Newton is a city in and the county seat of Jasper County, Illinois, United States. The population was 2,849 at the 2010 census, down from 3,069 at the 2000 census. Newton is home to a large coal-fired power plant operated by Illinois Power Generating Co and is close to Newton Lake State Fish and Wildlife Area and Sam Parr State Fish and Wildlife Area. Newton is also home to the Drive 'n Theatre, formerly known as the Fairview Drive-In, which opened in 1953. It is one of 10 drive-ins left standing in Illinois. Newton has produced several notable natives. These include pro baseball pitcher Ross Wolf, Illinois state representative Norman L. Benefiel, folk singer Burl Ives, Illinois state senator Albert Isley, and Irene Hunt, who set the historical novel about the Civil War, Across Five Aprils, in and around Newton. Geography Newton is located at (38.988119, -88.164390), at the geographic center of Jasper County on a bluff overlooking the Embarras River. Illinois Route 33 passes through the center of Newton as Jourdan Street; it leads east to Robinson and northwest to Effingham. Illinois Route 130 enters Newton from the south on Van Buren Street and leaves to the east on Jourdan Street with Route 33; Route 130 leads north to Greenup and south to Olney. According to the 2010 census, Newton has a total area of , all land. Demographics As of the census of 2000, there were 3,069 people, 1,329 households, and 810 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 1,490 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.99% White, 0.10% African American, 0.20% Asian, 0.23% from other races, and 0.49% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.59% of the population. Among the White residents, the ancestral origin is primarily German with lesser contributions from England, France and Ireland. There were 1,329 households, out of which 27.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.5% were married couples living together, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.0% were non-families. 35.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.94. In the city, the population was spread out,