POSEY County, IN

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 2010, the population was 25,910. The county seat is Mount Vernon.

Posey County is part of the Evansville, IN–KY Metropolitan Statistical Area. The Ports of Indiana-Mt. 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 the 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. 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.

Lynchings

In October 1878, a mob of 200–300 White people from Posey County killed seven African Americans over a span of three days. October 10th: two brothers were chased from their homes by a smaller group of the mob. When Daniel Harrison Jr. was caught, the men burned him to death in the firebox of a steam locomotive. October 11th: his brother John Harrison was caught, shot, and his body stuffed into the hollow trunk of a tree. October 12th: Daniel Harrison Sr. was arrested for harboring the fugitives (his sons) and fatally shooting the deputy who tried to arrest them. At the jail he was kidnapped by the mob, "butchered like a hog" with a civil war saber, and had his remains dumped into the jail house privy. Also in the jail that night Jim Good, William Chambers, Edward Warner, and Jeff Hopkins were kidnapped by the same mob and lynched from trees on the Posey County courthouse grounds. Those four men had been indicted as suspects in the rape of three white prostitutes.

This was the largest recorded lynching of African Americans in Indiana's history. 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.

Geography

The low rolling hills of SW 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.

According to the 2010 United States Census, the county has a total area of , of which (or 97.67%) is land and (or 2.33%) is water. 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 (590 feet/180 meters ASL) is a small rise 1.6 miles (2.6 km) SSW from Saint Wendel, near the county's southeast corner.

Posey county lies at the tripoint of Indiana, Kentucky and Illinois.

Adjacent counties

Cities and towns

Townships

Unincorporated places

Protected areas

Transportation

Major highways

Railroads

River ports

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in Mount Vernon have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1912 and a record high of was recorded in July 1901. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in September to in May.

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 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.

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.

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.

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.

Demographics

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 25,910 people, 10,171 households, and 7,442 families in the county. The population density was . There were 11,207 housing units at an average density of . 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. In terms of ancestry, 43.6% were German, 13.6% were American, 11.6% were Irish, and 11.2% were English.

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.

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.

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