ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA

'Allen County' is the largest county (by area) located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2004, the population was 342,168. The county seat is Fort Wayne⁶.

Contents

History

Government

Geography

Geographical features

Major highways

Railroads

Parks

Adjacent counties

Demographics

Cities and towns

Townships

External links

References

History

Allen County was formed April 1, 1824. The county is named for Col. John Allen, an attorney and Kentucky state senator who was killed in the War of 1812. Fort Wayne was chosen as the county seat in May 1824.

Government

The executive and legislative power are vested in the Board of Commissioners.
Linda Bloom, F. Nelson Peters and Bill Brown.
Kenneth C. Fries is the Sheriff of Allen County. He began his initial term on January 1, 2007. David Gladieux serves as Chief Deputy Sheriff.

Geography

''Main article: Geography of Allen County''

Geographical features

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,710 km² (660 mi²). 1,702 km² (657 mi²) of it is land and 7 km² (3 mi²) of it (0.43%) is water.
It is the largest county in Indiana, land-wise, but ranks as a 'small county' in comparison with the western states.

Major highways

★ Interstate 69

★ Interstate 469

★ U.S. Highway 24

★ U.S. Highway 27

★ U.S. Highway 30

★ U.S. Highway 33

★ Indiana State Road 1

★ Indiana State Road 3

★ Indiana State Road 14

★ Indiana State Road 37

Railroads

★ Chicago, Fort Wayne and Eastern Railroad

★ CSX Transportation

★ Maumee and Western Railroad

★ Norfolk Southern Railway

Parks

The Allen County Parks Department operates several parks serving the Fort Wayne community. The two largest are:

★ Fox Island County Park [1]

★ Metea Park [2]

★ Cook's Landing County Park

★ Payton County Park

Adjacent counties

★ Noble County (northwest)

★ DeKalb County (northeast)

★ Defiance County, Ohio (northeast)

★ Paulding County, Ohio (east)

★ Van Wert County, Ohio (southeast)

★ Adams County (southeast)

★ Wells County (southwest)

★ Huntington County (southwest)

★ Whitley County (west)
Allen County, Indiana, is one of the few counties in the United States to border as many as nine counties. Indiana actually has two such counties, with nearby Grant County also bordering nine others. Allen and Grant Counties share Huntington and Wells Counties as common neighbors.

Demographics

'Allen County, Indiana' Population by year[1]
1830	996
1840	5,942
1850	16,919
1860	29,328
1870	43,494
1880	54,763
1890	66,689
1900	77,270
1910	93,386
1920	114,303
1930	146,743
1940	155,084
1950	183,722
1960	232,196
1970	280,455
1980	294,335
1990	300,836
2000	331,849

As of the census² of 2000, there were 331,849 people, 128,745 households, and 86,259 families residing in the county. The population density was 195/km² (505/mi²). There were 138,905 housing units at an average density of 82/km² (211/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 83.08% White, 11.31% Black or African American, 0.36% Native American, 1.40% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 2.02% from other races, and 1.79% from two or more races. 4.18% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 33.3% were of German, 10.3% American, 7.4% Irish and 6.9% English ancestry according to Census 2000.
There were 128,745 households out of which 34.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.50% were married couples living together, 11.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.00% were non-families. 27.40% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.11.
In the county the population was spread out with 27.70% under the age of 18, 9.40% from 18 to 24, 30.00% from 25 to 44, 21.50% from 45 to 64, and 11.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 95.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $42,671, and the median income for a family was $52,708. Males had a median income of $39,202 versus $25,980 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,544. About 6.70% of families and 9.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.40% of those under age 18 and 6.40% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

★ Arcola (unincorporated)

★ Fort Wayne

★ Grabill

★ Harlan

★ Hoagland

★ Huntertown

★ Leo-Cedarville

★ Monroeville

★ New Haven

★ Poe

★ Woodburn

★ Yoder

★ Zanesville

Townships

★ Aboite

★ Adams

★ Cedar Creek

★ Eel River

★ Jackson

★ Jefferson

★ Lafayette

★ Lake

★ Madison

★ Marion

★ Maumee

★ Milan

★ Monroe

★ Perry

★ Pleasant

★ Scipio

★ Springfield

★ St. Joseph

★ Washington

★ Wayne

External links

★ Allen County official website

★ Maumee Valley Heritage Corridor

★ Allen County-Fort Wayne Historical Society and Museum

★ ARCH, Inc. - Allen County historic architecture preservation group

★ Allen County history

★ Plan-it Allen

References

1. Fort Wayne QuickFacts


★ Population of states and counties of the United States: 1790 to 1990 : from the twenty-one decennial censuses, , Richard L. (editor), Forstall, United States Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Population Division, 1996, ISBN 0-934213-48-8
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