Indiana State...
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Indiana Counties
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Morgan County, Indiana
Morgan County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education
County Seat:
Year Organized:
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Etymology - Origin of County Name
Named for American Revolutionary War General Daniel Morgan. Demographics:
County QuickFacts:
History
Morgan County began its official existence February 15, 1822. It was named for Gen. Daniel Morgan, who defeated the
British at the Battle of Cowpens in the Revolutionary War. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, mineral
springs in Martinsville gave rise to several spas, and the nickname of the Martinsville High School athletic teams has
subsequently been the Artesians. Settlers in Morgan County in the early nineteenth century came predominantly from
southern states. The Mooresville area and surrounding communities received large numbers of southern Quakers, driven to
migrate because of their opposition to slavery. Paul Hadley, a Mooresville resident, was the designer of the current
Indiana flag, as well as a locally prominent water color artist in the early twentieth century. The county courthouse,
built in the 1850s, is the oldest in central Indiana.
County government took several steps forward in the 2000s, creating a new Plan Commission, re-instituting a county
economic development organization, and establishing the county's first Park and Recreation Board between 2000 and 2004.
Morgan County also was the first county in the metropolitan Indianapolis region to establish a smoking ban ordinance for
restaurants, taking that step in 2004. Other communities in the region soon followed Morgan County's lead.
A County Achievement Award from the Association of Indiana Counties in 2006 was the third award from the group given to
Morgan County in a ten year span, adding to 1997 and 2003 awards.
In 2006 Morgan County was the first in the central Indiana region to offer a prescription drug discount program to its
residents at no charge to individuals, helping residents save an average of 20% on prescriptions. Also during 2006,
Morgan and Hendricks Counties became the first in Indiana to develop neighboring and co-related TIF (Tax Increment
Financing) districts for economic development activity.
Morgan County has developed a new thoroughfare plan that is integrated with the Mooresville thoroughfare plan, and also
recently completed a new capital improvement plan. Both activities are preludes to a new comprehensive plan being
developed for the county.
Morgan County is divided into 14 Civil Townships as follows: Adams, Ashland, Baker, Brown, Clay, Green, Gregg,
Harrison, Jackson, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Ray and Washington.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 409 square miles (1,060 kmē), of which 406
square miles (1,053 kmē) is land and 3 square miles (8 kmē) (0.71%) is water. Morgan County is bisected by the White
River Valley; the community has taken an interest in recent years in protecting the river as an asset, seeking to
develop parks and greenways along the White River and initiating an annual river clean up day in the spring.
The county also is home to large areas of land that were not glaciated during the last ice age. The river valley and
contributing watersheds, along with the non-glaciated hills, results in a topography unlike the rest of the
metropolitan Indianapolis area. County residents are proud of the scenic terrain, and in recent years have
established a county park system and a bike/pedestrian trail system plan to provide protection and access to the
amenities. An annual five mile run ("Run to the Future", June 10, 2006) is held as a fundraiser for the path system
endowment.
Neighboring Counties:
- North: Hendricks County
- Northeast: Marion County
- East: Johnson County
- Southeast: Brown County
- South: Monroe County
- Southwest: Owen County
- Northwest: Putnam County
Cities and Towns:
County Resources:
Enter County Resources and Information Here
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County Resource Guide
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The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic
features of our country!"
But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.
Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally,
act locally." |
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Penn Foster High School
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