Tippecanoe County is located in the west-central portion of the U.S. state of

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

about 22 miles east of the Illinois state line and less than 50 miles from the Chicago and the Indianapolis metro areas. As of the 2010 census, the population was 172,780. The

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

and largest city is Lafayette. It was created in 1826 from Wabash County portion of New Purchase and unorganized territory. Tippecanoe County was formed March 1, 1826, and named for the

anglicization Anglicisation is the process by which a place or person becomes influenced by Culture of England, English culture or Culture of the United Kingdom, British culture, or a process of cultural and/or linguistic change in which something non-English ...

of "Kiteepihkwana", a Miami people term meaning "place of the buffalo fish people." The county is best known for

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

, the 1811 Battle of Tippecanoe, and the Tippecanoe County Courthouse, a structure built in 1881 and included in the National Register of Historic Places. Tippecanoe County is part of the Lafayette, Indiana,

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally Incorporated town, incorporate ...

History

The history of Tippecanoe County spans six distinct political and cultural periods: Native American lands from at least 8000BC, including the

Mississippian culture The Mississippian culture was a Native Americans in the United States, Native American civilization that flourished in what is now the Midwestern United States, Midwestern, Eastern United States, Eastern, and Southeastern United States from appr ...

, French occupation (part of

New France New France (french: Nouvelle-France) was the area colonized by France in North America, beginning with the exploration of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Great Britain and Spai ...

beginning in the 1670s), British occupation starting in 1763, part of the United States

Northwest Territory The Northwest Territory, also known as the Old Northwest and formally known as the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, was formed from unorganized western territory of the United States after the American Revolutionary War. Established in 1 ...

in 1787, part of Indiana Territory in 1800, and finally part of the State of

in 1816. The political organization of the county began in 1826 by the act of the Indiana Legislature. The first European explorers arrived in the 1670s and the first permanent settlement was Fort Ouiatenon by the French established in 1717. Lafayette was platted in 1825 and Purdue University founded in 1869.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of , of which (or 99.32%) is land and (or 0.68%) is water. The county's highest point is in the Lauramie Township.

Adjacent counties

* White County (north) * Carroll County (northeast) *

Clinton County Clinton County may refer to: *Counties named for George Clinton, first and third Governor of New York, and later the fourth Vice President of the United States: **Clinton County, New York **Clinton County, Ohio *Counties named for DeWitt Clinton, s ...

(east) * Montgomery County (south) * Fountain County (southwest) * Warren County (west) * Benton County (northwest)

Communities

Cities

* Lafayette *

West Lafayette West Lafayette () is a city in Wabash Township, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, about northwest of the state capital of Indianapolis and southeast of Chicago. West Lafayette is directly across the Wabash River from its sister c ...

(home of Purdue University)

Towns

Battle Ground A battlefield, battleground, or field of battle is the location of a present or historic battle involving ground warfare. It is commonly understood to be limited to the point of contact between opposing forces, though battles may involve troops ...

* Clarks Hill *

Dayton Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Da ...

* Otterbein (east half) * Shadeland * Romney

Census-designated places

* Americus * Buck Creek (formerly Transitville) * Colburn (formerly Chapmanville) * Montmorenci (formerly Bringham's Grove) *

Stockwell Stockwell is a district in south west London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. It is situated south of Charing Cross. Battersea, Brixton, Clapham, South Lambeth, Oval and Kennington all border Stockwell. History The na ...

(formerly Lauramie) * West Point (formerly Middleton)

Other unincorporated places

* Ash Grove *

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

Concord Concord may refer to: Meaning "agreement" * Pact or treaty, frequently between nations (indicating a condition of harmony) * Harmony, in music * Agreement (linguistics), a change in the form of a word depending on grammatical features of other ...

* Delp *

Eastwich Lafayette ( , ) is a city in and the county seat of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, located northwest of Indianapolis and southeast of Chicago. West Lafayette, Indiana, West Lafayette, on the other side of the Wabash River, is home t ...

* Glen Hall * Monroe (formerly Huntersville) *

Octagon In geometry, an octagon (from the Greek ὀκτάγωνον ''oktágōnon'', "eight angles") is an eight-sided polygon or 8-gon. A '' regular octagon'' has Schläfli symbol and can also be constructed as a quasiregular truncated square, t, whi ...

* Odell * Old Halfway * Pettit * Romney (formerly Columbia) *

Taylor Taylor, Taylors or Taylor's may refer to: People * Taylor (surname) **List of people with surname Taylor * Taylor (given name), including Tayla and Taylah * Taylor sept, a branch of Scottish clan Cameron * Justice Taylor (disambiguation) Plac ...

Extinct

* Archerville *

Beeville Beeville is a city in Bee County, Texas, United States, with a population of 12,863 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Bee County and home to the main campus of Coastal Bend College. The area around the city contains three prisons oper ...

* Chauncey (consolidated into West Lafayette) * Corwin * Columbus * Cincinnatus * Clarksburg * Cleveland * Conroe * Erie * Florentine * Fulton (absorbed by Lafayette) * Gerard * Granville (aka Weaton) * Heath *

Harrisonville Harrisonville is a town in Cass County, Missouri, United States. The population was 10,121 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Cass County. It is part of the Kansas City metropolitan area. History Harrisonville was founded in 1837 up ...

(consolidated into Battle Ground) *

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the five most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

(consolidated into West Lafayette) *

LaGrange Joseph-Louis Lagrange (born Giuseppe Luigi LagrangiaMonitor Monitor or monitor may refer to: Places * Monitor, Alberta * Monitor, Indiana, town in the United States * Monitor, Kentucky * Monitor, Oregon, unincorporated community in the United States * Monitor, Washington * Monitor, Logan County, West Vir ...

(formerly Cynthyana) * New Market * North Crane * Oakland (absorbed by Lafayette) * Ouiatenon * Polk-White Corners * Prairieville * Sidney * South Raub * Sugar Grove * Sunberry * Texas * Wheeler's Grove *

Wyandot Wyandot may refer to: Native American ethnography * Wyandot people, also known as the Huron * Wyandot language * Wyandot religion Places * Wyandot, Ohio, an unincorporated community * Wyandot County, Ohio * Camp Wyandot, a Camp Fire Boys and ...

* Yorktown

Townships

* Fairfield * Jackson * Lauramie * Perry *

Randolph Randolph may refer to: Places In the United States * Randolph, Alabama, an unincorporated community * Randolph, Arizona, a populated place * Randolph, California, a village merged into the city of Brea * Randolph, Illinois, an unincorporated commun ...

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

* Shelby * Tippecanoe *

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

* Wabash *

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

* Wayne *

Wea The Wea were a Miami-Illinois-speaking Native American tribe originally located in western Indiana. Historically, they were described as either being closely related to the Miami Tribe or a sub-tribe of Miami. Today, the descendants of the ...

Climate and weather

In recent years, temperatures in Lafayette have ranged from an average low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of was recorded in June 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from inches in February to inches in June.

Transportation

Highways

Interstate 65 Interstate 65 (I-65) is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates ending in 5, it is a major crosscountry, north–south route, connecting between the Great Lakes and the Gulf ...

U.S. Route 52 U.S. Route 52 (US 52) is a major United States highway in the central United States that extends from the northern to southeastern region of the United States. Contrary to most other even-numbered U.S. Highways, US 52 primarily follows ...

U.S. Route 231 U.S. Route 231 (US 231) is a north-south United States Numbered Highway System, U.S highway that is a parallel route of U.S. Route 31, US 31. It runs for from St. John, Indiana, St. John, Indiana, at U.S. Route 41 in Indiana, US 41 ...

* Indiana State Road 25 * Indiana State Road 26 * Indiana State Road 28 * Indiana State Road 38 *

Indiana State Road 43 State Road 43 in the U.S. State of Indiana is split into two segments. Route description Southern section This winding, two-lane section of State Road 43 connects Indiana State Road 46 in Owen County near McCormick's Creek State Park with Indian ...

* Indiana State Road 225

Railroads

Three different railroad lines intersect in Tippecanoe County, all running through the Lafayette area.

CSX Transportation CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The railroad operates approximately 21,000 route miles () of track. ...

operates a north–south line;

Norfolk Southern Railway The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31 ...

operates a southwest-to-northeast line, and the

Kankakee, Beaverville and Southern Railroad The Kankakee, Beaverville and Southern Railroad Company is a Class III railroad serving agricultural communities in east-central Illinois and west-central Indiana. History In December 1977, Conrail was set to abandon of their ex-New York Cent ...

operates a daily-service line running from the northwest to the southeast. The

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

stops at the Lafayette Station 3 times a week, and is the only provider of passenger rail service to Greater Lafayette.

Airport

The county contains one public-use airport: Purdue University Airport (LAF) in

West Lafayette, Indiana West Lafayette () is a city in Wabash Township, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, about northwest of the state capital of Indianapolis and southeast of Chicago. West Lafayette is directly across the Wabash River from its sister city, ...

Government

The county government is a constitutional body, and is granted specific powers by the

Constitution of Indiana The Constitution of Indiana is the highest body of state law in the U.S. state of Indiana. It establishes the structure and function of the state and is based on the principles of federalism and Jacksonian democracy. Indiana's constitution is su ...

, and by the Indiana Code. County Council: The county council is the fiscal branch of the county government and controls all the spending and revenue collection in the county. The county council and the board of commissioners share legislative authority. 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. 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, collecting 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 a four-year term. 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 A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

coroner A coroner is a government or judicial official who is empowered to conduct or order an inquest into Manner of death, the manner or cause of death, and to investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within th ...

, auditor,

treasurer A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The significant core functions of a corporate treasurer include cash and liquidity management, risk management, and corporate finance. Government The treasury o ...

recorder Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a news ...

surveyor Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. A land surveying professional is ca ...

, and circuit

court clerk A court clerk (British English: clerk to the court or clerk of the court ; American English: clerk of the court or clerk of court ) is an officer of the court whose responsibilities include maintaining records of a court, administer oaths to witn ...

. 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 declare

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature f ...

affiliations and to be residents of the county.

Politics

In the 2008 Democratic primary, Tippecanoe County was one of 10 (out of 92) Indiana counties to give the majority of its votes to Barack Obama. In the 2008 Presidential election, Tippecanoe County was one of 15 Indiana counties to give the majority of its votes to Obama/Biden. Thanks to the sizable support of Purdue University students, Tippecanoe County played a pivotal role in Barack Obama's upset win in Indiana (49.9%-49.0%; 1,367,264 votes to 1,341,101 votes) by supporting the Democratic ticket of Barack Obama/Joe Biden 55.1%-43.5% over the Republican ticket of John McCain/Sarah Palin. However, in the

2020 Presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2020 lists the national/federal elections held in 2020 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *5 January: **C ...

, Tippecanoe County also voted for Democrat Joe Biden by a margin of 436 votes, the first time since 2008 the county went for the Democrats. Historically, Tippecanoe has been somewhat conservative for a county dominated by a college town. While most such counties swung hard to the Democrats in the 1990s Obama's win in 2008 was only the fourth time it went Democratic in a presidential election since 1888. Tippecanoe County is one of only thirteen counties to have voted for Obama in 2008, Romney in 2012, Trump in 2016, and Biden in 2020.

Demographics

As of the

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...

, there were 172,780 people, 65,532 households, and 37,003 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 71,096 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 84.0% white, 6.2% Asian, 4.0% black or African American, 0.3% American Indian, 3.3% from other races, and 2.2% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 7.5% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 27.5% were

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

, 13.9% were Irish, 10.8% were

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

, and 6.1% were

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

. Of the 65,532 households, 28.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.4% were married couples living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 43.5% were non-families, and 29.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 3.02. The median age was 27.7 years. The median income for a household in the county was $47,697 and the median income for a family was $60,367. Males had a median income of $45,018 versus $31,995 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,203. About 10.3% of families and 20.0% 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 t ...

, including 18.2% of those under age 18 and 5.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Public schools in rural/suburban Tippecanoe County are administered by the

Tippecanoe School Corporation The Tippecanoe School Corporation administers 18 high schools, middle schools and elementary schools in Tippecanoe County, Indiana Tippecanoe County is located in the west-central portion of the U.S. state of Indiana about 22 miles east of the ...

, while those in the cities are under either the Lafayette School Corporation or West Lafayette Community School Corporation. Purdue and Ivy Tech each have campuses at other sites in Indiana. Libraries * Tippecanoe County Public Library * West Lafayette Public Library Universities and colleges *

br>
* Ivy Tech Community College of Indianabr>
High Schools * TSC - Elston Alternative Education Cente

* LCSS - Lafayette Central Catholic Jr/Sr High School * LSC - Lafayette (city)

Jefferson High School This is a list of memorials to Thomas Jefferson, the 3rd president of the United States and the author of the United States Declaration of Independence. Buildings Elementary schools *Jefferson Elementary School, in Cammack Village, Arkansas *Thoma ...

br>
* LSC - Lafayette (city) Oakland High School (Indiana), Oakland High Schoolbr>
* TSC - Lafayette (suburban—south)

McCutcheon High School McCutcheon High School is located in Lafayette, Indiana, located on Old 231 South. The school was established in 1975 with the merger of Wainwright and Southwestern high schools and is named after John T. McCutcheon, who was a political cartoonis ...

br>
* WLCSC - West Lafayette (city) West Lafayette Junior-Senior High Schoolbr>
* TSC - West Lafayette/Lafayette (suburban—north) William Henry Harrison High School (West Lafayette, Indiana), Harrison High Schoolbr>
Middle Schools/Junior High Schools * Lafayette Sunnyside Middle Schoo

* Lafayette Tecumseh Junior High Schoo

* TSC (Harrison) Battle Ground Middle Schoo

* TSC (Harrison) East Tipp Middle Schoo

* TSC (Harrison) Klondike Middle Schoo

* TSC (McCutcheon) Southwestern Middle Schoo

* TSC (McCutcheon) Wainwright Middle Schoo

* TSC (McCutcheon) Wea Ridge Middle Schoo

* West Lafayette Junior-Senior High Schoolbr>
Elementary Schools * Lafayette Edgelea Elementary Schoo

* Lafayette Glen Acres Elementary Schoo

* Lafayette Miami Elementary Schoo

* Lafayette Miller Elementary Schoo

* Lafayette Murdock Elementary Schoo

* Lafayette (charter) New Community Schoo

* Lafayette Vinton Elementary Schoo

* TSC (Harrison) Battle Ground Elementary Schoo

* TSC (Harrison) Burnett Creek Elementary Schoo

* TSC (Harrison) Hershey Elementary Schoo

* TSC (Harrison) Klondike Elementary Schoo

* TSC (McCutcheon) Dayton Elementary Schoo

* TSC (McCutcheon) James Cole Elementary Schoo

* TSC (McCutcheon) Mayflower Mill Elementary Schoo

* TSC (McCutcheon) Mintonye Elementary Schoo

* TSC (McCutcheon) Wea Ridge Elementary Schoo

* TSC (McCutcheon) Woodland Elementary Schoo

* TSC (Harrison/McCutcheon) Wyandotte Elementary Schoo

* West Lafayette Cumberland Elementary Schoo

Private Schools * Apostolic Christian Academy * Concord School * Faith Christian School * First Assembly Christian Academy * Highland Christian School k-8 * Lafayette Catholic School

k-12 * Lafayette Christian Schoo

k-8 * Lafayette Faith Baptis

* Lighthouse Baptist Christian Academy * Pleasantview Christian School * St Boniface 4-6 * St James Lutheran k-8 * St Mary Cathedral Elementary K-3

Economy

Much of the economy of Tippecanoe County is centered in its two largest communities: Lafayette and

. Purdue University is by far the largest employer in the county, but private industry and commerce independent of the university also employ many others. Major employers include Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc., Subaru-Indiana Automotive,

Wabash National Wabash National is an American diversified industrial manufacturing company and North America's largest producer of semi trailers and liquid transportation systems. The company specializes in the design and production of dry freight vans, Refriger ...

Caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...

, Fairfield Manufacturing,

Franciscan Health Lafayette Franciscan Health Lafayette, formerly Franciscan St. Elizabeth Health, is a member of the Franciscan Health hospital system. Formed in 1998, the organization owns and operates Franciscan Health Lafayette Central and Franciscan Health Lafayette East ...

Alcoa Alcoa Corporation (an acronym for Aluminum Company of America) is a Pittsburgh-based industrial corporation. It is the world's eighth-largest producer of aluminum. Alcoa conducts operations in 10 countries. Alcoa is a major producer of primary ...

State Farm State Farm Insurance is a large group of mutual insurance companies throughout the United States with corporate headquarters in Bloomington, Illinois. Overview State Farm is the largest property and casualty insurance provider, and the la ...

, and IUHealth Arnett.

Notable people

Jesse Lloyd Jesse Lloyd (11 January 1786 – 27 September 1838) was the founder of Lloydtown, Ontario and a leader in the Upper Canada Rebellion of 1837. Born in Springfield Township, Pennsylvania, he was the third son of Quakers William Lloyd and Susa ...

Notes

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

Tippecanoe County official website

Tippecanoe County Public Library

Tippecanoe County Historical Association

Lafayette Online

Lafayette - West Lafayette Convention and Visitors Bureau

GIS (Geographic Information System) for Tippecanoe County

Lafayette Ski Club
{{Authority control Indiana counties Indiana placenames of Native American origin 1826 establishments in Indiana Populated places established in 1826 Lafayette metropolitan area, Indiana