Welcome to Sparta ...
The city of Sparta is located in Randolph County<1>.
The location of Sparta has been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (ie- the GNIS).<2>
The pronunciation of Sparta: SPAHR-tuh<3>
While we don't have a date for the founding of Sparta, you might consider that their post office opened in 1840.
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Sparta has a population of 4,266 people<4> (see below for details).
Sparta is 500 feet [152 m] above sea level.<5>.
Time Zone: Sparta lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time
Sparta is within the boundaries of the (618) area code.
The ZIP code for Sparta: 62286<6>
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Sparta had an population of 4,266 people. This is a decrease of 0.84% since the 2010 Census (or a decrease of 4.9% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Sparta had a population of 4,302 people (which is 12.85% of the total population of Randolph County). This makes Sparta the county's 2nd most populous community.
The population of Sparta represents 0.03% of the population of Illinois (which has 12,830,632 people), making it the state's 359th most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 4,302 people, the population of Sparta decreased 4.1% from the 2000 Census (which had a count of 4,486 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Sparta.
Communities Also Named Sparta ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 25 communities that are also named Sparta - they are located in Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri (2), Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio (3), Ontario, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Sparta.
Communities near Sparta ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Sparta.
- Chester
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chester have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chester
- Chester is located in Randolph County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,145 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Chester <7>
- Pinckneyville
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinckneyville
- Pinckneyville is located in Perry County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,319 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pinckneyville <7>
- Red Bud
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Bud
- Red Bud is located in Randolph County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,442 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Red Bud <7>
- Steeleville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steeleville
- Steeleville is located in Randolph County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,890 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Steeleville <7>
- New Athens
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Athens
- New Athens is located in Saint Clair County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,865 people
- Marissa
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marissa
- Marissa is located in Saint Clair County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,785 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Marissa <7>
- Percy
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Percy
- Percy is located in Randolph County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 910 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Percy <7>
- Coulterville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coulterville
- Coulterville is located in Randolph County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 880 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Coulterville <7>
- Tilden
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tilden have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tilden
- Tilden is located in Randolph County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 827 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tilden <7>
- Evansville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Evansville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evansville
- Evansville is located in Randolph County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 631 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Evansville <7>
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Sparta. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Sparta.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Sparta. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Sparta.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Sparta. Our list includes 15 papers. See our Newspapers Page for Sparta.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Sparta ...
Looking for more information about Sparta? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
In addition to the Tourism page for Sparta, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Sparta.
Adding Sparta to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Sparta in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Sparta was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<8>
From that list, the Sparta post office opened in 1840.
We also found Sparta in the book titled U.S. Post Offices (Oct. 1846).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Sparta.
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Sparta. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of Illinois: https://illinois.gov
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of Illinois' counties, including Randolph, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <3> | The pronunciation we've provided is our attempt to give a phonetic pronunciation for Sparta. While it might not be exactly right, hopefully it will be close. If we have it wrong or there's a better way to pronounce the name, please contact us through our Feedback Page. |
| <4> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Sparta. |
| <5> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Sparta - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <6> | ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as Sparta). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Sparta or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). |
| <7> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <8> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |