RICHTON PARK, IL

Richton Park is a village and a southern suburb of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 12,775 at the 2020 census. The community was named after a Richton in Vermont, the native home of a first settler.

Geography

Richton Park is located at (41.481992, -87.725352).

The village is bordered by Matteson to the north, Park Forest to the east, and University Park to the south.

According to the 2010 census, Richton Park has a total area of , of which (or 99.7%) is land and (or 0.3%) is water.

Tornado

On Saturday June 7, 2008, an EF2 tornado went through Richton Park around 6:00pm. The tornado tore apart the Richton Square Apartments damaging 40 units and leaving at least 80 residents homeless. Some commercial properties along Sauk Trail were also heavily damaged. The tornado continued northeast through Park Forest before dissipating near the intersection of Lincoln highway and Western avenue.

Demographics

2020 census

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.

2010 Census

As of the 2010 census, there were 13,646 people, 5,391 households, and 2.54 persons living per household. The population density was 3,426.9 people per square mile (1,435.9/km) according to 2010 census. There were 4,730 housing units at an average density of 1,401.9 per square mile (541.9/km). The racial makeup of the village was 82.4% African American, 12.7% White, 0.1% Native American, 1.0% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander and 2.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.5% of the population.

According to 2000 census data, there were 12,581 people, 4,578 households, out of which 39.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.5% were married couples living together, 18.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.1% were non-families. 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.68 and the average family size was 3.25.

The 2010 Census estimated the population was spread out, with 34.3% under the age of 18 and 8.6% of persons 65 years and over. These estimates were a change from those of 2000, with 28.8% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 32.7% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 7.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age in 2000 was 33 years. In 2010, 54.7% of the village was female persons.

In 2010-2014, the median household income was $54,887, an increase from the 2000 Census estimate of $48,299, and the median income for a family was $58,661. In 2000, males had a median income of $44,637 versus $35,231 for females. The per capita income for the village in 2010-2014 was $26,566. In 2000, about 4.2% of families and 7.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.2% of those under age 18 and 14.4% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Matteson School District 162 is headquartered in Richton Park and serves as the primary district.

Elementary School District 159 serves portions of Richton Park.

Rich Township High School and Southland College Preparatory Charter High School are the two public high schools that serve Richton Park, both schools are located in the village.

The Richton Park Public Library District has served the village since 1972.

Notable places

Government

Richton Park is in Illinois' 2nd congressional district.