Jerseyville is the largest city in and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

Jersey County, Illinois Jersey County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. At the 2020 census, it had a population of 21,512. The county seat and largest community is Jerseyville, with a population of 8,337 in 2010. The county's smallest incorporated c ...

, United States. At the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 8,337. Jerseyville is a part of

Southern Illinois Southern Illinois is a region of the U.S. state of Illinois comprising the southern third of the state, principally south of Interstate 70. Part of downstate Illinois, it is bordered by the two List of U.S. rivers by discharge, most voluminous ri ...

, the

Metro-East The Metro East is an urban area in Southern Illinois, United States that contains the eastern and northern urban, suburban, and exurban areas on the Mississippi River in Greater St. Louis. It encompasses eight Illinois counties and constitutes th ...

region and the St. Louis Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

In 1827, James Faulkner, a

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

native, and his family built a small framed structure that was named the "Little Red House," in the area that is now known as Jerseyville. The "Little Red House" served as the first stagecoach station, first tavern, first school, and first bank in the immediate area. By 1834, the small settlement that grew up around Faulkner's home, then known as Hickory Grove by its residents, was surveyed and platted by two immigrants from

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

, John Lott and Edward M. Daly. Lott and Daly's involvement marked the beginning of a proportionally large number of merchants, businessmen and settlers from New Jersey. A meeting was called in that same year at the "Little Red House" to vote for a town name, so a post office could be established. The name of Jerseyville was chosen to honor the native state of many of its inhabitants.Jerseyville description & history
, retrieved August 24, 2007 In 1839, Jersey County was formed out of Greene County and Jerseyville was named as its county seat. Jerseyville was a minor stopping point on the historic

Underground Railroad The Underground Railroad was an organized network of secret routes and safe houses used by freedom seekers to escape to the abolitionist Northern United States and Eastern Canada. Enslaved Africans and African Americans escaped from slavery ...

before and during the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

. The "Little Red House" and a few other residences were utilized as stations for the Underground Railroad until the end of the Civil War, with some residences having false cellars that were used to hide slaves searching for freedom. After the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

ended, and the construction of the Alton & Chicago Railroad was completed, Jerseyville saw a period of commercial, industrial and urban growth. The first major period of growth in the city occurred from 1880 to 1916, and from that time to the present, Jerseyville's growth has since been steady and substantial. The majority of the commercial structures that are now located in the Downtown Historic District and Courthouse Square were built during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was also during this time that the present Jersey County Courthouse was built. The two-story,

Romanesque Revival Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended t ...

building was completed in 1893, and is considered to be one of the most aesthetic courthouses in the area. Other nearby Victorian style buildings in the city include Queen Anne,

Edwardian In the United Kingdom, the Edwardian era was a period in the early 20th century that spanned the reign of King Edward VII from 1901 to 1910. It is commonly extended to the start of the First World War in 1914, during the early reign of King Ge ...

and

Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style combined its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century It ...

architectural features, with several of these buildings having been recently renovated. From 1912 to 1918, Jerseyville was the terminus of an

interurban The interurban (or radial railway in Canada) is a type of electric railway, with tram-like electric self-propelled railcars which run within and between cities or towns. The term "interurban" is usually used in North America, with other terms u ...

electric passenger railroad from Alton which was the stub of a project by the ''Alton, Jacksonville and Peoria Railway'' for a line to Peoria. In recent decades, Jerseyville has been a testing ground in the agricultural biotechnology field.

Bayer Bayer AG (English: , commonly pronounced ; ) is a German multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company and is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies and biomedical companies in the world. Headquartered in Leverkusen, Bayer' ...

(formerly

Monsanto The Monsanto Company () was an American agrochemical and agricultural biotechnology corporation founded in 1901 and headquartered in Creve Coeur, Missouri. Monsanto's best-known product is Roundup, a glyphosate-based herbicide, developed ...

) owns and operates a facility located just south of the city, which in 1987, was the site of the world's very first biotechnology field trial – first with tomatoes and later that year with soybeans. The facility was also home to the first triple stacked corn trial in 1998, which later became a part of one of Monsanto's top-selling products. The facility was further expanded in 2008, and now consists of sixteen greenhouses and almost of land for field testing.Monsanto Jerseyville description
, retrieved April 1, 2011 The Downtown Historic District is presently home to some antique stores and gift shops, some clothing and shoe stores, a pharmacy, public library, post office, and several local restaurants and banks. Most of the growth that has occurred since the early 1990s has been in the southern and southwestern portions of the city, where new residential subdivisions and retail shopping centers have been built, and where numerous land annexations have been made by the city.

Geography

Jerseyville is located at (39.120789, -90.327545). According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Jerseyville has a total area of , of which (or 99.98%) is land and (or 0.02%) is water.

Climate

Typically, the city's climate reflects most

Midwest The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...

cities, located in the transitional zone between the

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...

type and the

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

type (

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''Dfa'' and ''Cfa'', respectively), with neither large mountains nor large bodies of water to moderate its temperature. Spring is the wettest season and produces severe weather ranging from tornadoes to snow or ice storms. Summers are hot and humid, and the humidity often makes the

heat index The heat index (HI) is an index that combines air temperature and relative humidity, in shade (shadow), shaded areas, to posit a human-perceived equivalent temperature, as how hot it would feel if the humidity were some other value in the Shade (s ...

rise to temperatures feeling well above . Fall is mild with lower humidity and can produce intermittent bouts of heavy rainfall with the first snow flurries usually forming in late November. Winters can be cold at times with periodic light snow and temperatures below freezing. In recent years, average temperatures in Jerseyville have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July. The record low temperature of was recorded in January 1977 and the record high temperature of was recorded in July 1954. Average monthly precipitation ranges from in February to in May.

Demographics

As of the 2020 census there were 8,337 people, 3,078 households, and 1,805 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 3,845 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 93.93%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.48%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.05% Native American, 0.42% Asian, 0.00%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.48% from other races, and 4.64% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.46% of the population. There were 3,078 households, out of which 30.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.20% were married couples living together, 9.19% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.36% were non-families. 36.81% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.52% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.24 and the average family size was 2.45. The city's age distribution consisted of 22.8% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 23.5% from 25 to 44, 28.3% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 81.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $57,967, and the median income for a family was $89,757. Males had a median income of $42,951 versus $35,919 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $29,205. About 4.9% of families and 10.5% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 12.7% of those under age 18 and 6.9% of those age 65 or over.

Culture

National Register of Historic Places

Jerseyville has five places and sites that are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. The Jersey County Courthouse and the Jerseyville Downtown Historic District were added in 1986. The Col. William H. Fulkerson Farmstead was added to the Register in 1998, and the Fisher-Chapman Farmstead was added in 2012. The Jerseyville First Presbyterian Church was added to the Register in 2021.

Media

Print / Online: *

Daily newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

The Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are often names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include: Australia * The Telegraph (Adelaide), ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaid ...

- published out of Alton, but also covers the Jerseyville and Jersey County areas *

Weekly newspaper Weekly newspaper is a general-news or Current affairs (news format), current affairs publication that is issued once or twice a week in a wide variety broadsheet, magazine, and electronic publishing, digital formats. Similarly, a biweekly newspap ...

: The Jersey County Journal - distributed every Thursday and available online * Weekly classifieds: The Jersey County Advantage - print only Radio: * WJBM 1480

kHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base uni ...

AM / 104.7

mHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base u ...

FM - has a

talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. They may feature monologues, dialogues between the hosts, Interview (jo ...

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

format * KXI70 162.450

NOAA Weather Radio NOAA Weather Radio (NWR), also known as NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards, is an automated 24-hour network of Very high frequency, VHF Frequency modulation, FM weather radio stations in the United States which broadcast weather information direct ...

Jerseyville is also served by most stations in the St. Louis area market.

Recreation

The Jerseyville Parks and Recreation Department maintains and operates seven parks: *Blackorby Athletic Field - Franklin Ave. *Donor Park - June and Spruce St. *Lions Club Park - Jefferson and Spruce St. *Northmoor Park - Liberty St. *Rotary Club Centennial Park - Liberty, Prairie, and Carpenter St. (

Illinois Route 16 Illinois Route 16 (IL 16) is an east–west highway in central Illinois. Its western terminus is at the Joe Page Bridge over the Illinois River in Hardin, Illinois, Hardin, while its eastern terminus is at Paris, Illinois, Paris at Illinoi ...

) *Wittman Park - Jefferson St. *Wock Family Lake - June St. and Fidelity Rd. The Donald W. Snyders Community Sports Complex is located on the southern side of the city on County Road, east of Jersey Community Middle School. The complex is made up of two baseball fields, two softball fields, one football field, outdoor oval track, and a concession stand. The complex, which is maintained by Jersey Community Unit School District 100, replaced the previous oval track and football field at Jersey Community High School, as the building was built on top of the field in 2005.

Government

Jerseyville uses a city commission form of government, consisting of four commissioners and one mayor. The city's current mayor is Kevin Stork.

Education

Jerseyville has a number of public and private schools. Public schools are part of Jersey Community Unit School District 100. ; Elementary schools * East Elementary School (Grades 2 through 4) * West Elementary School (Grades

Pre-K Pre-kindergarten (also called pre-K or PK) is a voluntary classroom-based preschool program for children below the age of five in the United States, Canada, Turkey and Greece (when kindergarten starts). It may be delivered through a preschool ...

through 1st) * Holy Ghost School (Grades

through 4) ; Middle schools * Jersey Community Middle School (Grades 5 through 7) * St. Francis Xavier School (Grades 5 through 8) ; High school * Jersey Community High School (Grades 8th through 12th), Illinois Both Holy Ghost and St. Francis Xavier Schools are private

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

schools. Schools in Jerseyville had a total combined enrollment of 2,720 students. Nearby colleges and universities include

Principia College Principia College is a private liberal arts college in Elsah, Illinois. It was founded in 1912 by Mary Kimball Morgan with the purpose of "serving the Cause of Christian Science." Morgan wrote in her book, Education at the Principia that, "Alt ...

in Elsah,

Lewis and Clark Community College Lewis and Clark Community College is a public community college in Godfrey, Illinois. It serves approximately 3,973 credit and non-credit students annually. The college has nine locations throughout the St. Louis Metro East, including a campu ...

in Godfrey and

Southern Illinois University School of Dental Medicine Southern Illinois University School of Dental Medicine is an academic unit of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) located in Alton, Illinois, United States, in the Greater St. Louis area. The school is one of three dental schools i ...

in Alton.

Religious organizations

Jerseyville is home to a number of religious organizations, consisting of both small and large congregations. Churches that serve Jerseyville are listed here in alphabetical order: *Church of the Nazarene *Eastland Baptist Church *Faith Temple Pentecostal Church *First Assembly of God *First Baptist Church *First Church of Christ, Scientist * First Presbyterian Church *Gospel Assembly Church *Grace Community Baptist Church *Holy Ghost Church *Hope Lutheran Church *Jerseyville Church of Christ *Jerseyville Methodist Church *Kingdom Increase Church *LifechurchX *Open Door House of Praise *Peace United Church of Christ *St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church *Victory Baptist Church

Infrastructure

Transportation

Two major highways run through the city. US Highway 67 runs along a north–south route, while

runs along a west–east route. Also, Illinois Route 109 has its northern terminus in Jerseyville at US Highway 67. A four-lane expansion of US Highway 67 in Jerseyville has been in the planning stages for years, and is currently in Illinois' five-year road construction plan. The plan includes the Jerseyville Bypass, which is expected to go around the eastern portion of the city when it is completed. Construction of the bypass has not started yet, but all of the work prior to actual road construction was scheduled to be completed by 2012. In nearby

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

, an extension of the expressway was opened up to traffic in 2021. This is a part of the completion of the entire US Highway 67 four-lane project in Illinois between Godfrey and the

Quad Cities The Quad Cities is a region of five cities (originally Tri-Cities, later four, see #History, History) in the U.S. states of Iowa and Illinois: Davenport, Iowa, Davenport and Bettendorf, Iowa, Bettendorf (the fifth to be included) in southeaster ...

area.

Utilities

Utility companies serving Jerseyville are

Ameren Ameren Corporation is an American power company created December 31, 1997, by the merger of Union Electric Company (formerly NYSE: UEP) of St. Louis, Missouri and the neighboring Central Illinois Public Service Company (CIPSCO Inc. holding, for ...

(

natural gas Natural gas (also fossil gas, methane gas, and gas) is a naturally occurring compound of gaseous hydrocarbons, primarily methane (95%), small amounts of higher alkanes, and traces of carbon dioxide and nitrogen, hydrogen sulfide and helium ...

and

electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter possessing an electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by Maxwel ...

), Grafton Technologies and

Frontier Communications Frontier Communications Parent, Inc. is an American telecommunications company. Known as Citizens Utilities Company until 2000, Citizens Communications Company until 2008, and Frontier Communications Corporation until 2020, as a communications pr ...

(landline

telephone A telephone, colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that enables two or more users to conduct a conversation when they are too far apart to be easily heard directly. A telephone converts sound, typically and most ...

service and

internet The Internet (or internet) is the Global network, global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a internetworking, network of networks ...

), and

Sparklight Cable One, Inc. is an American broadband communications provider. Under the Sparklight brand, it provides cable television, internet, and phone services to 24 U.S. states and 1.1 million residential and business customers. It also owns the Fidel ...

(

cable television Cable television is a system of delivering television programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This contrasts with bro ...

). Water and sewer services are provided and maintained by Illinois American Water.

Notable people

Tom Roady. World famous drummer. https://musicrow.com/2011/11/session-great-tom-roady-passes/ * Kathie Conway, member of the

Missouri House of Representatives The Missouri House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the Missouri General Assembly. It has 163 members, representing districts with an average size of 37,000 residents. House members are elected for two-year terms during general elections ...

* Hugh W. Cross, (1896–1972) former Illinois

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

and member of the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 representativ ...

* Russell E. Dunham, (1920–2009) World War II veteran and recipient of the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

. He resided in Jerseyville. *

Brent Hawkins Brent Lee Hawkins (born September 1, 1983) is an American former professional football defensive end who played two years in the National Football League (NFL) and two years in the Canadian Football League (CFL), until retiring from football in ...

, former football player for the

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in 19 ...

of the

CFL The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division and five in the West Division. The CFL is the highest pr ...

, and for the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

of the NFL * Arthur Scott King, (1876–1957) noted physicist and astrophysicist * Anthony L. Knapp, (1828–1881) US congressman and Illinois senator * Robert M. Knapp, (1831–1889) US congressman and former mayor of Jerseyville * Stan McGarvey, former NCAA Division II head football coach. * Thomas J. Selby, (1840–1917) congressman and former mayor of Jerseyville * Jim Watson, former member of the

References

External links

City of Jerseyville
{{authority control Metro East Cities in Illinois Cities in Jersey County, Illinois County seats in Illinois Populated places established in 1827 1827 establishments in Illinois