Morgan County, Illinois

History

Morgan County was formed in 1823 out of Greene and Sangamon Counties. It was named in honor of General Daniel Morgan, who defeated the British at the Battle of Cowpens in the American Revolutionary War. General Morgan was serving under General Nathanael Greene at Cowpens. Jacksonville was established by European Americans on a 160-acre tract of land in the center of Morgan County in 1825, two years after the county was founded. The founders of Jacksonville, Illinois consisted entirely of settlers from New England. These so-called Yankee settlers were descended from the English Puritans who settled New England in the 1600s. They were part of a wave of New England farmers who headed west into what was then the wilds of the Northwest Territory during the early 1800s. Most of them arrived as a result of the completion of the Erie Canal and the end of the Black Hawk War. The Yankee migration to Illinois was a result of several factors, one of which was the overpopulation of New England. The old stock Yankee population had large families, often bearing up to ten children in one household. Most people were expected to have their own piece of land to farm, and due to the massive and nonstop population boom, land in New England became scarce as every son claimed his own farmstead. As a result, there was not enough land for every family to have a self-sustaining farm, and Yankee settlers began leaving New England for the Midwestern United States. When they arrived in what is now Jacksonville there was nothing but dense virgin forest and wild prairie, the New Englanders laid out farms, constructed roads, erected government buildings and established post routes. They brought with them many of their Yankee New England 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 and Presbyterianism while some others became Baptist, 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.

File:Morgan County Illinois 1823.png|Morgan County from the time of its creation to 1837 File:Morgan County Illinois 1837.png|Morgan County between 1837 and 1839, when Scott County was split off File:Morgan County Illinois 1839.png|Morgan County between 1839 and 1845 File:Morgan County Illinois 1845.png|Morgan County in 1845, when its border with Cass County was moved southward, bringing both to their present borders

Geography

According to the US Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 572 sqmi, of which 569 sqmi is land and 3.5 sqmi (0.6%) is water.

The 90th Meridian of Longitude goes through Morgan County, as seen on a road sign at mile 78 of I-72.

Climate and weather

|Jacksonville, Illinois |15|34|1.35 |19|40|1.69 |29|52|3.18 |39|64|3.77 |49|74|4.86 |59|83|4.36 |63|87|3.85 |60|85|3.35 |52|79|3.46 |41|68|2.61 |31|52|3.45 |20|39|2.54 Average temperatures in the county seat of Jacksonville range from a low of 15 °F in January to a high of 87 °F in July; a record low of -28 °F was recorded in February 1934 and a record high of 114 °F was recorded in July 1954. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.35 in in January to 4.86 in in May.

Major highways

Adjacent counties

• Cass County – north
• Sangamon County – east
• Macoupin County – southeast
• Greene County – south
• Pike County – west
• Scott County – southwest
• Brown County – northwest

National protected area

• Meredosia National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Demographics

|align-fn=center 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 32,915. The median age was 42.5 years. 19.7% of residents were under the age of 18 and 20.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 101.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 100.1 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 87.5% White, 6.0% Black or African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% Asian,

63.8% of residents lived in urban areas, while 36.2% lived in rural areas.

There were 13,511 households in the county, of which 25.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 43.6% were married-couple households, 19.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 28.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 32.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 15,031 housing units, of which 10.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 69.8% were owner-occupied and 30.2% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 11.9%.

Racial and ethnic composition

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 35,547 people, 14,104 households, and 8,851 families residing in the county. The population density was 62.5 PD/sqmi. There were 15,515 housing units at an average density of 27.3 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the county was 90.9% white, 6.0% black or African American, 0.5% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.8% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.0% of the population. Those citing American ancestry in Morgan County are of overwhelmingly English extraction, in many cases going back to colonial New England, however most English Americans identify simply as having American ancestry because their roots have been in North America for so long, in many cases since the early sixteen hundreds.

Of the 14,104 households, 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.4% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 37.2% were non-families, and 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.86. The median age was 40.8 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $44,645 and the median income for a family was $59,185. Males had a median income of $43,609 versus $29,893 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,244. About 11.2% of families and 16.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.8% of those under age 18 and 7.5% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

• Jacksonville (seat)
• Waverly

Villages

• Chapin
• Concord
• Franklin
• Lynnville
• Meredosia
• Murrayville
• South Jacksonville
• Woodson

Census-designated places

• Alexander
• Literberry

Unincorporated communities

• Arcadia
• Arnold
• Markham
• Pisgah

Politics

Morgan County has been reliably Republican from its beginning; the Democratic nominee has gained a plurality only 19% of the time (6 of 32 elections).

Education

Here is a list of school districts with any territory in the county (all are full K-12 school districts), no matter how slight, even if the schools and/or administrative offices are located in other counties:

• A-C Central Community Unit School District 262
• Community Unit School District 16
• Franklin Community Unit School District 1
• Greenfield Community Unit School District 10
• Jacksonville School District 117
• Meredosia-Chambersburg Community Unit School District 11
• Pleasant Plains Community Unit School District 8
• Scott-Morgan Consolidated Unit School District 2
• Triopia Community Unit School District 27
• Virginia Community Unit School District 64
• Waverly Community Unit School District 6
• Winchester Community Unit School District 1

Additionally the following state-operated schools are in Morgan County:

• Illinois School for the Deaf
• Illinois School for the Visually Impaired (School for the Blind)

Private schools:

• Routt Catholic High School

Tertiary:

• Illinois College
• Lincoln Land Community College Jacksonville Outreach Center
• MacMurray College (closed)

References

References

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26. included in the Asian category in the 1980 Census
27. included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census
28. not an option in the 1980 Census
29. not an option in the 1990 Census
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39. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Morgan County, IL". [[U.S. Census Bureau]].