Jersey county, named for a shire (county) in England, was created in 1839 out of parts of
Greene County and lies in the southwestern area of Illinois along the
Mississippi River just north of
St Louis. The
Illinois River forms the western county line.
Among the historically significant sites in the county is the Charles Brainerd House, a Queen Anne-style brick and slate structure built in 1881 in Grafton. He was a long-time superintendent for the Grafton Quarry Company.
Grafton is fortunate to have Pere Marquette State Park and the Mississippi River SFWA in the vicinity where bald eagles can be seen throughout the winter.
The county seat is Jerseyville and the county population on July 1, 1999, was 21,573, an increase of 1,034 over the 1990 census.
For information on county government, contact the National Association of Counties Web site.
Additional information is available at these pages:
