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County · code 19101

Jefferson CountyIowa

Jefferson County is in Iowa and has its county seat in Fairfield. The county was created in 1839 and named after Thomas Jefferson.

  • Founded1839
  • County seatFairfield
  • Named forThomas Jefferson
  • Land area436 sq mi + 1.4 sq mi water
  • Population15,663 2020 Census
  • Parcels mapped18,439 checked 15 October 2026
Open the free map Click any parcel in Jefferson County: acreage, parcel id, address and who publishes the map. No sign-in.

Updated

Van BurenWashingtonHenry Fairfield Census outline · seat marked

Where it is

Jefferson on the map of Iowa

Iowa has 99 counties and county equivalents, each with its own records office. Shapes with a page are links.

Adair CountyAdams CountyAllamakee CountyAppanoose CountyAudubon CountyBenton CountyBlack Hawk CountyBoone CountyBremer CountyBuchanan CountyBuena Vista CountyButler CountyCalhoun CountyCarroll CountyCass CountyCedar CountyCerro Gordo CountyCherokee CountyChickasaw CountyClarke CountyClay CountyClayton CountyClinton CountyCrawford CountyDallas CountyDavis CountyDecatur CountyDelaware CountyDes Moines CountyDickinson CountyDubuque CountyEmmet CountyFayette CountyFloyd CountyFranklin CountyFremont CountyGreene CountyGrundy CountyGuthrie CountyHamilton CountyHancock CountyHardin CountyHarrison CountyHenry CountyHoward CountyHumboldt CountyIda CountyIowa CountyJackson CountyJasper CountyJohnson CountyJones CountyKeokuk CountyKossuth CountyLee CountyLinn CountyLouisa CountyLucas CountyLyon CountyMadison CountyMahaska CountyMarion CountyMarshall CountyMills CountyMitchell CountyMonona CountyMonroe CountyMontgomery CountyMuscatine CountyO'Brien CountyOsceola CountyPage CountyPalo Alto CountyPlymouth CountyPocahontas CountyPolk CountyPottawattamie CountyPoweshiek CountyRinggold CountySac CountyScott CountyShelby CountySioux CountyStory CountyTama CountyTaylor CountyUnion CountyVan Buren CountyWapello CountyWarren CountyWashington CountyWayne CountyWebster CountyWinnebago CountyWinneshiek CountyWoodbury CountyWorth CountyWright CountyJefferson County Jefferson
Counties of Iowa · Jefferson highlighted

History

Formed in 1839 from Henry County

An old deed may name a county that no longer exists, or a boundary that has since moved.

Jefferson County was created by Iowa Territory on January 21, 1839, from Henry County. In 1843, Jefferson County gained territory and had other counties attached to it for judicial, revenue, and election purposes. When Iowa became a state in 1846, Jefferson County became an official state county.

Boundary changes from the Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

  1. 1839
    Jefferson County created Jefferson created by Iowa Territory from Henry and Non-County Area 4 attached to Henry.
    from Henry
    · Iowa Terr. Laws 1838-1839, pp. 92-94
  2. 1843
    Gained territory Jefferson gained from Non-County Area 4 attached to Henry. Kishkekosh (now Monroe) and Wapello attached to Jefferson; Non-County Area 4 detached from Henry, attached to Jefferson. All attachments were "for judicial, revenue, and election purposes."
    from Henryfrom Kishkekoshfrom Monroefrom Wapello
    · Iowa Terr. Rev. Stat. 1843, ch. 34, secs. 3-4/p. 132
  3. 1844
    Changed Wapello fully organized, detached from Jefferson; Kishkekosh (now Monroe) and Non-County Area 4 detached from Jefferson, attached to Wapello "for election, revenue, and judicial purposes."
    WapelloKishkekoshMonroe
    · Iowa Terr. Laws 1843-1844, ch. 100, secs. 1, 16/pp. 114-117
  4. 1846
    Became part of Iowa Jefferson became an Iowa county when the state of Iowa was created from Iowa Territory. · U.S. Stat., vol. 9, ch. 1[1847]/p. 117

Land and parcels

What the maps cover in Jefferson

Who publishes each layer, how good it is, and when we last checked.

Official
from the office that keeps the record
Good enough
a reliable statewide or national copy
Fallback
a guide only; check the official record
Missing
nothing public found yet

People and land

Jefferson by the Census

Population
15,663 2020 Census count
Housing units
7,689 2020 Census count
Land area
436 square miles
Water area
1.4 square miles
People per sq mi
36 population ÷ land area

Source: US Census Bureau, 2020 Census; US Census Bureau, 2020 Gazetteer Files. Not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Rules and offices

Who to ask before you build, dig or sell

Official county pages only. We link to them; we do not copy them, because they change.

Inside a city or town, permits usually come from that city rather than the county.

Records

Zoning and code

County government

See your own lot on these maps

Open Jefferson County on Parcel Chart's free map and click your parcel. Save it with a free account; the full record of your place (site map, projects, documents) is Pro, in early access.

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Questions

Common questions about Jefferson County

When was Jefferson County founded?
Jefferson County was founded in 1839, formed from Henry County, and named after Thomas Jefferson.
What is the county seat of Jefferson County?
The county seat of Jefferson County is Fairfield.
Is there an online parcel map for Jefferson County?
Yes. Jefferson County publishes a parcel map of 18,439 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.
Has Jefferson County's boundary or name changed?
Jefferson County was created in 1839 from Henry County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 3 later changes, chiefly involving Kishkekosh County, Monroe County and Wapello County.
Is my lot in a flood zone?
We do not have flood maps for Jefferson County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.

Nearby

Counties next door