Fulton County, Indiana facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Fulton County
U.S. county
Fulton County courthouse in Rochester
Location within the U.S. state of Indiana
Indiana's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Indiana
Founded	1836
Named for	Robert Fulton
Seat	Rochester
Largest city	Rochester
Area
• Total	371.26 sq mi (961.6 km2)
• Land	368.39 sq mi (954.1 km2)
• Water	2.88 sq mi (7.5 km2)  0.78%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	20,480
• Estimate  (2023)	20,358
• Density	55.163/sq mi (21.299/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	2nd
Indiana county number 25

Fulton County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2020^[update], the population was 20,480. The county seat is Rochester.

History

The first non-Native Americans to ever set foot in what is now Fulton County, Indiana, were French traders. Few of them remained permanently as year-round residents of the area and by the 1830s there was no French population in what is now Fulton County.

In the 1820s and 1830s, migrants from New England began moving to what is now Indiana in large numbers (though there was a trickle of New England settlers who arrived before this date). These were “Yankee” settlers, that is to say they were descended from the English Puritans who settled New England during the colonial era. While most of them came to Indiana directly from New England, there were many who came from upstate New York. These were people whose parents had moved from New England to upstate New York in the immediate aftermath of the American Revolution. Due to the prevalence of New Englanders and New England transplants from upstate New York, the northern third of Indiana was very culturally contiguous with early New England culture for much of its early history.

The Yankee migration to Indiana was a result of several factors, one of the overpopulation of New England. The old stock Yankee population had large families, often bearing up to ten children in one household. Most people were expected to have their own piece of land to farm, and due to the massive and nonstop population boom, land in New England became scarce as every son claimed his own farmstead. As a result, there was not enough land for every family to have a self-sustaining farm, and Yankee settlers began leaving New England for the Midwestern United States.

They were aided in this effort by the construction and completion of the Erie Canal which made traveling to the region much easier, causing an additional surge in migrants coming from New England. Added to this was the end of the Black Hawk War, which made the region much safer to travel through and settle in for White settlers.

In the case of Fulton County, there were no attempts by United States settlers to permanently settle the area until the conclusion of the Blackhawk War. Fulton County's first permanent non-Native American settlers arrived in September and October 1832, most of whom came from New England though some of whom were New England transplants from upstate New York. Most of Fulton County's New England settlers came from Franklin County, Massachusetts, Grafton County, New Hampshire and Orange County, Vermont, as well as several farming families from Maine and the rural northern region of Connecticut. At first, virtually all of these settlers were farmers.

These settlers were primarily members of the Congregational Church, though due to the Second Great Awakening, many of them had converted to Methodism, and some had become Baptists before coming to what is now Cook County. The Congregational Church has subsequently gone through many divisions, and some factions, including those in Cook County, are now known as the Church of Christ and the United Church of Christ.

When the New Englanders arrived, there was nothing but dense virgin forest and wild prairie. They laid out farms, constructed roads, erected government buildings and established post routes. By the spring of 1833 the settlement was a successful and thriving farming community. Rochester was laid out in 1835. The founder Alexander Chamberlain named it for his former hometown of Rochester, New York. The Rochester post office was established in 1836.

Fulton County was formed in 1836. It was named for Robert Fulton, inventor of the steamboat. Native Americans in the county believed that a terrible monster lived in Lake Manitou and for that reason they never lived around the lake. Early settlers called it the Devil's Lake and there were many reported sightings of a monster.

The Potawatomi Trail of Death came through the town in 1838.

The 178-acre Moore Farm, then located two miles south of Rochester, was purchased in 1871 for use as the Fulton County Poor Farm. The County Home was closed on December 31, 1965, and the entire property was sold on December 17, 1966, by the county commissioners to State Senator Robert E. Peterson of Rochester.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 371.26 square miles (961.6 km²), of which 368.39 square miles (954.1 km²) (or 99.23%) is land and 2.88 square miles (7.5 km²) (or 0.78%) is water.

Cities and towns

• Akron
• Athens (unincorporated)
• Delong (unincorporated)
• Fulton
• Grass Creek (unincorporated)
• Kewanna
• Leiters Ford (unincorporated)
• Rochester
• Tiosa (unincorporated)

Townships

• Aubbeenaubbee
• Henry
• Liberty
• Newcastle
• Richland
• Rochester
• Union
• Wayne

Major highways

• U.S. Route 31
• State Road 14
• State Road 17
• State Road 19
• State Road 25
• State Road 114

Railroads

• Fulton County Railroad

Adjacent counties

• Marshall County (north)
• Kosciusko County (northeast)
• Wabash County (east)
• Miami County (southeast)
• Cass County (south)
• Pulaski County (west)
• Starke County (northwest)

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in Rochester have ranged from a low of 15 °F (−9 °C) in January to a high of 84 °F (29 °C) in July, although a record low of −25 °F (−32 °C) was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of 103 °F (39 °C) was recorded in July 1980. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.74 inches (44 mm) in February to 4.16 inches (106 mm) in May.

Demographics

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 20,836 people, 8,237 households, and 5,736 families residing in the county. The population density was 56.6 inhabitants per square mile (21.9/km²). There were 9,708 housing units at an average density of 26.4 per square mile (10.2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 95.0% white, 0.7% black or African American, 0.5% Asian, 0.5% American Indian, 2.2% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 4.2% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 28.7% were German, 19.0% were American, 10.9% were Irish, and 10.0% were English. Those citing "American" ancestry in Fulton County are of overwhelmingly English extraction, however most English Americans identify simply as having American ancestry because their roots have been in North America for so long, in some cases since the 1600s.

Of the 8,237 households, 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.2% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 30.4% were non-families, and 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 2.97. 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 $47,972. Males had a median income of $40,110 versus $28,417 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,119. About 8.5% of families and 11.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.1% of those under age 18 and 6.9% of those age 65 or over.

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States Census the population of Fulton County was 20,480.

Education

Public schools in Fulton County are administered by the Caston School Corporation, the Rochester Community School Corporation, Culver Community School Corporation, and the Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation.

High Schools and Middle Schools

• Caston Junior-Senior High School
• Rochester Community High School
• Rochester Middle School
• Tippecanoe Valley High School
• Tippecanoe Valley Middle School

Elementary Schools

• Akron Elementary
• Caston Elementary School
• Columbia Elementary School
• Riddle Elementary School

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Fulton (Indiana) para niños