Huntington County, Indiana

Infobox U.S. County
county = Huntington County
state = Indiana


founded year = 1832
founded date =
seat wl = Huntington
largest city wl =
city type = town
area_total_sq_mi = 388
area_total_km2 = 1004
area_land_sq_mi = 383
area_land_km2 = 991
area_water_sq_mi = 5
area_water_km2 = 14
area percentage = 1.38%
lat deg =
lat min =
long deg =
long min =
census yr = 2000
pop = 38075
density_sq_mi = 40
density_km2 = 15
time zone = Eastern
footnotes =
web =
named for = Samuel Huntington

Huntington County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. The county seat and largest city is HuntingtonGR|6.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 388 square miles (1,005 km²), of which 383 square miles (991 km²) is land and 5 square miles (14 km²) (1.38%) is water.

Adjacent counties

*Whitley County (north)
*Allen County (northeast)
*Wells County (east)
*Grant County (south)
*Wabash County (west)

History

Huntington County was formed in 1832. It was named for Samuel Huntington, who signed the Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation. He was also President of the Continental Congress under the Articles of Confederation.

Government

The county government is a constitutional body, and is granted specific powers by the Constitution of Indiana, and by the Indiana Code.

County Council: The county council is the legislative branch of the county government and controls all the spending and revenue collection in the county. Representatives are elected from county districts. The council members serve four year terms. They 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.cite web|author=Indiana Code|url=http://www.in.gov/legislative/ic/code/title36/ar2/ch3.html |title=Title 36, Article 2, Section 3|accessdate=2008-09-16|publisher=IN.gov] cite web|author= Indiana Code |url= http://www.in.gov/legislative/ic/code/title3/ar10/ch2.pdf |title= Title 2, Article 10, Section 2 |accessdate=2008-09-16|publisher=IN.gov]

Board of Commissioners: 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, the collection of revenue, and managing the day-to-day functions of the county government.

Court: The county maintains a small 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 also elected to terms of four years. In some cases, court decisions can be appealed to the state level circuit court.

County Officials: The county has several other elected offices, including sheriff, coroner, auditor, treasurer, recorder, surveyor, and circuit court clerk. Each of these elected officers serve terms of four years and oversee different parts of the county government. Members elected to any county government position are required to declare a party affiliation and be a resident of the county.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 38,075 people, 14,242 households, and 10,282 families residing in the county. The population density was 100 people per square mile (38/km²). There were 15,269 housing units at an average density of 40 per square mile (15/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.15% White, 0.18% Black or African American, 0.41% Native American, 0.31% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.26% from other races, and 0.67% from two or more races. 0.95% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 39.0% were of German, 21.5% American, 8.4% Irish and 8.1% English ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 14,242 households out of which 34.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.40% were married couples living together, 9.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.80% were non-families. 23.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the county the population was spread out with 26.10% under the age of 18, 9.90% from 18 to 24, 28.10% from 25 to 44, 21.80% from 45 to 64, and 14.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 94.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $41,620, and the median income for a family was $49,031. Males had a median income of $34,894 versus $21,693 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,480. About 3.70% of families and 5.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.20% of those under age 18 and 5.70% of those age 65 or over.

Notable natives and former residents

Public Servants

*J. Danforth Quayle, Vice-President of the United States, U.S. Senator, U.S. Representative
*J. Edward Roush, U.S. Representative, Father of "911 Emergency System"

Celebrities

*Chris Schenkel, Emmy Award winning sportscaster
*Denny Jiosa, Grammy nominated jazz guitarist and composer
*Sandy Thomson, Chief Weather Specialist, WANE-TV Fort Wayne

Artists

*Eiffel G. Plasterer, in the mid-1900s, toured America with his "Bubbles Concerto" program. He was a pioneer in soap bubble art and invented unique bubble-making techniques and equipment.

ports Players

*Chris Kramer, basketball player at Purdue University. Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, 2008
*Sean Kline, basketball player at Indiana University.
*Steve Platt, basketball player and coach at Huntington University. Indiana’s all-time collegiate scoring leader (3,700 points), placing him seventh on the list of all-time collegiate scorers at any level. Platt twice led the nation in scoring in 1973 and 1974.
*Lisa Winter, basketball player at Ball State University and Valparaiso University. Indiana's Miss Basketball 1996.
*Matt Pike, football player at Purdue University and in the Arena Football League, 1999-Present. Won AF2 Title with Peoria in 2002.

Points of interest

* [http://www.huntingtonhistoricalmuseum.org/ Huntington County Historical Museum]
* Huntington University Arboretum and Botanical Garden
* Huntington University
* [http://www.lrl.usace.army.mil/jerl/ J. Edward Roush Lake]
* Merillat Centre for the Arts
* Sheets Wildlife Museum and Learning Center
* Sunken Gardens
* The Forks Of The Wabash
* The Indiana Room Genealogy Center
* United States Vice Presidential Museum
* Victory Noll

Cities and towns

*Andrews
*Banquo
*Bippus
*Goblesville
*Huntington
*Lancaster
*Majenica
*Markle
*Mount Etna
*Plum Tree
*Roanoke
*Warren

Townships

*Clear Creek
*Dallas
*Huntington
*Jackson
*Jefferson
*Lancaster
*Polk
*Rock Creek
*Salamonie
*Union
*Warren
*Wayne

Education

School district

*Huntington County Community School Corporation

Private schools

* [http://www.homeschool-life.com/in/hahe/ Huntington Area Home Educators]
* [http://www.diocesefwsb.org/cso/schools/huntington.shtml Huntington Catholic School]

Higher education

* Huntington University

News and Media

Newspapers

* [http://www.h-ponline.com/ The Herald-Press daily newspaper]
* [http://www.huntingtoncountytab.com/ The Huntington County TAB]
* [http://www.smalltownpapers.com/listWRW.htm Warren Weekly]

Radio

* [http://www.ontheradio.net/radiostations/wbzqam.aspx WBZQ 1300 AM]
* [http://www.hccsc.k12.in.us/HuntingtonNorth/HuntingtonNorth/clubsandorgs/wvshradio.html Huntington North High School WVSH Viking Radio]
* [http://www.huntington.edu/comm/hcr/ Huntington University Radio WQHC 105.5-FM The Fuse!]

Transportation

Major highways

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External links

* [http://www.huntington-chamber.com/ Huntington County Chamber of Commerce]
* [http://www.huntington.in.us/ Official Web site of Huntington, Indiana]
* [http://www.huntingtoncounty.org/ Huntington County Community Network]
* [http://www.h-ponline.com/ Huntington Herald Press daily newspaper]
* [http://www.hcued.org Huntington County United Economic Development]
* [http://Huff50k.com/ The HUFF 50K Trail Run, a December ultramarathon - one of the 10 largest in North America]
* [http://VeepTri.com/ VEEP Triathlon, a triathlon, duathlon and aquathlon held the first weekend in August]

References

*cite book
first = Richard L. (editor)
last = Forstall
year = 1996
title = Population of states and counties of the United States: 1790 to 1990 : from the twenty-one decennial censuses
publisher = United States Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Population Division
id = ISBN 0-934213-48-8