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Jay County
County
Jay County Courthouse
Location within the U.S. state of Indiana
Indiana's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 40°26′N 85°01′W / 40.43°N 85.01°W / 40.43; -85.01
Country	United States
State	Indiana
Founded	February 7, 1835 (authorized) 1836 (organized)
Named for	John Jay
Seat	Portland
Largest city	Portland
Area
• Total	384.08 sq mi (994.8 km)
• Land	383.90 sq mi (994.3 km)
• Water	0.18 sq mi (0.5 km)  0.05%
Population
• Total	20,478
• Density	54/sq mi (20.9/km)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	3rd
Website	www.co.jay.in.us
Indiana county number 38

Jay County is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2020, the population was 20,478. The county seat is Portland.

History

The Indiana State Legislature passed an omnibus county bill on February 7, 1835 that authorized the creation of thirteen counties in northeast Indiana, including Jay - the only county in the United States named for John Jay, co-author of The Federalist Papers, Secretary of Foreign Affairs under the Articles of Confederation, and first Chief Justice of the United States. John Jay had died in 1829.

Geography

Jay County lies on the east side of Indiana; its east border abuts the western border of Ohio. Its low, rolling terrain is entirely devoted to agriculture or urban development. Its highest point (1,121 feet/342 meters ASL) is a small rise on the east border with Ohio, 2,600 feet north of the county's SE corner. The Salamonie River originates near Salamonia in southeastern Jay County and flows generally northwestwardly into Blackford County (It joins the Wabash River from the south in Wabash County). According to the 2010 United States Census, the county has a total area of 384.08 square miles (994.8 km), of which 383.90 square miles (994.3 km) (or 99.95%) is land and 0.18 square miles (0.47 km) (or 0.05%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Adams County - north
• Mercer County, Ohio - east
• Darke County, Ohio - southeast
• Randolph County - south
• Delaware County - southwest
• Blackford County - west
• Wells County - northwest

Cities & Towns

• Bryant
• Dunkirk
• Pennville
• Portland
• Redkey
• Salamonia

Townships

• Bearcreek
• Greene
• Jackson
• Jefferson
• Knox
• Madison
• Noble
• Penn
• Pike
• Richland
• Wabash
• Wayne

Unincorporated communities

• Antioch
• Antiville
• Balbec
• Bellfountain
• Blaine
• Bloomfield
• Bluff Point
• Boundary City
• Brice
• Center
• College Corner
• Collett
• Como
• Fiat
• Greene
• Jay City
• Kitt
• Liber
• New Corydon
• New Mount Pleasant
• Noble
• Pleasant Ridge
• Poling
• Pony
• Powers
• Ridertown
• Salem
• Trinity
• West Liberty
• Westchester

Major highways

Sources: National Atlas, US Census Bureau

• US 27
• SR 1
• SR 18
• SR 26
• SR 67
• SR 167

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in Portland have ranged from a low of 15 °F (−9 °C) in January to a high of 84 °F (29 °C) in July, although a record low of −29 °F (−34 °C) was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of 102 °F (39 °C) was recorded in June 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.87 inches (47 mm) in January to 4.40 inches (112 mm) in July.

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. Representatives, elected to four-year terms from county districts, are responsible for setting 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.

Board of Commissioners: The executive body of the county; commissioners are elected county-wide to staggered four-year terms. One commissioner serves as president. The commissioners execute the acts legislated by the council, collecting revenue, and managing the day-to-day functions of the county government.

Court: The county maintains circuit and superior courts with the latter having a small claims division. Both courts have general jurisdiction with the circuit court having exclusive jurisdiction of juvenile and probate matters. The court's judges are elected to six-year terms, and must be admitted to practice law before the state supreme court. In some cases, court decisions can be appealed to the state level circuit court.

County Officials: The county has other elected offices, including prosecuting attorney, assessor, sheriff, coroner, auditor, treasurer, recorder, surveyor, and circuit court clerk Each officer is elected to four-year terms. Members elected to county government positions are required to declare party affiliations and to be residents of the county.

Jay County is part of Indiana's 3rd congressional district; Indiana Senate district 19; and Indiana House of Representatives district 33.

Demographics

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 21,253 people, 8,133 households, and 5,647 families in the county. The population density was 55.4 inhabitants per square mile (21.4/km). There were 9,221 housing units at an average density of 24.0 per square mile (9.3/km). The racial makeup of the county was 97.0% white, 0.4% Asian, 0.3% black or African American, 0.1% American Indian, 1.3% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.7% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 34.1% were German, 13.1% were American, 11.7% were English, and 11.6% were Irish.

Of the 8,133 households, 32.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.6% were married couples living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 30.6% were non-families, and 25.6% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.10. The median age was 39.0 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $47,697 and the median income for a family was $47,926. Males had a median income of $38,142 versus $26,928 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,946. About 10.0% of families and 13.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.7% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those age 65 or over.

Literary reference

Jens looked at a map he'd filched from an abandoned gas station. If he was where he thought he was, he'd soon be approaching the grand metropolis of Fiat, by God, Indiana. He managed a smile when he saw that, and declaimed, "And God said, Fiat, Indiana, and there was Indiana."

--Harry Turtledove, Worldwar: In the Balance, New York: Random House (1994), Chapter 14, copyright 1994 by Harry Turtledove. The reference is to the unincorporated town of Fiat near the intersection of Indiana State Routes 1 and 18 in Jay County.

See also

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

Further reading

• Montgomery, M.W. History Of Jay County, Indiana (1864). Whitefish: Kessinger Publishing (2010). ISBN 1-166-18084-0

References

1. ^ "Jay County QuickFacts". US Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved September 25, 2011.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. John W. Tyndall & OE Lesh, Standard history of Adams and Wells Counties, Indiana. pp. 284-6 (accessed 9 August 2020)
4. The counties are Dekalb, Fulton, Jasper, Jay, Kosciusko, Marshall, Newton, Porter, Pulaski, Stark, Steuben, Wells, and Whitley. Newton County was merged with Jasper County in 1839, and was re-authorized as a separate county in 1859.
5. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp. 168.
6. Jay County IN (Google Maps, accessed 25 July 2020)
7. Jay County High Point, Indiana (PeakBagger.com, accessed 25 July 2020)
8. ^ "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County". US Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2015.
9. National Atlas Archived December 5, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
10. "US Census Bureau TIGER shape files". Archived from the original on May 23, 2017. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
11. ^ "Monthly Averages for Portland IN". The Weather Channel. Retrieved January 27, 2011.
12. ^ Indiana Code. "Title 36, Article 2, Section 3". IN.gov. Retrieved September 16, 2008.
13. ^ Indiana Code. "Title 2, Article 10, Section 2" (PDF). IN.gov. Retrieved September 16, 2008.
14. "Indiana Senate District 19". Ballotpedia. Retrieved August 29, 2018.
15. "Indiana House Districts". State of Indiana. Retrieved July 14, 2011.
16. Leip, David. "Atlas of US Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
17. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
18. "US Decennial Census". US Census Bureau. Retrieved July 10, 2014.
19. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved July 10, 2014.
20. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". US Census Bureau. Retrieved July 10, 2014.
21. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). US Census Bureau. Retrieved July 10, 2014.
22. ^ "Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data". US Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2015.
23. "Selected Social Characteristics in the US – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". US Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 14, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2015.
24. "Selected Economic Characteristics – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". US Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 14, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2015.

External links

• Jay County, Indiana Archived April 24, 2018, at the Wayback Machine

v t e Places adjacent to Jay County, Indiana
Wells County Adams County Blackford County Jay County, Indiana Mercer County, Ohio Delaware County Randolph County Darke County, Ohio

v t e Municipalities and communities of Jay County, Indiana, United States
County seat: Portland
Cities	Dunkirk‡ Portland
Towns	Bryant Pennville Redkey Salamonia
Townships	Bearcreek Greene Jackson Jefferson Knox Madison Noble Penn Pike Richland Wabash Wayne
Unincorporated communities	Antioch Antiville Balbec Bellfountain Blaine Bloomfield Bluff Point Boundary City Brice Center College Corner Collett Como Fiat Greene Jay City Kitt Liber New Corydon New Mount Pleasant Noble Pleasant Ridge Poling Pony Powers Ridertown Salem Trinity West Liberty Westchester
Footnotes	‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties
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40°26′N 85°01′W / 40.43°N 85.01°W / 40.43; -85.01

• Indiana counties
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