Jacksonville, Illinois
N 39° 43.361 W 090° 13.857
15S E 737335 N 4400645
Jacksonville, Illinois Historical Sign.
Waymark Code: WM6Y46
Location: Illinois, United States
Date Posted: 08/04/2009
Views: 7
On January 6, 1825, John Howard, Abraham Pickett and John C. Lusk were appointed to locate a permanent seat for the county. This county seat was to be as near as possible to the center of Morgan County considering present and future population. Further the land must belong to a private citizen or to apply to construction of a courthouse and jail.
On March 10, 1825, Johnston Shelton, the county surveyor, laid out a five acre public square in a 160 acre tract. The land at the time was owned by the government, but using the Ordinance of 1785 as the authority, the tract was sold to Isaac Dial and Thomas Arnett for $1.25 an acre. They, in turn, deeded forty acres (twice the requirement) to Morgan County. The square as laid out was across the intersection of two roads. The first of these - an east/west road -was to run from Springfield west to the Illinois River at Naples. This became State Street. The north/south road became Main Street and the town developed in square blocks from the intersection of State and Main Streets.
By the time Jacksonville was platted with roads and a town square, the first resident, Alexander Cox, was joined by merchants Joseph Fairfield and George Hackett. The news of the rich Illinois soil was spreading, and it filled the area with settlers and anticipation.
County: Morgan
Historical Society: Illinois Dept. of Transportation and the Illinois Historical Society.
Dedication Date: 1966/01/01
Location: Community Park, Jacksonville, Illinois.
Website: [Web Link]
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