Jennings County, Indiana facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jennings County
U.S. county
Jennings County courthouse in Vernon, Indiana
Location within the U.S. state of Indiana
Indiana's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Indiana
Founded	1817
Named for	Jonathan Jennings
Seat	Vernon
Largest city	North Vernon
Area
• Total	378.34 sq mi (979.9 km2)
• Land	376.58 sq mi (975.3 km2)
• Water	1.76 sq mi (4.6 km2)  0.47%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	27,613
• Density	72.9846/sq mi (28.1795/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	6th
Indiana county number 40

Jennings County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2020, the population was 27,613. The county seat is Vernon.

History

Jennings County was formed in 1817. It was named for the first Governor of Indiana and a nine-term congressman, Jonathan Jennings. Jennings was governor when the county was organized.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 378.34 square miles (979.9 km²), of which 376.58 square miles (975.3 km²) (or 99.53%) is land and 1.76 square miles (4.6 km²) (or 0.47%) is water. It is a rural county, with majority of the county consisting of personal farms and woodlands. There are only two incorporated towns in this county, Vernon, the county seat, and North Vernon. Both are quite small and underdeveloped by urban standards. The county is located in the center of an imaginary triangle consisting of Indianapolis, IN, Cincinnati, OH, and Louisville, KY and requires only 1¹⁄₄ hour drive time to any of these urban centers.

It is also home to the Muscatatuck Urban Training Center, located just outside North Vernon, at which various training exercises and scenarios are conducted for homeland security and other similar purposes.

City

• North Vernon

Town

• Vernon

Census-designated places

• Butlerville
• Country Squire Lakes
• Hayden
• Scipio

Other unincorporated places

Townships

Adjacent counties

• Decatur County (north)
• Ripley County (east)
• Jefferson County (southeast)
• Scott County (south)
• Jackson County (west)
• Bartholomew County (northwest)

Major highways

Sources: National Atlas, U.S. Census Bureau

• U.S. Route 50
• State Road 3
• State Road 7
• State Road 250

Parks and protected areas

• Big Oaks National Wildlife Refuge (part)
• Muscatatuck National Wildlife Refuge (part)
• Muscatatuck County Park
• Selmier State Forest

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in Vernon have ranged from a low of 22 °F (−6 °C) in January to a high of 86 °F (30 °C) in July, although a record low of −24 °F (−31 °C) was recorded in January 1977 and a record high of 105 °F (41 °C) was recorded in July 1954. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 2.71 inches (69 mm) in February to 4.72 inches (120 mm) in May.

Demographics

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 28,525 people, 10,680 households, and 7,733 families residing in the county. The population density was 75.7 inhabitants per square mile (29.2/km²). There were 12,069 housing units at an average density of 32.0 per square mile (12.4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 96.8% white, 0.8% black or African American, 0.2% Asian, 0.1% American Indian, 1.0% from other races, and 1.2% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 26.2% were German, 16.3% were Irish, 14.7% were American, and 7.2% were English.

Of the 10,680 households, 36.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.7% were married couples living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 27.6% were non-families, and 22.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.06. The median age was 38.4 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $47,697 and the median income for a family was $48,470. Males had a median income of $38,506 versus $27,633 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,636. About 8.9% of families and 12.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.1% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Jennings County residents may obtain a library card from the Jennings County Public Library in North Vernon.

In popular culture

Jennings County is the setting of the novel The Friendly Persuasion, later adapted into the Oscar-nominated film Friendly Persuasion in 1956. Although initially planned to be filmed on location, it was finally filmed in California.

Notable residents

• Sarah T. Bolton, poet
• Ovid Butler, founder of Butler University
• Royce Campbell, jazz guitarist
• Cliff Daringer, Federal League baseball player
• Rolla Daringer, Major League Baseball player
• Lincoln Dixon, U.S. Representative from Indiana, 1905–1919
• Scott Earl, Major League Baseball player
• Robert Sanford Foster, Civil War General
• John "Spider" Miller, 2015 & 2017 Walker Cup team captain
• Jethro New, frontiersmen, Continental Army officer
• Jeptha D. New, U.S. Representative from Indiana, 1875–1877, 1879–1881
• John C. New, Treasurer of the United States, 1875-1876
• Horatio C. Newcomb, Mayor of Indianapolis, 1849-1851
• Hannah Milhous Nixon, mother of President Richard Nixon
• Pat O'Connor, polesitter for the 1957 Indianapolis 500 and member of the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame
• Mike Simon, Major League Baseball player
• Jessamyn West, author
• Edgar Whitcomb, 43rd Governor of Indiana
• Albert Edward Wiggam, psychologist, lecturer, and author

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Jennings para niños