Jasper County, Illinois

{{Infobox U.S. county

| county = Jasper County

| state = Illinois

| flag = The_flag_for_Jasper_County,_Illinois.png

| seal =

| founded = 1831

| seat wl = Newton

| largest city wl = Newton

| area_total_sq_mi = 498

| area_land_sq_mi = 495

| area_water_sq_mi = 3.6

| area percentage = 0.7

| population_as_of = 2020

| population_total = 9287

| pop_est_as_of = 2023

| population_est = 9144 {{loss}}

| population_density_sq_mi = auto

| ex image = Jasper County Courthouse in Newton.jpg

| ex image cap = Jasper County Courthouse in Newton

| district = 12th

| named for = William Jasper

| time zone = Central

|website=https://jaspercountyillinois.gov/}}

Jasper County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 9,287.{{cite web|title=Jasper County, Illinois|url=https://data.census.gov/profile/Jasper_County,_Illinois?g=050XX00US17079|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=June 9, 2023}} Its county seat is Newton.{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |access-date=June 7, 2011 |title=Find a County |publisher=National Association of Counties |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110531210815/http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |archive-date=May 31, 2011 }}

History

Jasper County was formed in 1831 out of Clay and Crawford Counties. It was named for Sgt. William Jasper, a Revolutionary War hero from South Carolina. During the defense of Fort Moultrie in 1776, the staff of the American flag was shot away. Sgt. Jasper attached the flag to a pole and stood on the wall waving the flag at the British until a new staff was erected.

File:Jasper County Illinois 1831.png|Jasper County at the time of its creation in 1831

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of {{convert|498|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|495|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|3.6|sqmi}} (0.7%) is water.

=Climate and weather=

{{climate chart

|Newton, Illinois

|18|34|2.38

|23|40|2.38

|33|51|3.85

|42|63|3.90

|52|73|4.39

|62|82|3.74

|66|85|4.37

|63|84|3.43

|55|78|3.17

|43|66|2.77

|34|52|3.99

|24|39|2.90

|float=right

|units=imperial

|clear=both

|source=The Weather Channel{{cite web

|url=http://www.weather.com/weather/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/USIL0853

|title=Monthly Averages for Newton, Illinois

|access-date=January 27, 2011

|publisher=The Weather Channel

}}}}

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Newton have ranged from a low of {{convert|18|°F}} in January to a high of {{convert|85|°F}} in July, although a record low of {{convert|-28|°F}} was recorded in January 1994 and a record high of {{convert|112|°F}} was recorded in July 1954. Average monthly precipitation ranged from {{convert|2.38|in}} in January to {{convert|4.39|in}} in May.

=Adjacent counties=

Cumberland County – north
Clark County – northeast
Crawford County – east
Richland County – south
Clay County – southwest
Effingham County – west

Demographics

{{US Census population

|1840= 1472

|1850= 3220

|1860= 8364

|1870= 11234

|1880= 14515

|1890= 18188

|1900= 20160

|1910= 18157

|1920= 16064

|1930= 12809

|1940= 13431

|1950= 12266

|1960= 11346

|1970= 10741

|1980= 11318

|1990= 10609

|2000= 10117

|2010= 9698

|2020= 9287

|estyear=2023

|estimate=9144

|estref={{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/data/tables.html|title=Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=April 2, 2024}}

|align-fn=center

|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=U.S. Decennial Census|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=July 6, 2014}}
1790–1960{{cite web|url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu|title=Historical Census Browser|publisher=University of Virginia Library|access-date=July 6, 2014}} 1900–1990{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/il190090.txt|title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=July 6, 2014}}
1990–2000{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327165705/http://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf |archive-date=March 27, 2010 |url-status=live|title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=July 6, 2014}} 2010{{cite web|title=State & County QuickFacts|url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/17/17079.html|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=July 6, 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606171702/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/17/17079.html|archive-date=June 6, 2011}}

}}

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 9,698 people, 3,940 households, and 2,800 families living in the county.{{cite web

|url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/DPDP1/0500000US17079

|title=DP-1 Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data

|access-date=July 11, 2015

|publisher=United States Census Bureau

|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213024107/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/DPDP1/0500000US17079

|archive-date=February 13, 2020

|url-status=dead

}} The population density was {{convert|19.6|PD/sqmi}}. There were 4,345 housing units at an average density of {{convert|8.8|/sqmi}}.{{cite web

|url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/GCTPH1.CY10/0500000US17079

|access-date=July 11, 2015

|title=Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 – County

|publisher=United States Census Bureau

|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200212204353/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/GCTPH1.CY10/0500000US17079

|archive-date=February 12, 2020

|url-status=dead

}} The racial makeup of the county was 98.6% white, 0.2% Asian, 0.1% American Indian, 0.1% black or African American, 0.3% from other races, and 0.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.8% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 39.5% were German, 12.5% were American, 11.0% were Irish, and 9.1% were English.{{cite web

|url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP02/0500000US17079

|title=DP02 SELECTED SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS IN THE UNITED STATES – 2006–2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

|access-date=July 11, 2015

|publisher=United States Census Bureau

|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213025659/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP02/0500000US17079

|archive-date=February 13, 2020

|url-status=dead

}}

Of the 3,940 households, 29.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.1% were married couples living together, 7.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 28.9% were non-families, and 24.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.90. The median age was 42.7 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $46,546 and the median income for a family was $53,034. Males had a median income of $39,167 versus $24,856 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,467. About 6.3% of families and 8.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.6% of those under age 18 and 5.1% of those aged 65 or over.{{cite web

|url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP03/0500000US17079

|title=DP03 SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS – 2006–2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

|access-date=July 11, 2015

|publisher=United States Census Bureau

|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213030949/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP03/0500000US17079

|archive-date=February 13, 2020

|url-status=dead

}}

Education

Jasper County is largely served by Jasper County Community Unit School District 1, which is based in its county seat, Newton. Five of the district's six schools are located in Jasper County. Saint Thomas Catholic School is a private elementary school, also in Newton.

Communities

=City=

Newton (seat)

=Villages=

=Unincorporated communities=

=Townships=

Jasper County is divided into eleven townships:

Notable residents

Glenn Brummer, baseball catcher for the Major League Baseball St. Louis Cardinals and Texas Rangers; member of the 1982 World Champion Cardinals
Irene Hunt, author of the classic Across Five Aprils
Albert Isley, Illinois judge, lawyer, and state senator
Burl Ives, folk singer, author, and actor
Ross Wolf, baseball pitcher; plays for the SK Wyverns of the Korea Baseball Championship; formerly played for several Major League Baseball teams

Politics

Jasper is politically a fairly typical "anti-Yankee" Southern Illinois county. Opposition to the "Yankee" Republican Party and that party's Civil War meant that Jasper County voted solidly Democratic until isolationist sentiment drove its voters to Warren G. Harding in 1920.

Since the New Deal, the county has shown a steady trend away from the Democratic Party due to major shifts in that party's views – initially on economic policies and since the 1990s on social issues.Cohn, Nate; [https://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/24/upshot/southern-whites-loyalty-to-gop-nearing-that-of-blacks-to-democrats.html ‘Demographic Shift: Southern Whites’ Loyalty to G.O.P. Nearing That of Blacks to Democrats’], New York Times, April 24, 2014 Only one Democrat, Lyndon Johnson, has won a majority since 1940 in his 1964 landslide. It appears to be a statistical change in the Upland South, that Barack Obama in 2012 and Hillary Clinton in 2016 did far worse than any previous Democrat candidates for president.

{{PresHead|place=Jasper County, Illinois|source={{cite web|url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS|title=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections|first=David|last=Leip|website=uselectionatlas.org|access-date=March 31, 2018}}}}

References

External links

[https://jaspercountyillinois.gov/ County of Jasper & City of Newton Website]
[http://genealogytrails.com/ill/jasper/index.html Jasper County Genealogy Trails]

{{Geographic Location

|Centre = Jasper County, Illinois

|North = Cumberland County

|Northeast = Clark County

|East = Crawford County

|Southeast =

|South = Richland County

|Southwest = Clay County

|West = Effingham County

|Northwest =

}}

{{Coord|39.01|-88.15|display=title|type:adm2nd_region:US-IL_source:UScensus1990}}