Morgan County, Indiana

Morgan County was formed in 1822. It was named for Gen. Daniel Morgan, who defeated the British at the Battle of Cowpens in the Revolutionary War. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, mineral springs in Martinsville gave rise to several spas, and the nickname of the Martinsville High School athletic teams has subsequently been the Artesians.

Settlers in Morgan County in the early nineteenth century came predominantly from southern states. The Mooresville area and surrounding communities received large numbers of southern Quakers, driven to migrate because of their opposition to slavery. Paul Hadley, a Mooresville resident, was the designer of the current Indiana flag, as well as a locally prominent water color artist in the early twentieth century.

County government took several steps forward in the 2000s, creating a new Plan Commission, re-instituting a county economic development organization, and establishing the county's first Park and Recreation Board between 2000 and 2004. Morgan County also was the first county in the metropolitan Indianapolis region to establish a smoking ban ordinance for restaurants, taking that step in 2004. Other communities in the region soon followed Morgan County's lead.

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 409.43 square miles (1,060.4 km²), of which 403.97 square miles (1,046.3 km²) (or 98.67%) is land and 5.46 square miles (14.1 km²) (or 1.33%) is water.[7] Morgan County is bisected by the White River Valley; the community has taken an interest in recent years in protecting the river as an asset, seeking to develop parks and greenways along the White River and initiating an annual river cleanup day in the spring.

The county also is home to large areas of land that were not glaciated during the last ice age. The river valley and contributing watersheds, along with the non-glaciated hills, results in a topography unlike the rest of the metropolitan Indianapolis area. County residents are proud of the scenic terrain, and in recent years have established a county park system and a bike/pedestrian trail system plan to provide protection and access to the amenities. An annual five mile (8 km) run ("Run to the Future", June 10, 2006) is held as a fundraiser for the path system endowment.

In recent years, average temperatures in Martinsville have ranged from a low of 18 °F (−8 °C) in January to a high of 85 °F (29 °C) in July, although a record low of −35 °F (−37 °C) was recorded in January 1994 and a record high of 105 °F (41 °C) was recorded in July 1954. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 2.44 inches (62 mm) in February to 4.73 inches (120 mm) in May.[8]

The county government is a constitutional body granted specific powers by the Constitution of Indiana and the Indiana Code. The county council is the fiscal branch of the county government and controls all spending and revenue collection. Four Council members are elected from county districts, and three are elected at-large by the entire county electorate. The council members serve four-year terms and 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 optional income taxes and the property tax levy that is subject to state level approval, excise taxes and service taxes.[9][10]

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, collecting revenue and managing day-to-day functions of the county government.[9][10]

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 elected to a four-year term. In some cases, court decisions can be appealed to the state level circuit court.[10]

The county has several other elected offices, including sheriff, coroner, auditor, treasurer, recorder, surveyor and circuit court clerk. Each of these elected officers serves a term of four years and oversees a different part of county government. Members elected to county government positions are required to declare party affiliations and be residents of the county.[10]

Each of the townships has a trustee who administers rural fire protection and ambulance service, provides poor relief and manages cemetery care, among other duties.[4] The trustee is assisted in these duties by a three-member township board. The trustees and board members are elected to four-year terms.[11]

Morgan County is split between Indiana's fourth and ninth districts; Indiana Senate districts 35 and 37;[12] and Indiana House of Representatives districts 47 and 91.[13]

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 68,894 people, 25,765 households, and 19,355 families residing in the county.[20] The population density was 170.5 inhabitants per square mile (65.8/km²). There were 27,754 housing units at an average density of 68.7 per square mile (26.5/km²).[7] The racial makeup of the county was 97.7% white, 0.4% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 0.3% black or African American, 0.3% from other races, and 1.0% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.2% of the population.[20] In terms of ancestry, 46% of people in Morgan County were of English ancestry, 22.1% were of German ancestry, and 10.3% were of Irish ancestry. Of the 25,765 households, 35.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.8% were married couples living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 24.9% were non-families, and 20.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.04. The median age was 39.9 years.[20]

The median income for a household in the county was $47,697 and the median income for a family was $62,507. Males had a median income of $48,457 versus $34,831 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,972. About 7.2% of families and 10.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.9% of those under age 18 and 6.8% of those age 65 or over.[21]

Morgan County is served by the Morgan County Public Library, which operates six branches.[22]

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Morgan County, Indiana

• County website