Jacksonville, Illinois
For other uses, see Jacksonville (disambiguation).''
Jacksonville is a city in
Morgan County,
Illinois,
United States. The population was 18,940 at the 2000 census. It is the
county seat of
Morgan County.
Jacksonville is somewhat unusual for a city of its size in that it is home to two private four-year colleges,
Illinois College and
MacMurray College, as well as four state-run institutions including the
Illinois School for the Deaf, the
Illinois School for the Visually Impaired, the Jacksonville Developmental Center (formerly a state hospital), and the Jacksonville Correctional Center. Lincoln Land Community College's
Western Region Education Center is also located in Jacksonville.
Jacksonville has at least eleven pipe organs at the colleges and various houses of worship.
Jacksonville was a major stopping point on the historic
Underground Railroad.
Annual Civil War reenactment celebration named for Jacksonville resident U.S. Army General
Benjamin Grierson.
In 2005,
Sufjan Stevens released
Illinois, a concept album referencing various people and places associated with the state. Its fifth track, "Jacksonville," references 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, for whom the town is actually named. [
1]
Jacksonville is located at (39.731936, -90.234394).
According to the
United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 26.8
km² (10.3
mi²). 26.2 km² (10.1 mi²) of it is land and 0.5 km² (0.2 mi²) of it (1.84%) is water.
As of the
census of 2000, there were 18,940 people, 7,336 households, and 4,416 families residing in the city. The
population density was 721.9/km² (1,869.1/mi²). There were 8,162 housing units at an average density of 311.1/km² (805.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 90.33%
White, 6.66%
African American, 0.21%
Native American, 0.69%
Asian, 0.01%
Pacific Islander, 0.70% from
other races, and 1.40% from two or more races.
Hispanic or
Latino of any race were 1.54% of the population.
There were 7,336 households out of which 27.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.4% were
married couples living together, 12.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.8% were non-families. 34.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.89.
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 $33,117, and the median income for a family was $45,595. Males had a median income of $31,474 versus $22,615 for females. The
per capita income for the city was $17,482. About 7.2% of families and 12.4% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 13.2% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.
The city's daily newspaper, the
Jacksonville Journal-Courier, is the oldest continuously published newspaper in Illinois (since 1830).
Jacksonville is the home of
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.
*
Don H. Doyle,
The Social Order of a Frontier Community: Jacksonville, Illinois, 1825-70,
1978* Vernon R.Q. Fernandes,
The People of Jacksonville--A Pictoral 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
