Union 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

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 7,087. 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 ...

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 ...

. Since 2018, Union County has been included in the Cincinnati-Middletown, OH-KY-IN Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is located on the Indiana-Ohio border.

History

Prior to cession to the United States government, this area belonged to and was inhabited by peoples of the Chippewa,

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

, Eel River, Kaskaskia, Kickapoo,

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

, Piankishaw,

Potawatomi The Potawatomi (), also spelled Pottawatomi and Pottawatomie (among many variations), are a Native American tribe of the Great Plains, upper Mississippi River, and western Great Lakes region. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, ...

Shawnee The Shawnee ( ) are a Native American people of the Northeastern Woodlands. Their language, Shawnee, is an Algonquian language. Their precontact homeland was likely centered in southern Ohio. In the 17th century, they dispersed through Ohi ...

, Wea, and Wyandot tribes. The future state of Indiana was first regulated by passage of the

Northwest Ordinance The Northwest Ordinance (formally An Ordinance for the Government of the Territory of the United States, North-West of the River Ohio and also known as the Ordinance of 1787), enacted July 13, 1787, was an organic act of the Congress of the Co ...

in 1787. In 1790 the

Territory A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, belonging or connected to a particular country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually a geographic area which has not been granted the powers of self-government, ...

was divided into two counties, with Knox covering much of present-day Indiana. The area later known as Union County was included in lands ceded to the U.S. government in two treaties: in 1795 with the

Treaty of Greenville The Treaty of Greenville, also known to Americans as the Treaty with the Wyandots, etc., but formally titled ''A treaty of peace between the United States of America, and the tribes of Indians called the Wyandots, Delawares, Shawanees, Ottawas ...

and in 1809 with the Treaty of Fort Wayne. In 1810, a portion of Knox was partitioned to create Wayne County; in 1811 a portion further south was partitioned to create Franklin. The area between those two counties was partitioned in 1818 to create Fayette; by the 1820s the eastern part of Fayette County was sufficiently populated to warrant separate representation. Thus on January 5, 1821, the state legislature authorized the creation of Union County, with areas ceded from Wayne County, Fayette County and Franklin County. The organization of the new county's governing structure began on February 1, 1821. It was so named because it united parts of Fayette, Franklin and Wayne counties. The first non-native settlers were from Laurens District, South Carolina. John Templeton was the first settler to enter land at the Cincinnati land office in what would become Harmony Township, Union County, Indiana. The first county seat was Brownsville, a small community on the East Fork of the Whitewater River. The seat was moved in 1824 to

, a central location. The primary industry of Union County was and is farming.

Geography

Union County lies on the east side of Indiana; its east border abuts the 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 ...

. Its low rolling hills have now been cleared of timber, although drainage areas are still largely brush-filled. The area is devoted to agricultural or recreational uses.''Union County IN'' (Google Maps, accessed 8 August 2020)
/ref> The highest point on the terrain ( ASL) is a rise near the county's north border, ENE from Witts Station. Silver Creek flows southwestward through the northeastern part of the county, discharging into Whitewater Lake. The East Fork of Whitewater River flows southward through the upper western part of the county, discharging into Brookville Lake. The lower part of the county is drained by Dubois Creek, flowing westward into Brookville Lake. According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of , of which (or 97.60%) is land and (or 2.39%) is water.

Adjacent counties

* Wayne County – north * Preble County,

– east * Butler County,

– southeast * Franklin County – south * Fayette County – west

Major highways

* U.S. Route 27 * Indiana State Road 44 * Indiana State Road 101 * Indiana State Road 227

Lakes

* Brookville Lake (part) * Whitewater Lake

Protected areas

* Whitewater Memorial State Park Quakertown State Recreation Area

Incorporated towns

(county seat) * West College Corner

Unincorporated communities

* Billingsville * Brownsville * Clifton * Cottage Grove * Dunlapsville * Goodwins Corner * Kitchel * Lotus *

Philomath A philomath () is a lover of learning and studying. The term is from Greek (; "beloved", "loving", as in philosophy or philanthropy) and , (, ; "to learn", as in polymath). Philomathy is similar to, but distinguished from, philosophy in that ...

* Quakertown * Roseburg * Salem

Townships

* Brownsville * Center *

Harmony In music, harmony is the concept of combining different sounds in order to create new, distinct musical ideas. Theories of harmony seek to describe or explain the effects created by distinct pitches or tones coinciding with one another; harm ...

* Harrison *

* Union

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in Liberty have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1994 and a record high of was recorded in September 1951. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in September to in May.

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 legislative branch of the county government; controls spending and revenue collection in the county. Representatives are elected to four-year terms from county districts. They set salaries, the annual budget, and special spending. The council 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. Commissioners are elected county-wide to staggered four-year terms. One commissioner serves as president. The commissioners execute acts legislated by the council, collect revenue, and manage county government. Court: The county maintains a circuit court that can handle all case types. The judge of the court is elected to a term of six years and must be a member of the Indiana Bar Association. In some cases, court decisions can be appealed to the state level appeals court. County Officials: The county has 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, the , which is common ...

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

auditor An auditor is a person or a firm appointed by a company to execute an audit.Practical Auditing, Kul Narsingh Shrestha, 2012, Nabin Prakashan, Nepal To act as an auditor, a person should be certified by the regulatory authority of accounting an ...

treasurer A treasurer is a person responsible for the financial operations of a government, business, or other organization. Government The treasury of a country is the department responsible for the country's economy, finance and revenue. The treasure ...

, recorder, surveyor, 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 and administering oaths ...

. These officers are elected to four-year terms. People elected to county government positions are required to be residents of the county.

Demographics

2010 Census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 7,516 people, 2,938 households, and 2,117 families in the county. The population density was . There were 3,239 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.5% white, 0.4% black or African American, 0.3% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 0.3% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.1% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 26.2% were German, 16.0% were Irish, 11.9% were English, and 11.6% were American. Of the 2,938 households, 34.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.0% were married couples living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 27.9% were non-families, and 23.9% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 2.99. The median age was 40.3 years. The median income for a household in the county was $47,697 and the median income for a family was $49,815. Males had a median income of $39,603 versus $27,394 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,243. About 8.2% of families and 11.9% 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 21.2% of those under age 18 and 10.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education

All of Union County is served by the Union County–College Corner Joint School District, the only joint state school district in the state.
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Notable people

* Ambrose Everett Burnside (1824–1881), soldier, railroad executive, inventor, industrialist, politician * Thomas W. Bennett (territorial governor) (1831–1893), governor of Idaho Territory 1871–1875; born in Union County * Hiram Rhodes Revels (1827–1901), first African-American member of the US Senate, representing Mississippi 1870–1871; attended the Union County Quaker Seminary. * Bill Bartlett (fl. 1970s-2010s), musician, guitarist for Ram Jam * Jay Hall Connaway (1893–1970), Realist painter * Mary Alice Smith (1850-_), aka

Little Orphant Annie "Little Orphant Annie" is an 1885 poem written by James Whitcomb Riley and published by the Bobbs-Merrill Company. First titled "The Elf Child", the name was changed by Riley to "Little Orphant Allie" at its third printing; however, a typesetting ...

* Bob Jenkins (1947–2021), television and radio sports announcer for ESPN/ABC Sports * Edward E. Moore (1866–1940), Indiana state senator and Los Angeles City Council member *

Joaquin Miller Cincinnatus Heine Miller ( ; September 8, 1837 – February 17, 1913), better known by his pen name Joaquin Miller ( ), was an American poet, author, and frontiersman. He became known as the "Poet of the Sierras" after the Sierra Nevada, about wh ...

American poet, author, and frontiersman James R. Williams Former Judge of Union County, Partner at DeFur Voran LLP and President of the Muncie Community Schools Board of Directors. Presented Sagamore of the Wabash on Nov. 15th 2022 by Ball State University President Geoffrey Mearns and Muncie Community Schools CEO Lee Ann Kwiatkowski, signed by Governor Eric Holcomb

References

{{Authority control Indiana counties 1821 establishments in Indiana Populated places established in 1821