is the farthest north-east county in the U.S. state of Illinois. A 2006 census estimated the population was 713,076. Its county seat is Waukegan, Illinois[1]. According to the 2000 United States Census, Lake County is the 31st richest county by per-capita income. The county is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. Its lakefront communities, along with some in Cook County, are part of an area known as the North Shore.
Originally part of
McHenry County, the townships comprising Lake County were carved out into a separate county in 1839.
Geography
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,368 square miles (3,543 km²), of which, 448 square miles (1,159 km²) of it is land and 920 square miles (2,384 km²) of it is water, much of it in Lake Michigan. The total area is 67.28% water.
Forstall, Richard L. (editor) (1996). Population of states and counties of the United States: 1790 to 1990 : from the twenty-one decennial censuses. United States Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Population Division.
