2025

Cities in Coles County, IL ranked by White Population

This list ranks the 6 cities in Coles County based on their White population, as estimated by the United States Census Bureau. It also highlights population changes in these cities over the past five years.
Updated Jan 24, 2025

Top 5 cities with the largest White population in Coles County

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  • 1
    Mattoon
    White population in Mattoon is 15,602
    90.20% of Mattoon population is White
  • 2
    Charleston
    White population in Charleston is 15,304
    86.34% of Charleston population is White
  • 3
    Oakland
    White population in Oakland is 937
    97.91% of Oakland population is White
  • 4
    Ashmore
    White population in Ashmore is 697
    92.07% of Ashmore population is White
  • 5
    Humboldt
    White population in Humboldt is 351
    95.64% of Humboldt population is White

List of 6 cities in Coles County, IL by White Population

View Methodology
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Rank by White Population
City
White Population
% of Total City Population
% of Total Coles County White Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 Mattoon 15,602 90.20% 47.12%
2 Charleston 15,304 86.34% 46.22%
3 Oakland 937 97.91% 2.83%
4 Ashmore 697 92.07% 2.11%
5 Humboldt 351 95.64% 1.06%
6 Lerna 220 96.49% 0.66%

Methodology

This ranking list is based on data from the American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year Estimates, conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. The ACS is one of the most reliable sources for understanding population trends across different locations, and it provides estimates for various racial and ethnic groups at city, county, state and all geography levels down to the Census block group.
This list ranks cities in Coles County, IL by their White population, using the most recent ACS data available.

How the Census Defines White Population

The U.S. Census Bureau allows people to self-identify their race, meaning individuals can choose one or more racial categories when responding to the survey. In this ranking, we include everyone who identifies as White, whether alone or in combination with another race.
Here are a few important things to know about how race is reported:
  • Some people identify as White alone, while others identify as White along with another race (such as White and White).
  • Hispanic / Latino origin is reported separately from race, so someone can be both Hispanic and White .
  • We’ve used the “White alone or in combination” category unless noted otherwise, which gives a broader picture of the White population in each area.

How We Ranked the Data

This ranking is based on the total number of people who identified as White alone or in combination in cities. To provide additional context, we’ve also included two key percentages:
  1. % of Total City Population – This shows what percentage of the total state population identifies as White .
  2. % of Total Coles County White Population – This tells us how much of the entire U.S. White population lives in that state.
To keep things simple, all population numbers have been rounded to the nearest whole number, and percentages are rounded to one decimal place. Because of rounding, some percentages may not add up to exactly 100%.

Things to Keep in Mind

Like all survey-based data, ACS estimates come with some limitations. Here are a few things to be aware of:
  • In places with very small White populations, the numbers may not be reported at all due to privacy protections or sampling variability in the survey.
  • Since the ACS is based on a sample, the numbers are estimates, not exact counts. That means they may slightly differ from other sources like the decennial U.S. Census.
  • Cities that don’t have any reported White population are not included in the ranking but are listed separately below for reference.
This ranking is meant to provide a clear, data-driven look at where White populations are most concentrated while keeping the numbers easy to understand.

Sources

U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.