Jasper County, Illinois facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jasper County
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Jasper County Courthouse in Newton
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Location within the U.S. state of Illinois
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 Illinois's location within the U.S. |
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| Country |  United States |
| State |  Illinois |
| Founded | 1831 |
| Named for | William Jasper |
| Seat | Newton |
| Largest city | Newton |
| Area | |
| • Total | 498 sq mi (1,290 km2) |
| • Land | 495 sq mi (1,280 km2) |
| • Water | 3.6 sq mi (9 km2) 0.7% |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 9,287 |
| • Density | 18.649/sq mi (7.200/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Congressional district | 12th |
Jasper County is a county in the state of Illinois, USA. In 2020, about 9,287 people lived there. The main town and county seat is Newton.
Contents
History of Jasper County
Jasper County was created in 1831 from parts of Clay and Crawford Counties. It was named after Sergeant William Jasper. He was a hero during the American Revolutionary War.
In 1776, during a battle at Fort Moultrie, the pole holding the American flag was shot down. Sergeant Jasper bravely picked up the flag and held it high for everyone to see. He stood on the fort wall, waving the flag at the British, until a new flag pole could be put up.
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Jasper County when it was first created in 1831.
Geography of Jasper County
Jasper County covers a total area of about 498 square miles. Most of this area, about 495 square miles, is land. The remaining 3.6 square miles (which is 0.7%) is water.
Climate and Weather in Jasper County
| Weather chart for Newton, Illinois | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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3.2
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2.8
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2.9
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| temperatures in °F precipitation totals in inches source: The Weather Channel |
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Metric conversion
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The weather in Newton, the county seat, changes throughout the year. In January, the average low temperature is around 18°F. In July, the average high temperature is about 85°F.
The coldest temperature ever recorded was -28°F in January 1994. The hottest was 112°F in July 1954. The county gets the most rain in May, with about 4.39 inches on average. January usually has the least rain, with about 2.38 inches.
Neighboring Counties
Jasper County shares borders with several other counties:
- Cumberland County – to the north
- Clark County – to the northeast
- Crawford County – to the east
- Richland County – to the south
- Clay County – to the southwest
- Effingham County – to the west
People of Jasper County (Demographics)
| Historical population | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1840 | 1,472 | — | |
| 1850 | 3,220 | 118.8% | |
| 1860 | 8,364 | 159.8% | |
| 1870 | 11,234 | 34.3% | |
| 1880 | 14,515 | 29.2% | |
| 1890 | 18,188 | 25.3% | |
| 1900 | 20,160 | 10.8% | |
| 1910 | 18,157 | −9.9% | |
| 1920 | 16,064 | −11.5% | |
| 1930 | 12,809 | −20.3% | |
| 1940 | 13,431 | 4.9% | |
| 1950 | 12,266 | −8.7% | |
| 1960 | 11,346 | −7.5% | |
| 1970 | 10,741 | −5.3% | |
| 1980 | 11,318 | 5.4% | |
| 1990 | 10,609 | −6.3% | |
| 2000 | 10,117 | −4.6% | |
| 2010 | 9,698 | −4.1% | |
| 2020 | 9,287 | −4.2% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 9,144 | −5.7% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010 |
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Demographics is the study of a population, like how many people live somewhere, their ages, and backgrounds.
In 2010, there were 9,698 people living in Jasper County. Most people (98.6%) were white. A small number of people were from other racial backgrounds. About 0.8% of the population was of Hispanic or Latino origin.
Many families lived in the county. About 29.7% of households had children under 18. The average age of people in the county was 42.7 years old.
The average yearly income for a household was about $46,546. For families, it was about $53,034. About 8.5% of all people in the county lived below the poverty line. This included 10.6% of those under 18 years old.
Education in Jasper County
Most schools in Jasper County are part of the Jasper County Community Unit School District 1. This school district is based in Newton, the county seat. Five of its six schools are located within Jasper County. There is also a private elementary school in Newton called Saint Thomas Catholic School.
Communities in Jasper County
City
- Newton (the main town and county seat)
Villages
Unincorporated Communities
These are smaller places that are not officially organized as cities or villages.
Townships
Jasper County is divided into eleven smaller areas called townships:
- Crooked Creek
- Fox
- Grandville
- Grove
- Hunt City
- North Muddy
- Sainte Marie
- Smallwood
- South Muddy
- Wade
- Willow Hill
Notable People from Jasper County
Many interesting people have come from Jasper County:
- Glenn Brummer – A baseball catcher who played for the Major League Baseball St. Louis Cardinals and Texas Rangers. He was part of the Cardinals team that won the World Series in 1982.
- Irene Hunt – An author famous for her classic book Across Five Aprils.
- Albert Isley – An Illinois judge, lawyer, and state senator.
- Burl Ives – A well-known folk singer, author, and actor.
- Ross Wolf – A baseball pitcher who played for the SK Wyverns in Korea and for several Major League Baseball teams.
See also
In Spanish: Condado de Jasper (Illinois) para niños
