Fountain County, Indiana

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


founded year = 1826
founded date =
seat wl = Covington
largest city wl = Attica
city type =
area_total_sq_mi = 398
area_total_km2 = 1031
area_land_sq_mi = 396
area_land_km2 = 1025
area_water_sq_mi = 2
area_water_km2 = 6
area percentage = 0.56%
lat deg =
lat min =
long deg =
long min =
census yr = 2000
pop = 17954
density_sq_mi = 45
density_km2 = 18
time zone = Eastern
footnotes =
web = www.co.fountain.in.us
named for = James Fontaine

Fountain County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2000, the population was 17,954. The county seat is CovingtonGR|6.

History

Fountain County was formed in 1826. It was named for Major James Fontaine of Kentucky who was killed at Harmar's Defeat (near modern Fort Wayne, Indiana) on 22 October 1790 during the Northwest Indian War. [cite book|author=De Witt Clinton Goodrich & Charles Richard Tuttle|publisher=R. S. Peale & co.|year=1875|location=Indiana|title=An Illustrated History of the State of Indiana|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=YDIUAAAAYAAJ| pages=557]

Courthouse

The Fountain County courthouse was built in 1936-1937 at a cost of $246,734. It was constructed by the Jacobson Brothers of Chicago; the architects were Louis R. Johnson and Walter Scholar of Lafayette. It replaced the older 1859 building that had been declared unsafe. The courthouse walls display a number of murals painted by Eugene Francis Savage and others from 1937 to 1940; the murals cover over convert|2500|sqft|m2|0 of wall space and depict the settlement of western Indiana. [cite book
last = Counts
first = Will
coauthors = Jon Dilts
title = The 92 Magnificent Indiana Courthouses
publisher = Indiana University Press
date = 1991
location = Bloomington, Indiana
isbn = 978-0253336385
pages = pp. 52, 53]

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.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 398 square miles (1,031 km²), of which 396 square miles (1,025 km²) is land and 2 square miles (6 km²) (0.56%) is water.

Adjacent counties

*Tippecanoe County (northeast)
*Montgomery County (east)
*Parke County (south)
*Vermillion County (southwest)
*Warren County (northwest)

Cities and towns

Townships

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 17,954 people, 7,041 households, and 5,041 families residing in the county. The population density was 45 people per square mile (18/km²). There were 7,692 housing units at an average density of 19 per square mile (8/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.71% White, 0.11% Black or African American, 0.20% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.28% from other races, and 0.52% from two or more races. 1.06% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 33.4% were of American, 23.7% German, 10.9% English and 7.6% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 7,041 households out of which 32.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.10% were married couples living together, 8.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.40% were non-families. 24.80% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the county the population was spread out with 26.20% under the age of 18, 7.20% from 18 to 24, 27.90% from 25 to 44, 23.10% from 45 to 64, and 15.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 98.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $38,119, and the median income for a family was $43,330. Males had a median income of $33,957 versus $21,631 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,779. About 6.20% of families and 8.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.40% of those under age 18 and 6.90% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Public schools in Fountain County are administered by three bodies: the Attica Consolidated School Corporation in the northern part of the county, the Covington Community School Corporation in the west, and the Southeast Fountain School Corporation.

High Schools and Middle Schools
*Attica Junior-Senior High School
*Covington High School
*Covington Middle School
*Fountain Central Junior-Senior High School

Elementary Schools
*Attica Elementary School
*Covington Elementary School
*Southeast Fountain Elementary School

External links

* [http://www.co.fountain.in.us/ Fountain County official website]
* [http://www.wicf-inc.org/ Western Indiana Community Foundation]
* [http://www.wicf-inc.org/ Attica Community Foundation]
* [http://www.attica.k12.in.us/ Attica Consolidated School Corporation]
* [http://www.wicf-inc.org/ Covington Community Foundation]
* [http://www.covington.k12.in.us/ Covington Community School Corporation]
* [http://www.wicf-inc.org/ Southeast Fountain Community Foundation]
* [http://www.sefschools.org/ Southeast Fountain School Corporation]

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----