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Indiana Counties

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Indiana Counties

Indiana is divided into 92 counties. The oldest and newest Counties in Indiana are Knox County (created 1790) and Newton County (created 1857).

The largest county is Allen (657 sq. mi.) and the smallest is Ohio (87 sq. mi.). According to the Indiana Constitution, no county may be created of less than 400 square miles, nor may any county smaller than this be further reduced in size.

Many Indiana Counties are named for the US Founding Fathers and personalities of the American Revolutionary War, the War of 1812 and Battle of Tippecanoe; early leaders of Indiana Territory and Indiana, as well as surrounding states like Michigan and Kentucky; plus Native American tribes and geographical features.

St. Joseph County, Indiana

St. Joseph County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: South Bend
Year Organized: 1830
Square Miles: 457

Court House:

227 W. Jefferson Blvd.
County/City Building
South Bend, IN 46601-1830

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Named for the St. Joseph River which was itself named for the Catholic Saint, husband of the Virgin Mary.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

County History

St. Joseph County was organized January 29, 1830 becoming effective April 1, 1830.

St. Joseph County is divided into 13 Civil Townships as follows: Center, Clay, German, Greene, Harris, Liberty, Lincoln, Madison, Olive, Penn, Portage, Union and Warren.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 461 square miles (1,194 km²), of which 457 square miles (1,185 km²) is land and 4 square miles (9 km²) (0.79%) is water.

Neighboring Counties:

Northeast: Cass County, Mich.
East: Elkhart County
South: Marshall County
Southwest: Starke County
West: La Porte County
Northwest: Berrien County, Mich.

Cities and Towns:

- Centre	township
- Clay	township
- German	township
- Harris	township
- Lakeville	town	Incorporated Area
- Lincoln	township
- Mishawaka	city	Incorporated Area
- New Carlisle	town	Incorporated Area
- North Liberty	town	Incorporated Area
- Olive	township
- Osceola	town	Incorporated Area
- Penn	township
- Roseland	town	Incorporated Area
- South Bend (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- St. Marys	township
- Union	township
- Walkerton	town	Incorporated Area

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

County Resources

The history of our nation was a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names given the counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of this 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."