The parish was formed in 1845 from parts of Claiborne, Ouachita, and Union Parishes. The parish seat is Jonesboro. Jackson Parish is part of the Ruston Micropolitan Statistical Area.

During the American Civil War Confederate General Richard Taylor sent five companies into Jackson and Winn parishes to arrest conscripts who failed to report for duty and to halt jayhawker groups in the area. General Edmund Kirby-Smith, moreover, directed that "all men who shirked their military duty be hunted down and forced into camp. Those who tried to escape the conscript hunters would be shot. The terrain of Louisiana with its many canebrakes, swamps, and hills in which to hide, made such an order difficult to carry out," explains the historian John D. Winters in The Civil War in Louisiana (1963).

Jackson is known as the "Sunshine Parish," both for its natural beauty and for the legacy of its famous native son, Jimmie Davis. The former Louisiana governor was also a country singer who wrote the official state song "You Are My Sunshine." Jimmie Davis State Park, named in his honor, offers camping and access to Caney Lake, a trophy bass-fishing destination.

The history of the rural parish is on display in Jonesboro at the Jackson Heritage Museum, while historic sites like the antebellum Simms-Ellis House in Clay, the Clay-Wilder Home in Chatham and the nearby Brooklyn Methodist Church all help tell the area's story. In Jonesboro, locals and visitors welcome springtime with the Sunshine Festival & Antique Car Show each April, and downtown transforms into a "Christmas Wonderland in the Pines" for the holiday season with millions of lights strung on homes and businesses and family events held each weekend.

The parish has a total area of 580 square miles, of which 570 square miles is land and 10 square miles (1.82%) is water. The population recorded in the 1900 Federal Census was 9,119. The 2010 census recorded 16,274 residents in the Parish.

Neigboring parishes are Lincoln Parish (north), Ouachita Parish (northeast), Caldwell Parish (southeast), Winn Parish (south), and Bienville Parish (west). Communities in the parish include Chatham, East Hodge, Eros, Hodge, Jonesboro, North Hodge, and Quitman.

Birth Records - The Louisiana State office maintains records for 100 years after the date of birth. Birth records are considered confidential for the first 100 years. For current information on who may obtain a birth record as well as how to submit a request visit the Office of Public Health, Vital Records Registry website or write to them at PO Box 60630, New Orleans, LA 70160.

Birth records older than 100 years are available through the Louisiana State Archives, 3851 Essen Lane, Baton Rouge, LA 70809. (225) 922-1000.

Death Records - The Louisiana State office maintains records for 100 years after the date of death. Death records are considered confidential for the first 100 years. For current information on who may obtain a death record as well as how to submit a request visit the Office of Public Health, Vital Records Registry website or write to them at PO Box 60630, New Orleans, LA 70160.

Death records older than 100 years are available through the Louisiana State Archives, 3851 Essen Lane, Baton Rouge, LA 70809. (225) 922-1000.

Marriage Records - For current information on how to submit a request for a certified copy of an Orleans Parish marriage record less than 50 years old, see the Louisiana Office of Public Health Director, Vital Records and Statistics website or write to PO Box 60630, New Orleans, LA 70160.

Certified copies for the parish are issued by Clerk of Court. For the address of the parish Clerk of Court visit the Jackson Parish Important Addresses page.

Marriage records over 50 years are stored by the Louisiana State Archives, 3851 Essen Lane, Baton Rouge, LA 70809. (225) 922-1000.

Divorce Records - To obtain current information on how to submit a request for a certified copy of divorce records contact the Clerk of Court. For the address of the parish Clerk of Court visit the Jackson Parish Important Addresses page.