kids encyclopedia robot

Spencer County, Indiana facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Quick facts for kids
Spencer County
U.S. county
Spencer County Courthouse in Rockport, Indiana
Spencer County Courthouse in Rockport, Indiana
Map of Indiana highlighting Spencer County
Location within the U.S. state of Indiana
Map of the United States highlighting Indiana
Indiana's location within the U.S.
Country  United States
State  Indiana
Founded January 10, 1818
Named for Spier Spencer
Seat Rockport
Largest town Santa Claus
Area
 • Total 401.43 sq mi (1,039.7 km2)
 • Land 396.74 sq mi (1,027.6 km2)
 • Water 4.68 sq mi (12.1 km2)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total 19,810 Decrease
 • Density 49.9/sq mi (19.3/km2)
Time zone UTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST) UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district 8th
Indiana county number 74

Spencer County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 19,810. The county seat is Rockport. Despite not being in the Owensboro Metropolitan Area, the entire riverfront of the city of Owensboro, Kentucky borders the southern tip of the county.

History

Spencer County was formed in 1818 from parts of Warrick County and Perry County. It was named for Captain Spier Spencer, killed at the Battle of Tippecanoe in 1811.

The Spencer County courthouse was built in 1921. It is the fifth courthouse to serve the county.

Abraham Lincoln lived in Spencer County from 1816 to 1830, between the ages seven and twenty-one. His family moved to Illinois in 1830. The Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial is located at the site of the Lincoln family farm.

Other attractions in the county include the town of Santa Claus and Holiday World & Splashin' Safari and also Santa's Candy Castle

Saint Meinrad Archabbey is located at the northeastern corner of Spencer County.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 401.43 square miles (1,039.7 km2), of which 396.74 square miles (1,027.6 km2) (or 98.83%) is land and 4.68 square miles (12.1 km2) (or 1.17%) is water.

Cities and towns

ZIP Codes are in parentheses.

Census-designated place

Other unincorporated places

Townships

  • Carter
  • Clay
  • Grass
  • Hammond
  • Harrison
  • Huff
  • Jackson
  • Luce
  • Ohio

Adjacent counties

Major highways

  • I-64.svg Interstate 64
  • US 231.svg U.S. Route 231
  • Indiana 62.svg Indiana State Road 62
  • Indiana 66.svg Indiana State Road 66
  • Indiana 68.svg Indiana State Road 68
  • Indiana 70.svg Indiana State Road 70
  • Indiana 161.svg Indiana State Road 161
  • Indiana 162.svg Indiana State Road 162
  • Indiana 245.svg Indiana State Road 245
  • Indiana 545.svg Indiana State Road 545

National protected area

Climate and weather

Weather chart for Rockport, Indiana
J F M A M J J A S O N D
 
 
3.5
 
43
24
 
 
3.9
 
49
29
 
 
4.3
 
59
37
 
 
4.7
 
70
45
 
 
4.8
 
79
55
 
 
3.6
 
87
64
 
 
3.8
 
91
68
 
 
3.5
 
90
65
 
 
3.5
 
83
58
 
 
3
 
73
46
 
 
4.1
 
59
37
 
 
3.9
 
47
29
temperatures in °F
precipitation totals in inches
source: The Weather Channel
Metric conversion
J F M A M J J A S O N D
 
 
88
 
6
-4
 
 
98
 
9
-2
 
 
108
 
15
3
 
 
118
 
21
7
 
 
121
 
26
13
 
 
92
 
31
18
 
 
97
 
33
20
 
 
90
 
32
18
 
 
89
 
28
14
 
 
76
 
23
8
 
 
104
 
15
3
 
 
99
 
8
-2
temperatures in °C • precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in Rockport have ranged from a low of 24 °F (−4 °C) in January to a high of 91 °F (33 °C) in July, although a record low of −23 °F (−31 °C) was recorded in January 1994 and a record high of 107 °F (42 °C) was recorded in June 1944. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 3.01 inches (76 mm) in October to 4.78 inches (121 mm) in May.

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop. %±
1820 1,882 —
1830 3,196 69.8%
1840 6,305 97.3%
1850 8,616 36.7%
1860 14,556 68.9%
1870 17,998 23.6%
1880 22,122 22.9%
1890 22,060 −0.3%
1900 22,407 1.6%
1910 20,676 −7.7%
1920 18,400 −11.0%
1930 16,713 −9.2%
1940 16,211 −3.0%
1950 16,174 −0.2%
1960 16,074 −0.6%
1970 17,134 6.6%
1980 19,361 13.0%
1990 19,490 0.7%
2000 20,391 4.6%
2010 20,952 2.8%
2020 19,810 −5.5%
2023 (est.) 19,910 −5.0%
U.S. Decennial Census
1790-1960 1900-1990
1990-2000 2010

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 20,952 people, 8,082 households, and 5,907 families residing in the county. The population density was 52.8 inhabitants per square mile (20.4/km2). There were 8,872 housing units at an average density of 22.4 per square mile (8.6/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 96.9% White, 0.5% Black or African American, 0.3% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 1.3% from other races, and 0.8% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.5% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 47.0% were German, 16.4% were Irish, 12.6% were English, and 11.1% were American.

Of the 8,082 households, 33.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.8% were married couples living together, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 26.9% were non-families, and 23.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.00. The median age was 41.9 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $47,697 and the median income for a family was $61,365. Males had a median income of $44,526 versus $30,466 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,609. About 6.8% of families and 12.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.0% of those under age 18 and 12.8% of those age 65 or over.

Education

It has two school districts, North Spencer County School Corporation and South Spencer County School Corporation.

Notable people

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Condado de Spencer (Indiana) para niños

kids search engine
All content from Kiddle encyclopedia articles (including the article images and facts) can be freely used under Attribution-ShareAlike license, unless stated otherwise. Cite this article:
Spencer County, Indiana Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.