Posey County, Indiana

Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox U.S. county

Posey County is the southernmost, southwesternmost, and westernmost county in the U.S. state of Indiana. Its southern border is formed by the Ohio River, and its western border by the Wabash River, a tributary to the Ohio. As of 2020, the population was 25,222.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The county seat is Mount Vernon.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Posey County is part of the Evansville, Indiana metropolitan statistical area. The Ports of Indiana-Mount Vernon, on the Ohio River, is the seventh-largest inland port complex in the nation. Mechanization of dock technology has altered the number of workers at the port, but Posey County is still the seventh-largest internal port in the United States, based on tons of materials handled. Grain from the Midwest is among the products shipped.

History

After the American Revolutionary War, Posey County was originally considered part of the Northwest Territory, organized in 1787 by the new United States. As part of the Indiana Territory, it was organized in November 1814 from Gibson and Warrick counties. It was named for Revolutionary War Gen. Thomas Posey, who was then serving as Governor of the Territory.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Mount Vernon was designated as the county seat in 1825. Its port on the Ohio River continues to be integral to the economy of the state and county.

Like other parts of southern Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, Posey County was first settled by people from the Upper South, many of whom arrived via the Ohio River. Farming was the primary development at first. In the mid- to late 19th century, the county received many German immigrants. The river port had rougher areas of vice, and a higher population of single men, as was typical. African Americans were among the men who worked on ships and at the port.

Posey County was the site of the largest recorded lynching of African Americans in Indiana's history. In October 1878, a white mob lynched seven black men in the span of a few days. No one in the mob was prosecuted, and at each court session for the next three years, the prosecutor asked the judge to "set the case over to the next session". A grand jury was called to investigate the mob action, but with an election pending for the prosecuting attorney, no one was ever indicted. Following years of research, Posey County judge Jim Redwine wrote a novel, Judge Lynch! (2008), based on the events. Redwine sometimes lectures on the riot, inviting his audience to imagine how they would have acted and stressing the injustice done to the African Americans who were denied the right to a fair trial.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="lynch" />

Geography

The low rolling hills of southwest Indiana are carved by drainages; the Black River flows southwestward through the county's upper portion, discharging into the Wabash River north of New Harmony. Rush Creek drains the county's central portion, flowing westward to discharge into the Wabash in Harmonie State Park. The area is largely cleared and devoted to agriculture or urban use, although the drainages and lowlands are still wooded or brush-filled.<ref name=PCI>Posey County IN (Google Maps, accessed 23 August 2020)</ref>

According to the 2010 United States Census, the county has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert (or 97.67%) is land and Template:Convert (or 2.33%) is water.<ref name=DC/> The lowest point in the state of Indiana is located on the Ohio River in Posey County, where the Wabash River flows into it, and Posey County's highest point (Template:Convert ASL) is a small rise Template:Convert SSW from Saint Wendel, near the county's southeast corner.<ref>Posey County High Point, Indiana (PeakBagger.com, accessed 23 August 2020)</ref> Posey county lies at the tripoint of Indiana, Kentucky and Illinois.

Adjacent counties

Template:Div col

White County, Illinois (west and northwest across intermittent sections of water and land boundaries)
Gallatin County, Illinois (southwest also over intermittent sections of water and land boundaries)
Gibson County (north and northeast)
Union County, Kentucky (south, with some land boundaries on Indiana side)
Vanderburgh County (east)
Henderson County, Kentucky (southeast also with some land boundaries on Indiana side)

Template:Div col end

Cities and towns

Template:Div col

Cynthiana – town
Griffin – town
Mount Vernon – city/county seat
New Harmony – town
Poseyville – town

Template:Div col end

Townships

Template:Div col

Template:Div col end

Unincorporated places

Template:Div col

Barrett
Blairsville
Bufkin
Caborn
Dead Mans Crossing<ref>Dead Mans Crossing, Black Township IN (Google Maps, accessed 24 June 2020)</ref>
Erwin
Farmersville
Grafton
Hepburn
Heusler
Hovey
Lippe
Marrs Center
New Baltimore
Oak Grove
Oliver
Parkers Settlement – census-designated place
Philip Station
Prairie
Rapture
Saint Philip
Saint Wendel
Savah
Solitude
Springfield
Stewartsville
Upton
Wadesville
Welborn Switch
West Franklin

Template:Div col end

Protected areas

Harmonie State Park
Wabash Lowlands Wetland Conservation Area<ref name=PCI/>

Transportation

Major highways

Template:Div col

Template:Div col end

Railroads

River ports

Ports of Indiana-Mt. Vernon is "the 7th largest inland port [complex] in the United States and serves as a major multi-modal hub for the region." It handles more than 4 million trip tons of cargo annually. Southwind Maritime Center is the name of a related port facility, now considered within the complex. This port facility is important to the economy of the state of Indiana as well as to Posey County. It handles shipping of grain, grain products, coal, fertilizer, cement and minerals, from a region that produces a large amount of grain. This is the largest public port within 175 miles of the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers.<ref>Ports of Indiana-Mt. Vernon website</ref>

Climate and weather

Template:Climate chart In recent years, average temperatures in Mount Vernon have ranged from a nighttime low of Template:Convert in January to a daytime high of Template:Convert in July, although a record low of Template:Convert was recorded in January 1912 and a record high of Template:Convert was recorded in July 1901. Average monthly precipitation ranged from Template:Convert in September to Template:Convert in May.<ref name=WX/>

Government

Template:See also 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 single-member districts of roughly equal population in the county. 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.<ref name=inc3623>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=inc2102>Template:Cite web</ref>

Board of Commissioners: The executive body of the county is a three-person board of commissioners, who are elected at-large (county-wide), to staggered four-year terms. One commissioner serves as president. The commissioners execute acts legislated by the council, collect revenue, and manage the county government.<ref name=inc3623/><ref name=inc2102/>

Court: The county maintains a small claims court that handles civil cases. The court judge is elected to a four-year term and must be a member of the Indiana Bar Association. The judge is assisted by a constable, who is also elected to a four-year term. In some cases, court decisions can be appealed to the state level circuit court.<ref name=inc2102/>

County Officials: Other county elected offices include sheriff, coroner, auditor, treasurer, recorder, surveyor, and circuit court clerk. Each serves a four-year term. Members elected to county government positions are required to declare party affiliations and to be residents of the county.<ref name=inc2102/>

Politics

Posey County was a Democratic stronghold turned swing county during the 20th Century. Since the turn of the 21st Century, the county has swung heavily into the Republican column, with Donald Trump gaining over 70% of the vote in 2024. The last Democrat to obtain a full majority in the county was Jimmy Carter in 1976, although Bill Clinton narrowly carried the county by plurality in 1992 and 1996, largely due to a heavy third-party presence in both elections.

Demographics

Template:US Census population

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 25,910 people, 10,171 households, and 7,442 families in the county.<ref name=DP1>Template:Cite web</ref> The population density was Template:Convert. There were 11,207 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert.<ref name=DC>Template:Cite web</ref> The racial makeup of the county was 97.2% white, 0.9% black or African American, 0.3% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.4% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.0% of the population.<ref name=DP1/> In terms of ancestry, 43.6% were German, 13.6% were American, 11.6% were Irish, and 11.2% were English.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Of the 10,171 households, 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.4% were married couples living together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 26.8% were non-families, and 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 2.97. The median age was 41.6 years.<ref name=DP1/>

The median income for a household in the county was $47,697 and the median income for a family was $68,722. Males had a median income of $55,786 versus $32,747 for females. The per capita income for the county was $26,727. About 6.0% of families and 8.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.2% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Education

The county has two school districts: Mount Vernon Metropolitan School District and North Posey County Schools Metropolitan School District.<ref>Template:Cite web - Text list</ref>

Public high schools

Mount Vernon High School – Mount Vernon
North Posey High School – Poseyville address

Previously New Harmony Town and Township Consolidated Schools covered a portion of the county.<ref>Template:Cite web - Text list</ref> The district closed in 2012 and consolidated into North Posey County Schools.<ref name=Finalized>Template:Cite web</ref>

Tourism and recreation

Template:Div col

Posey County Stockyard
Visit Posey County<ref>Visit Posey County</ref>
Brittlebank Park – Mount Vernon
Harmonie State Park – New Harmony
Hovey Lake State Fish & Wildlife Area<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> – Mount Vernon
New Harmony Historic District<ref>Historic New Harmony

Template:Webarchive</ref> – New Harmony

Sherburne Park – Mount Vernon

Template:Div col end

Representation in other media

Posey County Judge James M. Redwine wrote a novel, Judge Lynch! (2008), based on the 1878 lynchings of seven African-American men in Mt. Vernon.<ref name="lynch">Barry Cleveland, "Seven killed in Posey County violence", Carmi Times, February 7, 2011; accessed May 31, 2018</ref><ref>James M. Redwine, Judge Lynch!, AuthorHouse, 2008</ref>