JCDC

	Jefferson County Profile PDF (Click PDF for full Jefferson County Demographic Profile in printer friendly PDF format) General Overview Geography: Jefferson County is located in the heart of Southern Illinois at the junction of Interstates 57 and 64. It is one hour east of St. Louis, Mo., one hour west of Evansville, Ind., ninety minutes north of Paducah, KY and two hours south of Champaign, IL. Mount Vernon is the largest city in Jefferson County with 16,269 (2000 Census). Latitude 38.417N, Longitude –88.903; Elevation 512 Feet. The area of the County is 584 Square miles. Transportation: The intersection of Interstate Highways 57 and 64 has been an economic driver for the area. The Daily Traffic Count on I-57/64 is about 37,000 vehicles. Three major railroads and a local airport complement the transportation industry. Although the airport does not have commercial flights, its runways and facility are exceptional and quite adequate for carrier services and private jet landing/refueling and charter flights. General Economic Makeup: The Jefferson County area is home to three of the largest employers in Southern Illinois. Continental Tire, N.A. (CTNA) is the largest with 2000 employees and an annual payroll of over $100 million. Walgreens Distribution has been in Mount Vernon since 1990. They have had two major expansions and employ 1500 employees. St. Mary’s/Good Samaritan Hospital, Inc. (SMGS) , a regional health center. is the third largest with 930 employees and they are in the planning stages of a new hospital in Mount Vernon. The employee base for business is regional and is drawn from seven counties surrounding Jefferson County. The economic strength, stability, and growth of Jefferson County has significant impact on the Southern Illinois region. Unemployment in Jefferson County has been relatively stable over the last few years and remains in the 5% range. Jefferson County’s population is 40,045, an 8% increase from 1990 to 2000 and is projected to grow to 40,822 by 2012.