Scott

Formed January 1, 1839 (77^th county)

Scott County (4,947), Winchester (1,573)

The clock tower dominates the red brick and cream masonry structure built in 1885.  It is at Market and Hill streets.  Illinois State Highway 106 is two blocks north of the site.  James Stewart & Company are the architects of this Beaux Arts style building.  Scott County was created on January 1, 1839 out of Morgan County as the 77^th county with Winchester as the only county seat.  It is named for a family of local settlers.  The county seat name is presumably named for Winchester, Kentucky. 

Scott County government consists of a sheriff, an attorney, a coroner, a clerk, a treasurer, and an assessor (executive).  It has 3 Board Members (legislative.)  Twenty-two Circuit Court Judges serve Scott, Greene, Jersey, Macoupin, Morgan, and Sangamon counties and a court clerk serves Scott County (judicial.) The county is in western Illinois with the Illinois River forming its western border.  Springfield, Illinois is east and Saint Louis, Missouri is south of the county.  The county center is 2.5 miles Northwest of Winchester.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Morgan, Greene, and Pike counties. 

The area of the county is 250 square miles.  It is 95 out of 102 in the state.  It ranks 99 out of 102 in population in the state.  It has a density of 19.8 persons per square mile making it 93 out of 102 in the state.  Scott County has 59.7% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 72 crosses the county east to west from Morgan County to Pike County.  United States Highway 36 is joined with Interstate Highway 72 from Morgan to Pike counties.  United States Highway 67 cuts the southeast corner of the county from Morgan County, east, to Greene County, south.  The county is set of stairs on its north and east borders and a wandering river west border.  Winchester is slightly south of the geographical center of the county.  Winchester is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 31.8% of the county population.  This county is in the Jacksonville Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Winchester