Jersey County, Illinois

Jersey County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: Jerseyville
Year Organized: 1839
Square Miles: 369

Court House:

200 North Lafayette, Suite 2
County Courthouse
Jerseyville, IL 62052-1680

Etymology - Origin of County Name

State of New Jersey

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

History

Jersey County was created on February 28, 1839 (Laws, 1839, p. 208) and was formed from Greene County. Present area, or parts of it, formerly included in: Greene County (1821–1839), Madison County (1812–1821) and St. Clair County (1790–1812).

The County was named for the State of New Jersey, which derived its name from the Isle of Jersey in Great Britain. The County Seat is Jerseyville (1839-Present).

In 1821, with the establishment of Greene County, it ceased to be a part of Madison County, a relation it had held since the latter was formed by Gov. Edwards in 1818. The part o Greene County that now constitutes Jersey County, continued to be included in Greene Count until August 5, 1839. The Enabling Act passed by the Legislature, February 28, 1839, provided that on August 5, following at an election held for that purpose, a proposition should be submitted to the voters of the latter county, for and against the separation of Jersey County from Greene County, for their determination At that election, there were 1, 239 votes for and 714 against the proposition, a majority of 525 ou of a total of 1, 953 votes. From 1821 until 1839, however, the history of Jersey County is naturall included in that of Greene, and is so given. [Hamilton "History of Jersey Co." 1919]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 377 square miles (976 km²). 369 square miles (956 km²) of it is land and 8 square miles (20 km²) of it (or 2.08%) is water. Jersey County is bordered by the Mississippi River to the south, the Illinois River to the west, and Macoupin Creek to the northwest.

Neighboring Counties:

North: Greene County
Northeast: Macoupin County
Southeast: Madison County
Southwest: St. Charles County, Mo.
Northwest: Calhoun County

Cities and Towns:

- Brighton	village	Incorporated Area
- Elsah	village	Incorporated Area
- English	township
- Fidelity	village	Incorporated Area
- Fieldon	village	Incorporated Area
- Grafton	city	Incorporated Area
- Jersey	township
- Jerseyville (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- Medora	village	Incorporated Area
- Mississippi	township
- Otter Creek	township
- Otterville	town	Incorporated Area
- Quarry	township
- Richwood	township
- Rosedale	township
- Ruyle	township

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

County Resource Guide

Counties: US Map

The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of our country!"

But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.

Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally, act locally."

Penn Foster High School

Custom Search