perry, and Jackson counties and Missouri and Monroe County. 

The area of the county is 575 square miles.  It is 39 out of 102 in the state.  It ranks 47 out of 102 in population in the state.  It has a density of 52.5 persons per square mile making it 44 out of 102 in the state.  Randolph County has 70.3% of its population in its incorporated areas.  There are no Interstates or United States Highways in the county.  The county is shaped like an arrowhead pointing northeast.  Chester is in the southeast quarter of the county on the Mississippi River.  Chester is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 22.6% of the county population.