Elkhart County, Indiana
Encyclopedia : E : EL : ELK : Elkhart County, Indiana
Elkhart County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2000, the population was 182,791. The county seat is Goshen.
Geography
Main article: Geography of Northeastern IndianaAccording to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,212 km² (468 mi²). 1,201 km² (464 mi²) of it is land and 10 km² (4 mi²) of it (0.86%) is water.
Elkhart County is located in Northern Indiana, 150 miles north/northeast of Indianapolis, 100 miles east of Chicago and 50 miles northwest of Fort Wayne.
The city of Goshen serves as the county seat. Other incorporated cities and towns within Elkhart County are Elkhart, , Middlebury, Millersburg, Nappanee and Wakarusa.
Elkhart County is renown as the RV capital of the world. A regional center of entrepreneurship and innovation, Elkhart County is rapidly becoming a technological center in a wide variety of industries which would include health & life sciences, information technology, logistics, and advanced manufacturing.
Adjacent counties
- St. Joseph County, Michigan (northeast)
- Lagrange County (east)
- Noble County (southeast)
- Kosciusko County (south)
- Marshall County (southwest)
- St. Joseph County (west)
- Cass County, Michigan (northwest)
History
Elkhart County was formed in 1830. There are many stories for the origin of this name. One is that there was an island in the St. Joseph River that was shaped like the heart of an elk, so that the French named the place "heart of the stag", which became "elkhart" in English.The most common story is that the County was named for the Elkhart tribe. No reference to such a tribe can be found.
Another story is that the County was named for Chief Elkhart, who is usually described as being Shawnee, but sometimes Potawatomi. One version says that, in 1801, a Shawnee Chief Elkhart attacked the Potawatomi, driving them out of nearby St. Joseph County, Michigan. The neighboring tribes then united against chief Elkhart, sending him back to the south.
Demographics
As of the census² of 2000, there were 182,791 people, 66,154 households, and 47,630 families residing in the county. The population density was 152/km² (394/mi²). There were 69,791 housing units at an average density of 58/km² (150/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 86.40% White, 5.23% Black or African American, 0.27% Native American, 0.92% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 5.36% from other races, and 1.78% from two or more races. 8.92% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 66,154 households out of which 36.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.80% were married couples living together, 10.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.00% were non-families. 22.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.18.
In the county the population was spread out with 28.90% under the age of 18, 9.50% from 18 to 24, 29.80% from 25 to 44, 20.90% from 45 to 64, and 10.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 98.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.10 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $44,478, and the median income for a family was $50,438. Males had a median income of $35,907 versus $24,051 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,250. About 5.80% of families and 7.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.20% of those under age 18 and 6.50% of those age 65 or over.
Cities and towns
External references
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