The county was created on May 23, 1857. It was named for Henry Jackson, the first merchant in St. Paul.
Geography
Jackson County lies on the south side of Minnesota. Its south border abuts the north border of the state of Iowa. The Des Moines River flows south-southeasterly through the central part of the county, thence into Iowa. The county terrain is hilly and carved with drainages and gullies. The area is devoted to agriculture. The terrain generally slopes to the south and east; its highest point is on the lower west border, at 1,545' ASL. The county has a total area of, of which is land and is water.
As of the 2000 United States Census, there were 11,268 people, 4,556 households, and 3,116 families in the county. The population density was 16.0/sqmi. There were 5,092 housing units at an average density of 7.24/sqmi. The racial makeup of the county was 97.07% White, 0.09% Black or African American, 0.12% Native American, 1.38% Asian, 0.97% from other races, and 0.38% from two or more races. 1.86% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 51.9% were of German, 14.1% Norwegian and 5.6% American ancestry. There were 4,556 households out of which 29.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.00% were married couples living together, 5.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.60% were non-families. 28.50% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.95. The county population contained 24.50% under the age of 18, 7.00% from 18 to 24, 25.30% from 25 to 44, 22.60% from 45 to 64, and 20.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 100.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.30 males. The median income for a household in the county was $36,746, and the median income for a family was $43,426. Males had a median income of $29,123 versus $20,860 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,499. About 5.20% of families and 8.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.00% of those under age 18 and 8.40% of those age 65 or over.
