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History · Jackson

Jackson’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Jackson. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

0old images & papers
0recent photos

The story so far

from Wikipedia & the U.S. Census

Jackson Township is one of fifteen townships in Effingham County, Illinois, USA. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,227 and it contained 525 housing units.

Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 1,215 people in 2010, 1,227 in 2020. Half of its homes were built before 1986.

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Jackson yet — the old photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Intro from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Population and housing: U.S. Census Bureau.

Be one of the first

Start Jackson’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Jackson’s history is told.

0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Famous people from JacksonWriters, athletes, leaders and more who were born in Jackson.Meet them →
By decade

Jackson, decade by decade

Before
2000
No old photos in the archives yetWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your album
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Jackson is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Jackson has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Dr. Charles M. Wright House in Altamont, 6.3 miles away.

Jackson and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Jackson. Tap a dot.
Dr. Charles M. Wright HouseHeart TheaterEffingham County CourthouseFloyd and Glenora Dycus HouseThompson Mill Covered BridgeClay County Jail

Closest to Jackson

Dr. Charles M. Wright HouseAltamont · Building6.3miHeart TheaterEffingham · Building7.8miEffingham County CourthouseEffingham · Building7.9miFloyd and Glenora Dycus HouseBrownstown · Building17.1miThompson Mill Covered BridgeDry Point · Built 186818.2mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Dr. Charles M. Wright House’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Jackson?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Jackson’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Watson📜 Mason📜 Altamont📜 Mound
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Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Jackson, ILEffingham CountyView boundary

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/15 · 2025-01-01
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