Dubois County, Indiana

Dubois County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2020, the population was 43,637. The county seat is Jasper. Dubois County is now the sole county of the Jasper Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History
Dubois County was formed on December 20, 1818, from Orange, Pike and Perry counties. It is named for Toussaint Dubois, a Frenchman who fought in the American Revolutionary War, the Battle of Tippecanoe and the War of 1812. Dubois was a merchant who lived mainly in Vincennes. He drowned in 1816 while crossing the Little Wabash River near Lawrenceville, Illinois.

In 1818, as many as half of the residents of the county died of milk sickness. The plant contains the potent toxin temetrol, which is passed through the milk. The migrants from the East were unfamiliar with the Midwestern plant and its effects.

Dubois County switched to the Central Time Zone on April 2, 2006, and returned to the Eastern Time Zone on November 4, 2007; both changes were controversial as Huntingburg wished to remain on Central Time while Jasper never wanted to leave Eastern Time.

The original county seat was Portersville. In 1830, the county seat was moved south to Jasper.

Geography
According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 435.33 sqmi, of which 427.27 sqmi (or 98.15%) is land and 8.06 sqmi (or 1.85%) is water.

Cities

 * Jasper
 * Huntingburg

Towns

 * Birdseye
 * Ferdinand
 * Holland

Census-designated places

 * Dubois

Other unincorporated places

 * Ireland
 * Bretzville
 * Celestine
 * Crystal
 * Cuzco
 * Duff
 * Ellsworth
 * Haysville
 * Hillham
 * Johnsburg
 * Kellerville
 * Kyana
 * Maltersville
 * Mentor
 * Millersport
 * Portersville
 * Schnellville
 * Saint Anthony
 * Saint Henry
 * Saint Marks
 * Thales
 * Zoar

Townships

 * Bainbridge
 * Boone
 * Cass
 * Columbia
 * Ferdinand
 * Hall
 * Harbison
 * Jackson
 * Jefferson
 * Madison
 * Marion
 * Patoka

Adjacent counties

 * Martin County (north)
 * Orange County (northeast)
 * Crawford County (east)
 * Perry County (southeast/CT Border)
 * Spencer County (south/CT Border)
 * Warrick County (southwest/CT Border)
 * Pike County (west)
 * Daviess County (northwest)

Climate and weather
In recent years, average temperatures in Jasper have ranged from a low of 20 °F in January to a high of 86 °F in July, although a record low of -25 °F was recorded in January 1994 and a record high of 104 °F was recorded in July 1966. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 2.81 in in February to 5.29 in 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 county council is the legislative branch of the county government and controls all the spending and revenue collection in the county. Representatives are elected from county districts. 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.

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, collecting 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 a four-year term. 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 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 to be residents of the county.

Dubois County is part of Indiana's 8th congressional district and is represented in Congress by Republican Larry Bucshon. It is also part of Indiana Senate districts 47 and 48, and Indiana House of Representatives districts 63, 73 and 74.

Demographics
As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 41,889 people, 16,133 households, and 11,459 families residing in the county. The population density was 98.0 PD/sqmi. There were 17,384 housing units at an average density of 40.7 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the county was 95.1% white, 0.5% Asian, 0.3% black or African American, 0.2% American Indian, 3.1% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 6.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 58.0% were German, 9.0% were American, 8.1% were Irish, and 6.7% were English.

Of the 16,133 households, 34.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.3% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.0% were non-families, and 24.7% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.03. The median age was 39.9 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $47,697 and the median income for a family was $64,286. Males had a median income of $42,078 versus $31,411 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,801. About 6.9% of families and 9.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.1% of those under age 18 and 10.4% of those age 65 or over.

Personal income
The median income for a household in the county was $44,169, and the median income for a family was $50,342. Males had a median income of $32,484 versus $23,526 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,225. About 2.90% of families and 6.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.30% of those under age 18 and 7.30% of those age 65 or over.

Tourism
Patoka Lake is located along the county's eastern borders with both Crawford and Orange Counties. Several annual national bass fishing tournaments are held there.

The Hoosier National Forest is located in the county. Part of it is protected.

Education
Public education in Dubois County is administered through four school corporations:
 * Greater Jasper Consolidated Schools
 * Southeast Dubois School Corporation
 * Southwest Dubois School Corporation
 * Northeast Dubois County School Corporation

High Schools
 * Jasper High School (Greater Jasper Schools, Jasper)
 * Forest Park High School (Southeast Dubois Schools, Ferdinand)
 * Southridge High School (Southwest Dubois Schools, Huntingburg)
 * Northeast Dubois High School (Northeast Dubois Schools, Dubois)

Major highways

 * I-64.svg Interstate 64
 * US 231.svg U.S. Route 231
 * indiana 56.svg Indiana State Road 56
 * indiana 64.svg Indiana State Road 64
 * indiana 145.svg Indiana State Road 145
 * indiana 161.svg Indiana State Road 161
 * indiana 162.svg Indiana State Road 162
 * indiana 164.svg Indiana State Road 164
 * indiana 264.svg Indiana State Road 264
 * indiana 545.svg Indiana State Road 545