Brownstown is a town within Brownstown Township and the

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 ...

Jackson County, Indiana Jackson County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2020, the population was 46,428. The county seat is Brownstown, Indiana, Brownstown. History Jackson County was formed in 1816. It was named after G ...

, United States. The population was 2,947 at the 2010 census. It was named for Jacob Brown, a general of the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

History

The town of Brownstown was

plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Survey System, Public Lands Surveys to ...

ted on April 8, 1816, notably prior to the statehood of Indiana itself. Brownstown became the county seat of Jackson County in November 1816, replacing

Fort Vallonia Vallonia is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Driftwood and Brownstown townships, Jackson County, Indiana, United States. It was an 18th-century French settlement and 19th-century American frontier fortification kn ...

, which had only been the county seat since June of that year. The land for the Jackson County Court House, which rests in the heart of Brownstown on the square, was donated by Col. John Ketcham (1782–1865) for this specific function. The Jackson County Courthouse was 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 ...

in 2011.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, Brownstown has a total area of , of which (or 99.38%) is land and (or 0.63%) is water. Brownstown lies on the East Fork of the White River, bordered by the Jackson-Washington State Forest and near the Hoosier National Forest.

Demographics

2010 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 2010, there were 2,947 people, 1,175 households, and 792 families living in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 1,282 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.3%

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 ...

, 0.1%

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 ...

, 0.3% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 0.1%

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, 0.3% from other races, and 0.8% from two or more races.

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 were 1.0% of the population. There were 1,175 households, of which 34.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.3% 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, 15.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 32.6% were non-families. 29.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.97. The median age in the town was 38.7 years. 25.7% of residents were under the age of 18; 8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.2% were from 25 to 44; 23.5% were from 45 to 64; and 18.6% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 48.2% male and 51.8% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 3,000 people, 1,168 households, and 805 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 1,242 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.76%

, 0.10%

, 0.24% Native American, 0.24% Asian, 0.10%

, 0.07% from other races, and 0.50% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.60% of the population. There were 1,168 households, out of which 34.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.7% were

living together, 16.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.0% were non-families. 28.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.96. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.8% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 17.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 85.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 76.7 males. The median income for a household in the town was $35,000, and the median income for a family was $39,044. Males had a median income of $27,984 versus $21,503 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 town was $15,525. About 8.9% of families and 11.7% 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 18.0% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The town has a lending library, the Brownstown Public Library, along with three main public schools: an elementary, middle, and high school. The town also has a private Lutheran elementary and middle school.

References

External links

Brownstown Chamber of Commerce

Official website
{{authority control Towns in Jackson County, Indiana Towns in Indiana County seats in Indiana Populated places established in 1816 1816 establishments in Indiana