Jackson is a city in Jackson County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The population was 31,309 at the 2020 census. It is served by Interstate 94 and U.S. Route 127. It is approximately east of Kalamazoo, west of Ann Arbor, west of Detroit and south of Lansing. Jackson is the core city of the Jackson metropolitan area, which includes all of Jackson County and has a population of 160,248.Population of Michigan Regions and Statistical Areas, 2000 and 2010, at www.michigan.gov
The city was founded in 1829 and named after President Andrew Jackson. Michigan's first prison, Michigan State Prison (or Jackson State Prison), opened in 1838 and remains in operation.
History
On July 3, 1829, Horace Blackman, accompanied by Alexander Laverty, a land surveyor, and Pewytum, an Indian guide, forded the Grand River and made camp for the night at a site now marked as Trail and N. Jackson Street. They arrived there along a well-traveled Native American trail leading west from Ann Arbor. Blackman had hired Laverty and Pewytum to guide him west. Returning to Ann Arbor and Monroe, Blackman registered his claim for at two dollars an acre.
He returned to the Jackson area in August 1829 with his brother Russell. Together they cleared land and built a cabin at what would become the corner of Ingham and Trail streets. The town was first called Jacksonopolis. Later, it was renamed Jacksonburgh. Finally in 1838, the town's name was changed to simply Jackson.
Birthplace of the Republican Party – "Under the Oaks"
Jackson is one of the birthplaces of the Republican Party. The first official meeting of the group that called itself "Republican" was held in Jackson on July 6, 1854."Under the Oaks", Experience Jackson website A Michigan historical marker at what is now the northwest corner of Second and Franklin streets in Jackson commemorates an anti-slavery county convention held that day. Meeting outside to avoid a hot, overcrowded hall, the group ultimately selected a slate of candidates for state elections. The marker identifies this as the birth of the Republican Party. The site, an oak grove on "Morgan's Forty," then on the outskirts of town, became known as "Under the Oaks."
The political party formally recognizes its birthplace as being Ripon, Wisconsin, where the name "Republican" was first suggested in March 1854.The Origin of the Republican Party by Prof. A. F. Gilman, Ripon College, WI, 1914. But, Republican presidents have visited Jackson and this marker.
Crawfordsville, Iowa also has a claim as the birthplace of the party: the first private meeting of what would become the Republican Party occurred when Whig Party defectors met privately in Crawfordsville in February 1854. The meeting was to lay the groundwork for the creation of a new political party.
Auto industry Before Detroit began building cars on assembly lines in 1910, Jackson factories were making parts for cars and assembling them. By 1910, the auto industry had become Jackson's main industry. More than 20 different brands of cars were once made in Jackson, including: Reeves, Jaxon, Jackson, CarterCar, Orlo, Whiting, Butcher and Gage; Buick, Janney, Globe, Steel Swallow, C.V.I., Imperial, Ames-Dean, Cutting, Standard Electric, Duck, Briscoe, Argo, Hollier, Hackett, Marion-Handly, Gem, Earl, Wolverine, and Kaiser-Darrin. Ye Ole Carriage Shop in Spring Arbor displays more than 60 antique and classic cars, including five one-and-onlys and 16 made in Jackson. One of these is a 1902 JAXON. Today the auto parts industry remains one of the largest employers of skilled machine operators in Jackson County. The city was also an early site for the moped parts industry.
Birthplace of the Coney Island hot dog In 1914 Macedonian immigrant George Todoroff founded the first "Coney Island restaurant" and created his famous Coney Island hot dog topping. His Coney Island restaurant was located directly in front of the railroad station on East Michigan Avenue and was open 24 hours. The restaurant proved to be a popular dining option for rail passengers. Over the course of 31 years, Todoroff sold more than 17 million Coney Island hot dogs.
Today two "Coney Island" restaurants unaffiliated with Todoroff's are located in a building near the train station on East Michigan Avenue: Virginia Coney Island and Jackson Coney Island. In addition, several area restaurants throughout the Jackson area offer their own version of the Coney Island hot dog, or just "coney," as it is referred to by local residents. Jackson's version of the coney dog is distinctly different from those featured in Detroit-area Coney Island restaurants or other Coney Island restaurants throughout Michigan and the Midwest. In 2014 Todoroff's Coney Island celebrated its centenary.
Michigan's first state prison (1838–1934) The legislature authorized Michigan's first state prison in 1838. A temporary wooden prison, enclosed by a fence of tamarack poles, was built on 60 acres donated for that purpose inside the city limits of Jackson. In 1839 the first 35 prisoners were received. A permanent prison was built three years later.
Beginning in the 1850s, Warden H.F. Hatch placed more emphasis on the education and rehabilitation of prisoners. By 1882, Michigan's First State Prison (1838–1934) had developed as the largest walled prison in the world. Within its walls, the factories and surrounding farms, manned by cheap inmate labor, made Jackson one of the leading industrial cities in the nation. In 1934 a new prison was completed just north of Jackson's city limit in Blackman Township; it took all of the state prisoners.
The historic building is now used as an artists' resident community, known as the Armory Arts Village. Tours of the original prison site on Cooper Street are available through the Original Jackson Historic Prison Tours. A closed, fully intact cell block at the modern prison in Blackman Township was operated as the Cell Block 7 Prison Museum from 2014-2019. Independently operated by the accredited Ella Sharp Museum, this was the only museum where visitors could enter a closed cell block on the grounds of an active prison for a self-guided tour.
Corset industry (1860s–1920s)
Numerous railroad connections were constructed to Jackson, linking it to many markets. The local invention of the duplex corset by Bortree helped make Jackson a center of corset manufacturing. By the early 20th century, as many as 16 manufacturers of women's corsets operated here; the majority were located on Cortland and Pearl streets.
As elastics were adopted in manufacturing and fashions changed, the corset industry quickly declined. The majority of the corset manufacturers in Jackson closed their doors by 1920. Only three of the original corset companies survived past the 1920s, by changing their production to therapeutic and prosthetic support garments and devices.
"The First" Moses Bortree founded the Bortree Corset Company, the first corset manufacturer outside of New York, in 1868 at 112 W. Cortland. Founded to make crinoline skirts and bustles (hoop skirts!), they began manufacturing Bortree's newest creation, the Duplex Corset, in 1875. Within five years, production rose from 50,000 to 300,000 corsets per year.
"The Biggest" Founded in 1884, the Jackson Corset Co. became the largest manufacturer of corset and waist garments in the US. Located at 209-215 W. Cortland St., they employed almost 300 people by 1895.
"Woman-Owned" The Coronet Corset Manufactory opened in 1880 at 146 W. Main St. and later moved to 131-133 W. Pearl St. Coronet had the distinction of being run by the first and only female president, Mrs. C.A. McGee, who invented and patented the Coronet Corset.
Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (1.09%) is water.
Climate This climate region is typified by large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters. According to the Köppen climate classification system, Jackson has a humid continental climate, abbreviated "Dfb" on climate maps.
Demographics
Racial and ethnic composition +Jackson city, Michigan – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 2000Pop 2010Pop 2020% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)26,20423,06220,27972.16%68.77%64.77%Black or African American alone (NH)7,0696,7275,90719.47%20.06%18.87%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)187107920.51%0.32%0.29%Asian alone (NH)1832353310.50%0.70%1.06%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)13770.04%0.02%0.02%Other race alone (NH)65581300.18%0.17%0.42%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)1,1261,5692,4443.10%4.68%7.81%Hispanic or Latino (any race)1,4691,7692,1194.05%5.28%6.77%Total36,31633,53431,309 100.00%100.00%100.00%
2020 census As of the 2020 census, Jackson had a population of 31,309. The median age was 35.0 years. 26.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 13.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 95.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 92.2 males age 18 and over.
100.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 12,727 households in Jackson, of which 30.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 28.3% were married-couple households, 25.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 36.2% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 35.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 14,163 housing units, of which 10.1% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.3% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.5%.
+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census Race Number Percent White 20,917 66.8% Black or African American 6,058 19.3% American Indian and Alaska Native 144 0.5% Asian 339 1.1% Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 7 0.0% Some other race 775 2.5% Two or more races 3,069 9.8%
2010 census As of the census of 2010, there were 33,534 people, 13,294 households, and 7,872 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 15,457 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 71.4% White, 20.4% African American, 0.4% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 1.6% from other races, and 5.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race were 5.3% of the population.
There were 13,294 households, of which 35.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 30.7% were married couples living together, 22.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 40.8% were non-families. 33.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 3.14.
The median age in the city was 32.2 years. 28.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 10.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 27.7% were from 25 to 44; 23.1% were from 45 to 64; and 10.3% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.7% male and 52.3% female.
2000 census As of the census of 2000, there were 36,316 people, 14,210 households, and 8,668 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 15,241 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 73.87% White, 19.70% Black or African American, 0.56% Native American, 0.51% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.65% from other races, and 3.67% from two or more races. 4.05% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.