Jersey County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

located in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

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 ...

. At the 2020 census, it had a population of 21,512. 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 ...

and largest community is Jerseyville, with a population of 8,337 in 2010. The county's smallest incorporated community is Otterville, with a population of 87. Jersey County is included in the St. Louis, MO-IL Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Jersey County lies just northeast of where the great

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

and

rivers meet. It is the former home of the Kickapoo,

Menominee The Menominee ( ; meaning ''"Menominee People"'', also spelled Menomini, derived from the Ojibwe language word for "Wild Rice People"; known as ''Mamaceqtaw'', "the people", in the Menominee language) are a federally recognized tribe of Na ...

Potawatomi The Potawatomi (), also spelled Pottawatomi and Pottawatomie (among many variations), are a Native American tribe of the Great Plains, upper Mississippi River, and western Great Lakes region. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, ...

, and

Illiniwek Confederation The Illinois Confederation, also referred to as the Illiniwek or Illini, were made up of a loosely organized group of 12 or 13 tribes who lived in the Mississippi River Valley. Eventually, member tribes occupied an area reaching from Lake Michi ...

Native Americans. The first European explorers to visit the area, Father Marquette and

Louis Jolliet Louis Jolliet (; September 21, 1645after May 1700) was a French-Canadian explorer known for his discoveries in North America. In 1673, Jolliet and Jacques Marquette, a Jesuit Catholic priest and missionary, were the first non-Natives to explore ...

, arrived in 1673,Jersey County description & history
, retrieved August 24, 2007 where they encountered the fearsome painting of the Piasa bird. The present day Pere Marquette State Park, located near Grafton, is named in Father Marquette's honor, and a monument to him is located at the park. Jersey County was founded on February 28, 1839, and was formed out of Greene County. The county was named for the state of

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 ...

, from which many of the early settlers emigrated - which was itself named for the Channel Island of

Jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

. The area quickly evolved into several small agricultural communities. As the area soon began to flourish, a county government was established and a courthouse was built in Jerseyville, the county seat. The Jersey County Courthouse was designed by architect Henry Elliott who also designed the courthouses in nearby Greene County, Edgar County, Illinois, DeWitt County, Illinois (later demolished in 1987) and

Pike County, Illinois Pike County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is located between the Mississippi River and the Illinois River in western Illinois. According to the 2020 United States census, it had a population of 14,739. Its county seat is Pitts ...

. The cornerstone for the courthouse was laid on July 4, 1893. The Romanesque Revival style courthouse is a magnificent architectural structure of limestone quarried from the nearby town of Grafton, Illinois. File:Jersey County Illinois 1839.png, Jersey County at the time of its creation in 1839

Recent history

Today, while the county maintains its agricultural base, it is also within commuting distance of jobs and industry in St. Louis,

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

and the surrounding area. A large portion of the population works outside of Jersey County and benefits from being "Near the crowd, but not in it.", the official slogan of th
Jersey County Business Association's
advertising campaign. The bordering rivers play an important part in Jersey County's economy by supporting agricultural producers and

agribusiness Agribusiness is the industry, enterprises, and the field of study of value chains in agriculture and in the bio-economy, in which case it is also called bio-business or bio-enterprise. The primary goal of agribusiness is to maximize profit ...

, and by creating a strong tourist market. Education, manufacturing, and retail are also among the county's largest industries.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (2.1%) is water. Jersey County is bordered by three bodies of water: the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

to the south, 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 ...

to the west, and

Macoupin Creek Macoupin Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed May 13, 2011 tributary of the Illinois River, which it joins near the village of Hardin, Illinois. The word ''macoup ...

to the northwest.

Climate

Typically, the county'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 ...

areas, 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 January to in April.

Major highways

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 ...

Illinois Route 3 Illinois Route 3 (IL 3) is a major north–south arterial state highway in southwestern Illinois. It has its southern terminus at Cairo Junction (about north of Cairo, Illinois, Cairo) at the intersection of U.S. Route 51 in Illinois, U.S ...

* Illinois Route 16 * Illinois Route 100 * Illinois Route 109 * Illinois Route 111 * Illinois Route 267

Adjacent counties

State protected areas

* Mississippi River State Fish and Wildlife Area * Pere Marquette State Park

National protected areas

* Two Rivers National Wildlife Refuge (eastern portion)

Demographics

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 22,985 people, 8,828 households, and 6,228 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 9,848 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.6% white, 0.4% black or African American, 0.3% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 0.2% from other races, and 1.2% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 42.8% were German, 14.7% were Irish, 10.6% were English, and 8.6% were American. Of the 8,828 households, 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.4% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.5% were non-families, and 25.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 2.98. The median age was 40.5 years. The median income for a household in the county was $53,470 and the median income for a family was $64,773. Males had a median income of $48,750 versus $31,789 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,368. About 5.6% of families and 8.5% 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 8.4% of those under age 18 and 7.1% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

* Grafton * Jerseyville

Villages

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

* Elsah *

Fidelity Fidelity is the quality of faithfulness or loyalty. Its original meaning regarded duty in a broader sense than the related concept of '' fealty''. Both derive from the Latin word , meaning "faithful or loyal". In the City of London financial m ...

* Fieldon

Town

* Otterville

Unincorporated communities

* Beltrees *

Chautauqua Chautauqua ( ) is an adult education and social movement in the United States that peaked in popularity in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Chautauqua assemblies expanded and spread throughout rural America until the mid-1920s. The Cha ...

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 ...

* Dow * East Newbern * Kemper * Lake Piasa * Lockhaven * McClusky * Newbern *

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

* Nutwood * Reardon *

Reddish Reddish is an area of the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport, Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester city centre. At the 2011 United Kingdom census, 2011 census, the population was 28,052. Historic counties of England, Historical ...

* Rosedale * Spankey

Townships

Jersey County is divided into eleven townships: * Elsah Township * English Township * Fidelity Township * Jersey Township * Mississippi Township * Otter Creek Township * Piasa Township * Quarry Township * Richwood Township * Rosedale Township * Ruyle Township

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of Jersey County. † ''county seat''

Education

Unified school districts

* Alton Community Unit School District 11 - serves a very small portion of southern Jersey County (east of Elsah), along with northwestern Madison County.
Greenfield Community Unit School District 10
- serves a very small portion of northeastern Jersey County (west of Kemper), along with eastern Greene County. * Jersey Community Unit School District 100 - serves most of Jersey County, and a small portion of southern Greene County.
Southwestern Community Unit School District 9
- serves the northeastern and southeastern portions of Jersey County, along with southwestern Macoupin County.

High schools

* Jersey Community High School, located in Jerseyville.

Colleges and universities

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 ...

, located near Elsah.

Government

Local

The Republican Party holds five of eight countywide elected positions as of 2022 as well as an eleven to one majority on the county board. Jersey County is part of Regional Office of Education #40 which includes neighboring Macoupin, Calhoun and Greene counties. The office operates a facility in Jerseyville.

State

Jersey County is divided into two legislative districts in 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 ...

: * District 100 - Currently represented by C. D. Davidsmeyer (R-

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

) and consists of the majority of the county and includes the cities of Jerseyville and Grafton. * District 111 - Currently represented by Amy Elik (R- Fosterburg) and consists of the southern portion of the county and includes the village of Elsah. The county is also divided into two legislative districts in the

Illinois Senate The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. Under the ...

: * District 50 - Currently represented by Steve McClure (R- Springfield) and consists of the majority of the county and includes the cities of Jerseyville and Grafton. * District 56 - Currently represented by Kristopher Tharp (D- Wood River) and consists of the southern portion of the county and includes the village of Elsah. As of February 2025, the county is one of 7 that voted to join the state of Indiana.

Federal

Jersey County's federal political history is fairly typical of “anti-Yankee” Southern Illinois counties. It voted solidly Democratic until

Warren G. Harding Warren Gamaliel Harding (November 2, 1865 – August 2, 1923) was the 29th president of the United States, serving from 1921 until his death in 1923. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he was one of the most ...

carried the county in his record 1920 landslide. It voted Republican again in

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was the 31st president of the United States, serving from 1929 to 1933. A wealthy mining engineer before his presidency, Hoover led the wartime Commission for Relief in Belgium and ...

's landslide of 1928, but otherwise was firmly Democratic until

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, when opposition to US involvement turned the county to

Wendell Willkie Wendell Lewis Willkie (born Lewis Wendell Willkie; February 18, 1892 – October 8, 1944) was an American lawyer, corporate executive and the 1940 History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican nominee for president. Willkie appeale ...

and then Thomas E. Dewey. Between 1948 and 2004, Jersey County became something of a

bellwether A bellwether is a leader or an indicator of trends.bellwether
" ''Cambridge Dictionary''. Re ...

county, voting for every winning presidential candidate except in the Catholicism-influenced 1960 election, and that of 1988 which was heavily influenced by a major Midwestern drought. Disagreement with the Democratic Party's liberal views on social issues since the 1990s has caused a powerful swing back to the Republicans in the past quarter-century. As is typical of the

Upland South The Upland South and Upper South are two overlapping cultural and geographic subregions in the inland part of the Southern United States. They differ from the Deep South and Atlantic coastal plain by terrain, history, economics, demographics, a ...

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

in 2016 did far worse than any previous Democrat, while

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

performed marginally better in the 2020 election. Jersey County is located in

Illinois's 15th congressional district The 15th congressional district of Illinois is currently located in central Illinois. It was located in eastern and southeastern Illinois until 2022. It is currently represented by Republican Party (United States), Republican Mary Miller (poli ...

and is currently represented by Mary Miller (R-

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

) in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Notable people

* Jennie Florella Holmes (1842–1892), suffragist and temperance activist