Newton County, Indiana | |
|---|---|
 Newton County Courthouse in Kentland | |
 Location in the state ofIndiana | |
 Indiana's location in theU.S. | |
| Coordinates:40°57′N87°24′W / 40.950°N 87.400°W /40.950; -87.400 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Indiana |
| Organized | February 7, 1835 |
| Abolished | 1839 |
| Re-organized | December 8, 1859 |
| Named after | Sgt.John Newton |
| County seat | Kentland |
| Largest town | Kentland (population and total area) |
| Incorporated Municipalities | |
| Government | |
| • Type | County |
| • Body | Board of Commissioners |
| • Commissioner | Steven Eilers (1st) |
| • Commissioner | Abbey Rossiter (2nd) |
| • Commissioner | Robert Churchill (3rd) |
| Area | |
• County | 403.44 sq mi (1,044.9 km2) |
| • Land | 401.76 sq mi (1,040.6 km2) |
| • Water | 1.68 sq mi (4.4 km2) |
| • Metro | 10,874 sq mi (28,160 km2) |
| • Rank | 43rd largest county in Indiana |
| • Region | 2,726 sq mi (7,060 km2) |
| Elevation | 692 ft (211 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• County | 13,830 |
• Estimate (2023) | 13,960 |
| • Rank | 82nd largest county in Indiana |
| • Density | 34.42/sq mi (13.29/km2) |
| • Region | 819,537 |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (Central) |
| ZIP Codes | 46310, 46349, 46381, 47922, 47942-43, 47948, 47951, 47963, 47978 |
| Area code | 219 |
| Congressional district | 4th |
| Indiana Senate district | 6th |
| Indiana House of Representatives districts | 15th and 19th |
| FIPS code | 18-111 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0450376 |
| Interstate andU.S. Routes |     |
| State Routes |       |
| Airport | Kentland Municipal |
| Waterways | Iroquois River –Kankakee River |
| Website | www.newtoncounty.in.gov |
| |
| Demographic | Proportion |
|---|---|
| White | 96.2% |
| Black | 0.4% |
| Asian | 0.3% |
| Islander | 0.0% |
| Native | 0.3% |
| Other | 2.8% |
| Hispanic (any race) | 5.0% |
Newton County is acounty located near the northwestern corner of theU.S. state ofIndiana. As of 2020, the population was 13,830. This county is part ofNorthwest Indiana as well as theChicago metropolitan area.[2] Thecounty seat isKentland.[3] The county is divided into 10 townships which provide local services.[4][5]
The original Newton County was formed by statute on February 7, 1835, and was a roughly square area some 30 miles on a side, encompassing what is now the northern half of the county, the northern half ofJasper County, and a large section to the north. The northern border was cut back to theKankakee River on February 1, 1836, with all land north of the Kankakee River going toLake andPorter counties. The county was abolished and combined with Jasper County in 1839. On December 8, 1859, the county was re-created and the borders were redrawn to essentially their current state.
Newton County is named after Sgt.John Newton, who served under Gen.Francis Marion (the "Swamp Fox") in theAmerican Revolutionary War. It is adjacent toJasper County, which was named after Sgt.William Jasper, whose story is similar. At least four other states,Georgia,Mississippi,Missouri andTexas, have adjacentJasper andNewton Counties, as though these two were remembered as a pair.[6]
Upon its re-creation, Newton County was the last of Indiana's 92 counties to be organized.
According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 403.44 square miles (1,044.9 km2), of which 401.76 square miles (1,040.6 km2) (or 99.58%) is land and 1.68 square miles (4.4 km2) (or 0.42%) is water.[7]
Beaver Lake, once Indiana's largest lake before being drained, existed in what is now Newton County.[8]
J.C. Murphy Lake is at the center ofWillow Slough Fish and Wildlife Area.
Newton County is the site of theKentland crater, a probablemeteoriteimpact crater located betweenKentland andGoodland.
Interstate 65
U.S. Route 24
U.S. Route 41U.S. Route 52State Road 10State Road 14State Road 16State Road 55State Road 71State Road 114The municipalities in Newton County, and their populations as of the 2010 Census, are:
The 10 townships of Newton County, with their housing units as of the 2010 Census, are:
| Kentland, Indiana | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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In recent years, average temperatures in Kentland have ranged from a low of 14 °F (−10 °C) in January to a high of 85 °F (29 °C) in July, with a record low of −25 °F (−32 °C) recorded in January 1985 and a record high of 104 °F (40 °C) recorded in June 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.60 inches (41 mm) in February to 4.51 inches (115 mm) in June.[9]
The county government is a constitutional body granted specific powers by theConstitution of Indiana and theIndiana Code. The county council is the legislative branch of the county government and controls all spending and revenue collection. Representatives are elected from county districts. The council members serve four-year terms and are responsible for setting salaries, the annual budget and special spending. The council also has limited authority to impose local taxes, in the form of an income and property tax that is subject to state level approval, excise taxes and service taxes.[10][11]
The executive body of the county is made of a board of commissioners. The commissioners are elected county-wide, in staggered terms, and each serves a four-year term. One of the commissioners, typically the most senior, serves as president. The commissioners are charged with executing the acts legislated by the council, collecting revenue and managing day-to-day functions of the county government.[10][11]
The county maintains asmall claims court that can handle some civil cases. The judge on the court is elected to a term of four years and must be a member of the Indiana Bar Association. The judge is assisted by a constable who is elected to a four-year term. In some cases, court decisions can be appealed to the state levelcircuit court.[11]
The county has several other elected offices, includingsheriff,coroner,auditor,treasurer,recorder,surveyor and circuitcourt clerk. Each of these elected officers serves a term of four years and oversees a different part of county government. Members elected to county government positions are required to declareparty affiliations and be residents of the county.[11]
Each of the townships has atrustee who administers rural fire protection and ambulance service, provides poor relief and manages cemetery care, among other duties.[5] The trustee is assisted in these duties by a three-member township board. The trustees and board members are elected to four-year terms.[12]
Newton County is part ofIndiana's 4th congressional district. It is part ofIndiana Senate district 6[13] andIndiana House of Representatives districts 15 and 19.[14]
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1888 | 1,283 | 57.66% | 860 | 38.65% | 82 | 3.69% |
| 1892 | 1,191 | 52.49% | 879 | 38.74% | 199 | 8.77% |
| 1896 | 1,545 | 55.64% | 1,204 | 43.36% | 28 | 1.01% |
| 1900 | 1,715 | 57.45% | 1,165 | 39.03% | 105 | 3.52% |
| 1904 | 1,803 | 62.22% | 951 | 32.82% | 144 | 4.97% |
| 1908 | 1,645 | 56.47% | 1,190 | 40.85% | 78 | 2.68% |
| 1912 | 892 | 34.12% | 965 | 36.92% | 757 | 28.96% |
| 1916 | 1,377 | 47.58% | 1,278 | 44.16% | 239 | 8.26% |
| 1920 | 3,129 | 64.37% | 1,664 | 34.23% | 68 | 1.40% |
| 1924 | 2,705 | 60.37% | 1,523 | 33.99% | 253 | 5.65% |
| 1928 | 3,053 | 64.48% | 1,649 | 34.83% | 33 | 0.70% |
| 1932 | 2,380 | 46.65% | 2,654 | 52.02% | 68 | 1.33% |
| 1936 | 2,937 | 54.31% | 2,430 | 44.93% | 41 | 0.76% |
| 1940 | 3,536 | 62.32% | 2,116 | 37.29% | 22 | 0.39% |
| 1944 | 3,398 | 67.91% | 1,583 | 31.63% | 23 | 0.46% |
| 1948 | 3,312 | 68.36% | 1,483 | 30.61% | 50 | 1.03% |
| 1952 | 4,159 | 74.79% | 1,373 | 24.69% | 29 | 0.52% |
| 1956 | 3,890 | 74.49% | 1,316 | 25.20% | 16 | 0.31% |
| 1960 | 3,517 | 65.12% | 1,870 | 34.62% | 14 | 0.26% |
| 1964 | 2,780 | 52.06% | 2,547 | 47.70% | 13 | 0.24% |
| 1968 | 3,145 | 61.75% | 1,453 | 28.53% | 495 | 9.72% |
| 1972 | 3,771 | 75.00% | 1,252 | 24.90% | 5 | 0.10% |
| 1976 | 3,204 | 58.44% | 2,236 | 40.78% | 43 | 0.78% |
| 1980 | 3,850 | 66.81% | 1,649 | 28.61% | 264 | 4.58% |
| 1984 | 3,560 | 68.54% | 1,596 | 30.73% | 38 | 0.73% |
| 1988 | 3,274 | 65.02% | 1,744 | 34.64% | 17 | 0.34% |
| 1992 | 2,295 | 42.95% | 1,757 | 32.88% | 1,292 | 24.18% |
| 1996 | 2,075 | 43.14% | 1,897 | 39.44% | 838 | 17.42% |
| 2000 | 3,250 | 58.98% | 2,101 | 38.13% | 159 | 2.89% |
| 2004 | 3,757 | 64.24% | 2,032 | 34.75% | 59 | 1.01% |
| 2008 | 3,301 | 54.53% | 2,625 | 43.36% | 128 | 2.11% |
| 2012 | 3,291 | 58.02% | 2,212 | 39.00% | 169 | 2.98% |
| 2016 | 4,077 | 69.57% | 1,404 | 23.96% | 379 | 6.47% |
| 2020 | 4,942 | 74.78% | 1,509 | 22.83% | 158 | 2.39% |
| 2024 | 5,131 | 77.73% | 1,370 | 20.75% | 100 | 1.51% |
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1860 | 2,360 | — | |
| 1870 | 5,829 | 147.0% | |
| 1880 | 8,167 | 40.1% | |
| 1890 | 8,803 | 7.8% | |
| 1900 | 10,448 | 18.7% | |
| 1910 | 10,504 | 0.5% | |
| 1920 | 10,144 | −3.4% | |
| 1930 | 9,841 | −3.0% | |
| 1940 | 10,775 | 9.5% | |
| 1950 | 11,006 | 2.1% | |
| 1960 | 11,502 | 4.5% | |
| 1970 | 11,606 | 0.9% | |
| 1980 | 14,844 | 27.9% | |
| 1990 | 13,551 | −8.7% | |
| 2000 | 14,566 | 7.5% | |
| 2010 | 14,244 | −2.2% | |
| 2020 | 13,830 | −2.9% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 13,960 | [16] | 0.9% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[17] 1790-1960[18] 1900-1990[19] 1990-2000[20] 2010[21] | |||
As of the2020 census, the county had a population of 13,830. The median age was 44.7 years. 21.4% of residents were under the age of 18 and 20.2% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 102.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 102.1 males age 18 and over.[22][23]
The racial makeup of the county was 89.1%White, 0.3%Black or African American, 0.2%American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Asian, <0.1%Native Hawaiian andPacific Islander, 3.7% from some other race, and 6.4% fromtwo or more races.Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 7.5% of the population.[23]
<0.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.[24]
There were 5,537 households in the county, of which 28.9% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 51.3% were married-couple households, 19.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 20.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 26.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[22]
There were 6,018 housing units, of which 8.0% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 81.9% were owner-occupied and 18.1% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.7%.[22]
As of the2010 United States census, there were 14,244 people, 5,503 households, and 3,945 families residing in the county.[25] The population density was 35.5 inhabitants per square mile (13.7/km2). There were 6,030 housing units at an average density of 15.0 per square mile (5.8/km2).[7] The racial makeup of the county was 96.2% white, 0.4% black or African American, 0.3% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 1.8% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 5.0% of the population.[25] In terms of ancestry, 30.4% wereGerman, 16.9% wereIrish, 11.0% wereEnglish, 8.1% werePolish, 7.6% wereDutch, and 6.5% wereAmerican.[26]
Of the 5,503 households, 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.3% were married couples living together, 8.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 28.3% were non-families, and 23.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.00. The median age was 42.4 years.[25]
The median income for a household in the county was $47,697 and the median income for a family was $60,242. Males had a median income of $45,389 versus $29,891 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,055. About 4.8% of families and 8.2% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 12.0% of those under age 18 and 5.3% of those age 65 or over.[27]
Public schools in Newton County are administered by two districts:
High Schools and Middle Schools
Elementary Schools
Places adjacent to Newton County, Indiana | ||||||||||||||||
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Municipalities and communities ofNewton County, Indiana,United States | ||
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| Towns |  | |
| Townships | ||
| CDPs | ||
| Other communities | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
