Jacksonville, Illinois
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Jacksonville is a city 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 ...
of
Morgan County, Illinois Morgan County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 32,915. Its county seat is Jacksonville, Illinois, Jacksonville. Morgan Co ...
, United States. The population was 17,616 at the 2020 census, down from 19,446 in 2010. It is home to Illinois College, Illinois School for the Deaf, and the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired, and was formerly home to MacMurray College. Jacksonville is the principal city of the Jacksonville Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Morgan and Scott counties.


History

Jacksonville was established by European Americans on a tract of land in the center of Morgan County in 1825, two years after the county was founded. The founders of Jacksonville were settlers from
New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
. They were descended from the English Puritans who had settled New England in the 1600s and were part of a wave of New England farmers who headed west into what was then the wilds of the
Northwest Territory The Northwest Territory, also known as the Old Northwest and formally known as the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, was formed from part of the unorganized western territory of the United States after the American Revolution. Established ...
during the early 1800s. Most of them arrived as a result of the completion of the
Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east–west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigability, navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, ...
and the end of the Black Hawk War. When they arrived in what is now Jacksonville, there was nothing but dense virgin forest and wild
prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...
. The " Yankee" New Englanders laid out farms, constructed roads, erected government buildings and established post routes. They brought with them values such as a passion for education, establishing many schools, as well as staunch support for abolitionism. They were mostly members of the Congregationalist Church, though some were Episcopalian. Due to the Second Great Awakening, some of them had converted to
Methodism Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...
and Presbyterianism, while some others became
Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...
, before moving to what is now Jacksonville. Jacksonville, like some other parts of Illinois, would be culturally very continuous with early New England culture for most of its early history. The town was laid out on a treeless prairie and along a state road that ran from Springfield to the
Illinois River The Illinois River () is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River at approximately in length. Located in the U.S. state of Illinois, the river has a drainage basin of . The Illinois River begins with the confluence of the Des Plaines ...
. The town grew at a rapid rate, and a town square was quickly developed. In 1829, the Presbyterian Reverend John M. Ellis worked to found a new "seminary of learning" in the new state of Illinois. A group of Congregational students at
Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...
heard about his plans and headed westward to establish the new school. These students were a part of the famous "Yale Bands", groups of students who established several colleges in the frontier, what is now the Midwest. Illinois College was one of the first institutions of higher learning in the Midwest. A new courthouse was built on the square, churches were constructed, railroads were planned, and stores and taverns were built. By 1834, Jacksonville had the largest population of any city in the state of Illinois, vastly outnumbering
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
(only founded the year before). In the 1830s, the town was on the path of Native Americans who were being forcibly removed by the federal government to west of the Mississippi. The Potawatomi passed through here in 1838 on what they called their Trail of Death as they were forced from their traditional homelands to the dry and barren
Indian Territory Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United States, ...
to the west. Jacksonville's education complex and standing in the state were developed by the establishment of state institutions: the Illinois School for the Deaf and what is now called the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired. The Illinois Conference Female Academy was founded for education for girls; it later developed as MacMurray College. By 1850, Illinois College had issued Illinois' first college degrees and opened the first medical school in the state. Because of this, Jacksonville earned the nickname of "Athens of the West". In 1851, Illinois opened its first state mental hospital in Jacksonville; it became a major employer for the area. The attorney
Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...
occasionally had legal business in Jacksonville, frequently acting either as co-counsel or opposing counsel with David A. Smith, a Jacksonville resident. In what is now Central Park, Lincoln delivered a strong antislavery speech on September 6, 1856, in support of the presidential campaign of John C. Frémont, lasting over two hours. A mural depicting the event has been painted on the side of a building at the southwest corner of the square. Built in 1840, the Woodlawn Farm became an important stop on the Underground Railroad for runaway slaves escaping the terrors of slavery in the South. This historical site is open to tours in the summer. One of Lincoln's early political rivals, Stephen A. Douglas settled in Jacksonville in 1833 where he first got involved in local politics. He quickly rose the ranks of Illinois politics and was elected to the House of Representatives in 1842.


1900 to present

Between 1892 and 1910, Jacksonville was home to
minor league baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...
, as the Jacksonville Jacks and Jacksonville Lunatics played in eight different minor leagues. Jacksonville teams played at League Park on Finley Street. In 1911 as part of the progressive movement, Jacksonville adopted the city commission form of government, the first mayor being George W. Davis. In the summer of 1965, in order to keep up with customer demand for records by
the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
, the wildly popular English band,
Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...
opened a vinyl record pressing plant on the western outskirts of Jacksonville, at 1 Capitol Way. The plant produced a number of highly collectible pressings. This plant eventually served the Capitol Records Club, producing vinyl LPs and later audiocassettes, CDs, and DVDs of a number of artists. At its peak, operating as EMI Records (owner of Capitol), the plant employed over 1,000 workers. It was a significant location in the music industry. For example, all seven albums released by country western artist
Garth Brooks Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American Country music, country singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him his immense popularity, particularly in the United States, ...
sold more than 50'' ''million copies. EMI held a "thank-you" luncheon for 1,000 workers at the Jacksonville plant on March 10, 1995. A decade later, in 2004 EMI ceased manufacturing operations at Jacksonville.


Geography

Jacksonville is located at (39.731936, −90.234394). It is west of Springfield, the state capital, and east of Hannibal, Missouri. Interstate 72 passes to the south of the city, with access from Exits 64 and 68.
U.S. Route 67 U.S. Route 67 is a major north–south U.S. highway which extends for 1,560 miles (2,511 km) in the Central United States. The southern terminus of the route is at the United States-Mexico border in Presidio, Texas, where it continues ...
passes just west of the city limits, leading south to Alton and north to Macomb. Illinois Route 104 passes through Jacksonville as Morton Avenue, leading southeast to Waverly, while Illinois Route 267 runs south from Jacksonville, leading to Greenfield.
Illinois Route 78 Illinois Route 78 is a major north–south highway in western Illinois. It runs from Illinois Route 104 northwest of Jacksonville north to Highway 78 at the Wisconsin state line north of Warren. This is a distance of . Route descrip ...
leads north from Jacksonville to
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Jacksonville has a total area of , of which , or 1.83%, are water. The city sits in the middle of mostly flat, fertile farmland. One branch of Mauvaisterre Creek empties into Lake Mauvaisterre, a small reservoir surrounded on three sides by parkland. south of the city lies Lake Jacksonville, a lake with of shoreline. Lake Jacksonville was named the "Number One Fishing Spot in Illinois" by '' Field & Stream'' magazine.


Climate


Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were 19,446 people, 7,357 households, and 4,174 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 8,162 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 85.3%
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 ...
, 10.2%
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 ...
, 0.3% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 1.1% from other races, and 2.4% 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 3% of the population. There were 7,357 households, out of which 24.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.8% were married couples living together, 13.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.3% were non-families. 36.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.88. In the city, the population was spread out, with 22.0% under the age of 18, 14.2% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 16.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $40,670, and the median income for a family was $56,343. Males had a median income of $42,409 versus $30,208 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,245. About 11.9% of families and 18% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.9% of those under age 18 and 11.8% of those age 65 or over.


Business

Jacksonville is the home of the Eli Bridge Company, manufacturer of Ferris wheels and other amusement rides such as the Scrambler. W.E. Sullivan founded the firm with the introduction of his first portable "Big Eli" Wheel on the Jacksonville Square on May 23, 1900. He was inspired to make this portable version of the famous amusement ride after visiting the World's Columbian Exposition and seeing the original Ferris Wheel created by George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. Jacksonville was once home to the J. Capps & Son Company, one of the largest manufacturers of textiles and clothing in the United States, and owned by the Capps family, which was intermarried with the family of Jacob Bunn and John Whitfield Bunn of
Springfield, Illinois Springfield is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Illinois. Its population was 114,394 at the 2020 United States census, which makes it the state's List of cities in Illinois, seventh-most populous cit ...
, and Chicago. Reynolds Group Holdings (formerly Mobil Plastics, Tenneco, Pactiv) and Nestlé Beverage Co. have facilities in Jacksonville. Jacksonville was also home to a food processing plant for ACH Food Companies from 1952 to 2008.


Education

Jacksonville is home to one private four-year college, Illinois College. Illinois College is the second oldest college in Illinois, founded in 1829 (and the first to grant a degree – 1835) by one of the famous Yale Bands—students from Yale College who traveled westward to found new colleges. It briefly served as the state's first medical school from 1843 to 1848, and became co-educational in 1903. Beecher Hall, the first college building erected in Illinois, is named after its first president, Edward Beecher, brother to Henry Ward Beecher and Harriet Beecher Stowe. Jacksonville was also the home of the now-closed private four-year college, MacMurray College from 1846 to 2020. Jacksonville is also home to three state-run institutions, including the Illinois School for the Deaf, the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired, and the Jacksonville Correctional Center. Lincoln Land Community College's Western Region Education Center is also located in Jacksonville. Jacksonville is home to three high schools, two private, and one public, including Routt Catholic High School. Jacksonville School District 117 provides education for the city and much of the county with six elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school, Jacksonville High School.


Media

The city's daily newspaper, the '' Jacksonville Journal-Courier'', is the oldest continuously published newspaper in Illinois (since 1830). The city also has a weekly newspaper,
The Source
'. Several radio stations operate in Jacksonville- WCIC 90.7-FM, WLDS 1180-AM, WEAI 107.1-FM, WJVO 105.5-FM, and WJIL, which simulcasts on 102.9-FM and 1550-AM. NOAA Weather Radio station WXM90 transmits from Lynnville and is licensed to NOAA's Central Illinois
National Weather Service The National Weather Service (NWS) is an Government agency, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weathe ...
Forecast Office at Lincoln and St. Louis, broadcasting on a frequency of 162.525 mHz (channel 6 on most newer weather radios, and most SAME weather radios). The station activates the SAME tone alarm feature and a 1050 Hz tone activating older radios (except for AMBER Alerts, using the SAME feature only) for hazardous weather and non-weather warnings and emergencies, along with selected weather watches, for the Illinois counties of Brown, Calhoun, Cass, Greene, Morgan, Pike, and Scott. Weather permitting, a tone alarm test of both the SAME and 1050 Hz tone features are conducted every Wednesday between 11 am and Noon.


Infrastructure


Health care

Jacksonville Memorial Hospital, formerly known as Passavant Area Hospital, is the prime source of medical treatment in the area. The Jacksonville Developmental Center, a state facility, operated here from 1851 to November 2012.


Notable people


Culture

In 2005,
Sufjan Stevens Sufjan Stevens ( ; born July 1, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He has released ten solo studio albums and multiple collaborative albums with other artists. Stevens has received Grammy and Academy Award nomina ...
released ''
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...
'', a concept album making reference to various people and places associated with the state. Its fifth track, "Jacksonville", refers to various landmarks in the town, such as Nichols Park. It also contains a story about A. W. Jackson, a "colored preacher" urban legend supposes the town is named after, as well as President
Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before Presidency of Andrew Jackson, his presidency, he rose to fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses ...
(President from 1829 to 1837) after whom the town's officials say it is actually named. The Grammy-winning album '' Stones in the Road'' by singer-songwriter Mary Chapin Carpenter features the song "John Doe #24" that describes a series of events that occurred in Jacksonville relating to the person on whose life the song is based. The song tells the story of a blind and deaf man who was found wandering the streets in Jacksonville in 1945. The man was hospitalized for diabetes and kept in various institutions until he died nearly 50 years later in 1993. During his 48 years of institutionalization, nobody ever found out his name, nor did anyone who knew or was related to him come to Jacksonville to establish his identity. It was speculated that he was originally from New Orleans, but this was never verified. Likewise, how he came to Jacksonville remains a mystery to this day. Cultural offerings include the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra, the Jacksonville Theatre Guild, the Art Association of Jacksonville and its David Strawn Art Gallery, as well as many public events and activities hosted by MacMurray College and Illinois College. Recent additions to the cultural scene include the Imagine Foundation and the Eclectic art gallery, both located in the city's downtown. Th
Jacksonville Area Museum
located just outside the downtown area, is home to many historical artifacts and is the repository of the MacMurray College Archive collection. Jacksonville also holds the unusual distinction of having a large number of pipe organs for a city of its size – eleven in all – found at various local churches, as well as both of its four-year colleges. A notable Portuguese American community has existed on the outskirts of Jacksonville since the nineteenth century. The origins of this community can be traced to 1838, when a Scottish reverend named Robert Reid Kalley visited the Portuguese island of
Madeira Madeira ( ; ), officially the Autonomous Region of Madeira (), is an autonomous Regions of Portugal, autonomous region of Portugal. It is an archipelago situated in the North Atlantic Ocean, in the region of Macaronesia, just under north of ...
and converted a number of the locals to Protestantism. These Madeiran Protestants faced discrimination and alienation due to being Protestant in a largely
Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
community, causing the converts to relocate from Madeira to the Caribbean island of
Trinidad Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in ...
before coming to the United States in 1849 and settling near Jacksonville.


Attractions

Jacksonville Speedway is a dirt racetrack on the Morgan County Fairgrounds that was first established in 1912. The track was originally a flat 1/2 mile track but was later replaced by the current banked 1/4 mile configuration. Though the racetrack was close to closing its doors in the early 2010s, it attracted the World of Outlaws racing series which attracted lots of fans and increased business. It has a grandstand that can seat 2,000 people. Nichols Park is a park on the south side of Jacksonville. It has a playground, golf course, lake, and community pool. During the month of December, The Farmers State Bank and Trust building in downtown Jacksonville can be seen displaying the "World's Tallest Advent Calendar" by displaying the 24 days leading up to Christmas in the windows of the East side of the building.


References


Further reading

* Don H. Doyle, ''The Social Order of a Frontier Community: Jacksonville, Illinois, 1825–70'', 1978 * Vernon R.Q. Fernandes, ''The People of Jacksonville—A Pictorial History'', 1991 * Vernon R.Q. Fernandes, ''Faces & places—a Morgan County family album'', 1995 * Vernon R.Q. Fernandes, ''Passavant Area Hospital: 125 years of caring'', 1999


External links

*
City-Data.com
* {{authority control Cities in Illinois Jacksonville, Illinois micropolitan area Cities in Morgan County, Illinois County seats in Illinois Populated places established in 1825 Jacksonville, Illinois