Darke County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in the U.S. state of

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 51,881.2020 census
/ref> Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

and largest city is Greenville. The county was created in 1809 and later organized in 1817. It is named for William Darke, an officer in the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

. Darke County comprises the Greenville, OH Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the

Dayton Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...

- Springfield- Sidney, OH Combined Statistical Area.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.3%) is water.

Adjacent counties

* Auglaize County (northeast) * Mercer County (north) * Shelby County (east) * Miami County (east) * Montgomery County (southeast) * Preble County (south) * Wayne County, Indiana (southwest) *

Randolph County, Indiana Randolph County is a County (United States), county located in the central section of U.S. state of Indiana, on its eastern border with Ohio. As of 2020, the population was 24,502. The county seat is Winchester, Indiana, Winchester. History ...

(west) *

Jay County, Indiana Jay County is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2020, the population was 20,478. The county seat is Portland. History The Indiana State Legislature passed an omnibus county bill on February 7, 1835 that authorized the creation o ...

(northwest)

Demographics

2000 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 53,309 people, 20,419 households, and 14,905 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 21,583 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 98.09%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.39%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.17% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.02%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.34% from other races, and 0.74% from two or more races. 0.86% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. 43.1% were of German, 20.1% American, 8.1% English, 6.8% Irish and 5.8% French ancestry according to Census 2000. There were 20,419 households, out of which 33.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.00% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 8.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.00% were non-families. 23.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56, and the average family size was 3.03. In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.30% under the age of 18, 7.80% from 18 to 24, 27.50% from 25 to 44, 23.20% from 45 to 64, and 15.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.30 males. The median income for a household in the county was $39,307, and the median income for a family was $45,735. Males had a median income of $32,933 versus $23,339 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the county was $18,670. About 6.00% of families and 8.00% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 10.10% of those under age 18 and 9.20% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 52,959 people, 20,929 households, and 14,673 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 22,730 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.8% white, 0.4% black or African American, 0.3% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.4% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.2% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 38.9% were German, 11.5% were American, 10.6% were Irish, and 9.0% were English. Of the 20,929 households, 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.7% were married couples living together, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.9% were non-families, and 25.9% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.50, and the average family size was 3.00. The median age was 40.8 years. The median income for a household in the county was $44,280, and the median income for a family was $53,454. Males had a median income of $40,402 versus $28,310 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,483. About 7.5% of families and 10.6% of the population were below the

, including 14.5% of those under age 18 and 8.1% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Originally settled by numerous migrants from the South, Darke County supported Democratic presidential candidates prior to 1912. It voted for Republicans only three times from 1856 to 1908. The county was a bellwether from 1912 to 1936. Starting with the 1940 election, it has become a Republican stronghold in presidential elections.

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served a ...

was the only Democratic candidate supported by county voters since then.

Government

Darke County has a three-member Board of County Commissioners who oversee the various county departments, in similar fashion to all but two of the 88 Ohio counties. Darke County's elected commissioners are Mike Rhoades, Mike Stegall, and Matt Aultman.

Education

Public school districts

Communities

City

* Greenville (county seat)

Villages

* Ansonia * Arcanum *

Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...

* Burkettsville * Castine * Gettysburg * Gordon * Hollansburg * Ithaca * New Madison * New Weston * North Star * Osgood *

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

* Pitsburg * Rossburg * Union City *

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...

* Wayne Lakes *

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

Townships

* Adams * Allen *

Brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing and painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors Orange (colour), orange and black. In the ...

* Butler * Franklin * Greenville * Harrison * Jackson *

Liberty Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views. The concept of liberty can vary depending on perspective and context. In the Constitutional ...

* Mississinawa * Monroe * Neave * Patterson * Richland *

Twin Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of Twin Last Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two ...

* Van Buren * Wabash * Washington * Wayne *

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

Unincorporated communities

* Abbottsville *

Beamsville Beamsville (Canada 2021 Census, 2021 Urban area estimated population 13,323) is a community that is part of the town of Lincoln, Ontario, Canada. It is located along the southern shore of Lake Ontario and lies within the fruit belt of the Niagar ...

* Braffetsville * Brock * Coletown *

Dawn Dawn is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the diffuse sky radiation, appearance of indirect sunlight being Rayleigh scattering, scattered in Earth's atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc ha ...

* Delisle * Fort Jefferson * Frenchtown * Hill Grove * Horatio * Jaysville * Lightsville *

Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

* New Harrison * Otterbein * Painter Creek * Pikeville * Poplar Ridge * Rose Hill *

Savona Savona (; ) is a seaport and (municipality) in the west part of the northern Italian region of Liguria, and the capital of the Province of Savona. Facing the Ligurian Sea, Savona is the main center of the Riviera di Ponente (the western se ...

* Stelvideo *

Tampico Tampico is a city and port in the southeastern part of the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. It is located on the north bank of the Pánuco River, about inland from the Gulf of Mexico, and directly north of the state of Veracruz. Tampico is the fif ...

Weavers Weaver or Weavers may refer to: Activities * A person who engages in weaving fabric Animals * Various birds of the family Ploceidae * Crevice weaver spider family * Orb-weaver spider family * Weever (or weever-fish) Arts and entertainment ...

* Webster * Willowdell * Woodington * Yankeetown

Historic places

Darke County has 25 places listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

, including the Darke County Courthouse, Sheriff's House, and Jail, and the Versailles Town Hall and Wayne Township House. Darke County is home to the Eldora Speedway located near New Weston, which hosts many big events throughout the year.

Notable residents

* Joseph Lowery Johnson, U.S. ambassador to Liberia * Kathryn Magnolia Johnson, American political activist *

Matt Light Matthew Charles Light (born June 23, 1978) is an American former professional football player who spent his entire 11-year career as an offensive tackle for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He played college footb ...

, NFL football player * Lucullus Virgil McWhorter, farmer and frontiersman * Annie Oakley, famed 19th-century markswoman *

Lowell Thomas Lowell Jackson Thomas (April 6, 1892 – August 29, 1981) was an American writer, Television presenter, broadcaster, and documentary filmmaker. He authored more than fifty non-fiction books, mostly travel narratives and popular biographies of ex ...

, travel author and broadcaster

Footnotes

External links

Darke County Government's website
{{coord, 40.13, -84.62, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-OH_source:UScensus1990 1817 establishments in Ohio