Illinois Historic Preservation Agency

10/13/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/14/2026 08:53

Illinois sets new harvest record for youth deer hunting season

SPRINGFIELD - Young hunters in Illinois set a new youth deer season harvest record with a preliminary total of 4,852 deer taken Oct. 10-12. The total surpasses the previous record of 4,714 deer harvested in 2025.

The top harvest counties were Randolph with 278 deer; Jefferson, 166; Pike, 150; Fayette, 145; and Marion, 125.

Youth hunters with unfilled, valid youth deer permits may use those permits during the upcoming firearm deer seasons Nov. 20-22 and Dec. 3-6. This is the first year youth deer hunting permits were sold as a combination that includes one either-sex permit and one antlerless-only permit.

Preliminary county harvest totals for the 2026 youth deer hunting season, with comparable totals for 2025 and 2024, are listed below.

County

2026

2025

2024

Adams

121

155

147

Alexander

8

17

8

Bond

47

35

42

Boone

5

7

6

Brown

69

73

70

Bureau

18

31

22

Calhoun

57

46

39

Carroll

24

14

15

Cass

41

36

32

Champaign

20

17

13

Christian

35

29

42

Clark

69

64

50

Clay

105

92

73

Clinton

77

74

74

Coles

24

44

22

Crawford

88

56

44

Cumberland

77

71

66

DeKalb

3

4

2

DeWitt

19

20

14

Douglas

19

19

12


Edgar

27

36

26

Edwards

18

18

10

Effingham

89

118

98

Fayette

145

122

118

Ford

1

4

2

Franklin

56

49

45

Fulton

95

69

77

Gallatin

22

20

17

Greene

101

87

57

Grundy

12

8

8

Hamilton

84

54

56

Hancock

84

73

67

Hardin

19

20

19

Henderson

12

18

9

Henry

22

30

30

Iroquois

27

35

32

Jackson

108

94

77

Jasper

82

97

76

Jefferson

166

155

139

Jersey

41

41

39

Jo Daviess

39

53

46

Johnson

54

42

48

Kane

1

3

1

Kankakee

11

11

7

Kendall

2

2

2

Knox

37

31

35

Lake

0

0

1

La Salle

24

29

24

Lawrence

30

25

17

Lee

32

33

31

Livingston

22

17

13

Logan

18

27

29

Macon

25

25

21

Macoupin

101

87

79

Madison

48

51

47

Marion

125

135

119

Marshall

19

33

18

Mason

19

24

26

Massac

25

16

24

McDonough

22

35

34

McHenry

5

4

5

McLean

32

42

28

Menard

25

16

20

Mercer

24

20

18

Monroe

90

79

76

Montgomery

82

84

88


Morgan

36

37

31

Moultrie

30

30

36

Ogle

17

26

16

Peoria

28

38

36

Perry

91

96

86

Piatt

12

13

6

Pike

150

164

147

Pope

54

39

31

Pulaski

29

22

18

Putnam

8

13

6

Randolph

278

259

211

Richland

47

38

36

Rock Island

18

26

16

Saint Clair

73

69

52

Saline

58

46

51

Sangamon

40

42

33

Schuyler

79

70

54

Scott

16

18

12

Shelby

113

100

75

Stark

2

5

11

Stephenson

10

18

6

Tazewell

56

39

34

Union

84

64

57

Vermilion

30

32

29

Wabash

17

17

8

Warren

8

14

8

Washington

78

91

60

Wayne

114

92

80

White

58

47

43

Whiteside

33

40

41

Will

8

8

7

Williamson

64

57

48

Winnebago

20

13

11

Woodford

44

55

49

Total

4,852

4,714

4,097

About IDNR


The Illinois Department of Natural Resources was established in 1925 as the Illinois Department of Conservation, bringing under one umbrella oversight of fish and game, forestry, public works, and lakes. Today, IDNR's work encompasses management of about 400 sites across Illinois, including state parks and historic sites; wildlife, fisheries, forestry, and natural heritage; Lake Michigan water allocation and coastal management; conservation police; mines and minerals; oil and gas; issuance of licenses, permits, and numerous grants; the World Shooting and Recreational Complex in Sparta; and the Illinois State Museum. Visit https://dnr.illinois.gov and follow us on Facebook , YouTube and LinkedIn .
Illinois Historic Preservation Agency published this content on October 13, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on October 14, 2026 at 14:53 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]