St. Joseph County, Indiana Information & St. Joseph County, Indiana Links at HealthHaven.com

Saint Joseph County
	Saint Joseph County, Indiana
	Map
	; Location in the state of Indiana
	; Indiana's location in the U.S.
	Statistics
Founded	1830
Seat	South Bend
Area; - Total; - Land; - Water	; 461 sq mi (1,194 km²); 457 sq mi (1,184 km²); 4 sq mi (10 km²), 0.79%
Population; - (2000); - Density	; 265,559; 580/sq mi (224/km²)
Congressional district	2nd
	St. Joseph County courthouse in South Bend, Indiana

Not to be confused with Saint Joseph, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, commonly referred to as "St. Joseph County".

St. Joseph County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. The Census Bureau 2007 population estimate was 266,088. Formed in 1830, it was named for the St. Joseph River which flows through it toward Lake Michigan. The county seat is South Bend.^[1]

St. Joseph County is part of the South Bend–Mishawaka, IN-MI, Metropolitan Statistical Area.

[edit] Government

See also: Government of Indiana

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.^[2]^[3]

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, the collection of revenue, and managing the day-to-day functions of the county government.^[2]^[3]

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 terms of four years. In some cases, court decisions can be appealed to the state level circuit court.^[3]

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 serve terms of four years and oversee different parts of the county government. Members elected to any county government position are required to declare a party affiliation and be a resident of the county.^[3]

St. Joseph County is part of Indiana's 2nd congressional district and in 2008 was represented by Joe Donnelly in the United States Congress.^[4]

[edit] Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 461 square miles (1,194 km²), of which 457 square miles (1,185 km²) is land and 4 square miles (9 km²) (0.79%) is water.

[edit] Cities and towns

[edit] Townships

St. Joseph River, flowing into St. Joseph County from Elkhart County (top) through Mishawaka.

[edit] Adjacent counties

Berrien County, Michigan (north)
Cass County, Michigan (northeast)
Elkhart County (east)
Marshall County (south)
Starke County (southwest)
LaPorte County (west)

[edit] Major highways

[edit] Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1830	287	—
1840	6,425	2,138.7%
1850	10,954	70.5%
1860	18,455	68.5%
1870	25,322	37.2%
1880	33,178	31.0%
1890	42,457	28.0%
1900	58,881	38.7%
1910	84,312	43.2%
1920	103,304	22.5%
1930	160,033	54.9%
1940	161,823	1.1%
1950	205,058	26.7%
1960	238,614	16.4%
1970	245,045	2.7%
1980	241,617	−1.4%
1990	247,052	2.2%
2000	265,559	7.5%

As of the census^[5] of 2000, there were 265,559 people, 100,743 households, and 66,792 families residing in the county. The population density was 581 people per square mile (224/km²). There were 107,013 housing units at an average density of 234 per square mile (90/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 82.36% White, 11.46% Black or African American, 0.35% Native American, 1.34% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 2.48% from other races, and 1.97% from two or more races. 4.73% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 21.1% were of German, 11.5% Polish, 10.5% Irish, 6.5% American and 5.7% English ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 100,743 households out of which 32.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.00% were married couples living together, 12.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.70% were non-families. 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.07.

In the county the population was spread out with 25.70% under the age of 18, 11.80% from 18 to 24, 28.00% from 25 to 44, 20.90% from 45 to 64, and 13.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 93.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.80 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $40,420, and the median income for a family was $49,653. Males had a median income of $37,076 versus $25,310 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,756. About 7.60% of families and 10.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.70% of those under age 18 and 7.10% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Education

[edit] School Districts

[edit] John Glenn School Corporation

North Liberty Elementary
Walkerton Elementary
Urey Middle School
John Glenn High School

[edit] New Prairie School Corporation

Olive Township Elementary
New Prairie Middle School
New Prairie High School

[edit] Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation

Bittersweet Elementary
Elm Road Elementary
Elise Rogers Elementary
Horizon Elementary
Madison Elementary
Mary Frank Elementary
Meadow's Edge Elementary
Moran Elementary
Northpoint Elementary
Prairie Vista Elementary
Walt Disney Elementary
Discovery Middle School
Grissom Middle School
Schmucker Middle School
Penn High School

[edit] School City of Mishawaka

Battell Elementary
Beiger Elementary
Emmons Elementary
Hums Elementary
LaSalle Elementary
Liberty Elementary
Twin Branch Elementary
John Young Middle School
Mishawaka High School

[edit] South Bend Community School Corporation

[edit] High Schools

[edit] Intermediate Centers

[edit] Primary centers

[edit] Union-North United School Corporation

LaVille Elementary
LaVille Junior-Senior High School

[edit] Private Schools

Christ the King [Grades K-8]
Corpus Christi [Grades K-8]
Covenant Christian School [Grades K-8]
Granger Christian School [Grades K-12]
Holy Cross Elementary [Grades K-8]
Holy Family Elementary [Grades K-8]
Ironwood Christian School [Grades K-12]
Michiana Christian School [Grades K-5]
Mishawaka First Baptist School [Grades K-12]
Marian High School [Grades 9-12]
North Liberty Christian School [Grades K-5]
Our Lady of Hungary [Grades K-8]
Queen of Peace School [Grades K-6]
Resurrection Academy [Grades K-5]
St. Adalbert Elementary [Grades K-8]
St. Anthony de Padua School [Grades K-8]
St. Bavo Elementary [Grades K-8]
St. John the Baptist Elementary [Grades K-8]
St. Joseph Elementary [Grades K-8]
St. Joseph Grade School[Grades K-8]
St. Jude Elementary [Grades K-8]
St. Mary of the Assumption School [Grades K-8]
St. Matthew Elementary [Grades K-8]
St. Monica Elementary [Grades K-8]
St. Patrick School [Grades K-6]
St. Pius X School [Grades Pre K-8] (Opens August 27, 2008)
South Bend Christian Center [Grades K-12]
South Bend Junior Academy [Grades 2-8]
South Bend St. Joseph's High School [Grades 9-12]
South Bend Trinity School [Grades 7-12]
Stanley Clark School [Grades K-8]

[edit] Colleges & Universities

[edit] External links

[edit] References

Forstall, Richard L. (editor) (1996). Population of states and counties of the United States: 1790 to 1990 : from the twenty-one decennial censuses. United States Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Population Division. ISBN 0-934213-48-8.