Floyd County, Indiana

Infobox U.S. County
county = Floyd County
state = Indiana


founded year = 1819
founded date =
seat wl = New Albany
largest city wl = New Albany
area_total_sq_mi = 148
area_total_km2 = 384
area_land_sq_mi = 148
area_land_km2 = 383
area_water_sq_mi = 1
area_water_km2 = 0
area percentage = 0.21%
census yr = 2000
pop = 70823
density_sq_mi = 478
density_km2 = 185
time zone = Eastern
UTC offset = -5
DST offset = -4
footnotes =
web = www.floydcounty.in.gov
named for = Brigadier General John Floyd.

Floyd County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2000, the population was 70,823. The county seat is New AlbanyGR|6. Floyd County is the county with the second smallest land area in the entire state. It was formed in the year 1819 from neighboring counties Clark County, Indiana, and Harrison County, Indiana.

History

Floyd County, originally the Shawnee Indians hunting ground, was conquered for the United States by George Rogers Clark during the American Revolutionary War from the British."The Encyclopedia of Louisville" By John E. Kleber (University Press of Kentucky 2000) pages 300-302 ISBN 0813121000 ] For his services he was awarded with large tracts of land in Indiana including almost all of present day Floyd County. After the war Clark sold off parcels of land to settlers who quickly began entering the region as soon as peace returned.

In 1818 New Albany was a large enough city to become a county seat and form a new county, local leaders sent Nathaniel Scribner and John K. Graham were sent to then capitol Corydon, Indiana to petition the Indiana General Assembly. Floyd County was approved on January 2, 1819 by the General Assembly and formally became Floyd County on February 1, 1819. [http://www.countyhistory.com/floyd/start.html Floyd County History] ] There are two possibilities to the origin of the name of Floyd County. According to the Indiana State Library the county was named for John Floyd, who was a leading Jefferson County, Kentucky pioneer and uncle of Davis Floyd. [ [http://www.in.gov/history/5197.htm Indiana Historical Bureau - Origin of Indiana County Names] ] John died in 1783 when his group was attacked by Indians near present day Bullitt County, Kentucky. It is debated by some that the county was named for Davis who was convicted of aiding Aaron Burr in the treason of 1809. Davis was a local politician of the area, the county's first circuit court judge.

In 1814 New Albany was platted and was established as the county seat on March 4, 1819 where it has since remained. There was an attempt in 1823 to move the county seat but the motion failed. Floyd County would have the largest city in the state for much of the early 19th century, eventually being overtaken by Indianapolis during the Civil War. [Findling, John ed. "A History of New Albany, Indiana". (Indiana University Southeast, 2003). 53. ]

Between 1800 and 1860 Floyd County experienced a huge boom in population doubling many times over. A survey in the 1850s found that over half of Indiana's population that made more than $100,000 dollars (USD) a year lived in Floyd County, establishing it as having the richest population in the state. [Miller, Harold. Industrial Development of New Albany, Indiana. "Economic Geography" (Jan., 1938). 48. ]

The Duncan Tunnel, the longest in Indiana, was built in Floyd County in 1881 between New Albany and Edwardsville. The railroad was unable to find a suitable route over the Floyds Knobs so they decided to tunnel through them. [ [http://www.pbase.com/kd4jsl/image/93496896 Photo] ] The project was originally began by the Air Line but was completed by Southern Railway. It took five years to bore at a cost of $1 million dollars (USD). [ [http://www.sunnysideoflouisville.org/history/history.htm Sunny Side of Louisville - Area History] ] The Tunnel is convert|4311|ft|m long. [ [http://books.google.com/books?id=G8sddkoqS-gC&pg=PA90&lpg=PA90&dq=duncan+tunnel+indiana&source=web&ots=XpA5wcCtBN&sig=qbXllQKUHNEiYFq1SiXBEWsjAlE&hl=en#PPA89,M1 Railroad Depots of Southern Indiana, By David E. Longest.] Pg 89. ISBN 0738539589]

Floyd County during the 19th century attracted immigrants of Irish, German, French and African American origins."The Encyclopedia of Louisville" By John E. Kleber (University Press of Kentucky 2000) page 302 ISBN 0813121000] The French settlers located mostly in Floyds Knobs, Indiana. The Irish began arriving in 1817 and in large numbers in 1830 to 1850. German immigrants settled mostly in New Albany and by 1850 about 17% of New Albany's population was from immigrants.

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 county council is the legislative branch of the county government and controls all the spending and revenue collection in the county. Floyd county is divided into 44 precincts which are organized into four districts, each district elects one representative to the council. Three other members are elected to the county at large. The council members serve four year terms. They are responsible for setting salaries, the annual budget, and special spending. The council also 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.cite web|author=Indiana Code|url=http://www.in.gov/legislative/ic/code/title36/ar2/ch3.html |title=Title 36, Article 2, Section 3|accessdate=2008-09-16|publisher=IN.gov] cite web|author= Indiana Code |url= http://www.in.gov/legislative/ic/code/title3/ar10/ch2.pdf |title= Title 2, Article 10, Section 2 |accessdate=2008-09-16|publisher=IN.gov]

Board of Commissioners: The executive body of the county is made of a board of commissioners. The commissioners are elected county-wide, in staggered terms, and each serves a four year term. One of the commissioners, typically the most senior, serves as president. The commissioners are charged with executing the acts legislated by the council, the collection of revenue, and managing the day-to-day functions of the county government.

Court: The county maintains a small claims court that can handle some civil cases. The judge on the court is elected to a term of four years and must be a member of the Indiana Bar Association. The judge is assisted by a constable who is also elected to terms of four years. In some cases, court decisions can be appealed to the state level circuit court.

County Officials: The county has several other elected offices, including sheriff, coroner, auditor, treasurer, recorder, surveyor, and circuit court clerk. Each of these elected officers serve terms of four years and oversee different parts of the county government. Members elected to any county government position are required to declare a party affiliation and be a resident of the county.

Floyd County is part of Indiana's 9th congressional district and is represented in Congress by Democrat Baron Hill. [cite web|url=http://baronhill.house.gov/district.shtml|title=Conressman Baron Hill|publisher=House.Gov|accessdate=2008-09-12]

Demographics

USCensusPop
1820= 2776
1830= 6361
1840= 9454
1850= 14875
1860= 20183
1870= 23300
1880= 24590
1890= 29458
1900= 30118
1910= 30293
1920= 29381
1930= 34655
1940= 35061
1950= 43955
1960= 51397
1970= 55622
1980= 61169
1990= 64404
2000= 70823
estimate=73064
estyear=2007
estref=
footnote=

As of the censuscite book
first = Richard L. (editor)
last = Forstall
year = 1996
title = Population of states and counties of the United States: 1790 to 1990 : from the twenty-one decennial censuses
publisher = United States Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Population Division
id = ISBN 0-934213-48-8] of 2000, there were 70,823 people, 27,511 households, and 19,697 families residing in the county. The population density was 478 people per square mile (185/km²). There were 29,087 housing units at an average density of 196 per square mile (76/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 93.23% White, 4.41% Black or African American, 0.21% Native American, 0.46% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.50% from other races, and 1.15% from two or more races. 1.09% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 28.9% were of German, 19.6% American, 11.3% Irish and 10.2% English ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 27,511 households out of which 34.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.40% were married couples living together, 12.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.40% were non-families. 23.50% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the county the population was spread out with 25.80% under the age of 18, 8.40% from 18 to 24, 29.90% from 25 to 44, 23.60% from 45 to 64, and 12.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 93.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $44,022, and the median income for a family was $52,401. Males had a median income of $37,613 versus $26,539 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,852. About 6.90% of families and 8.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.50% of those under age 18 and 7.40% of those age 65 or over.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 148 square miles (384 km²), of which 148 square miles (383 km²) is land and 0 square miles (1 km²) (0.21%) is water.

Geographical features

Floyds Knobs in Floyd county was named after the most prominent geographical feature of the county which are the knobs: many steep hills which dot the midsection of the county. The highest point is S. Skyline Drive (+38° 21' 13.64", -85° 50' 50.64") at just over convert|1000|ft|m|abbr=on [cite web
authorlink = USGS
title = USGS New Albany (IN,KY) Topo Map
publisher = TopoQuest
url = http://www.topoquest.com/map.asp?lat=38.35379&lon=-85.8474
accessdate = 2008-06-29 ] . The lowest point in the county being the shore of the Ohio River near New Albany at an elevation of convert|380|ft|m|abbr=on [cite web
authorlink = USGS
title = USGS Lanesville (IN,KY) Topo Map
publisher = TopoQuest
url = http://www.topoquest.com/map.asp?lat=38.18167&lon=-85.89921
accessdate = 2008-06-29] .

Adjacent counties

*Clark County (northeast)
*Jefferson County, Kentucky (south, across the Ohio River)
*Harrison County (west)
*Washington County (northwest)

ee also

*Louisville-Jefferson County, KY-IN Metropolitan Statistical Area
*Louisville-Elizabethtown-Scottsburg, KY-IN Combined Statistical Area
*Indiana University Southeast

External links

* [http://www.floydcounty.in.gov/ County website]
* [http://www.sunnysideoflouisville.org/ Clark-Floyd counties tourism bureau]

References