Indiana county number 14

• One of two Daviess Counties in the
  Illinois-Indiana-Kentucky Tri-State Area
• 29th oldest county in Indiana

Daviess County /ˈdeɪviːz/ is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 33,381. The county seat is Washington. About 15% of the county's population is Amish of Swiss origin, as of 2017.

After the American Revolutionary War was settled, the fledgling nation created the Northwest Territory, tentatively divided into two counties. The area that would become the state of Indiana in 1816 was included in the original Knox County. As the area became more settled, Knox was partitioned into smaller counties, the last of which was the present-day Daviess, authorized on February 2, 1818. The boundaries of Daviess were reduced on December 21, 1818, by the formation of Owen County, and on January 17, 1820, by the formation of Martin County. It has retained its present boundary since 1820.

Daviess County was named for Major Joseph Hamilton Daveiss, U.S. District Attorney for Kentucky, killed at the Battle of Tippecanoe in 1811. The earliest settlements were along the White River, which allowed crops and timber to be transported to distant markets. The northeast part of the county was heavily forested, and timber industry flourished in the first half of the nineteenth century. Daviess County shares its namesake with another nearby Daviess County of Kentucky. Both Counties are in the Illinois-Indiana-Kentucky Tri-State Area.

The terrain of Daviess County is hilly, with its area completely devoted to agriculture or urban development. Its highest elevation (740 ft; 230 m ASL) is a rise one mile (1.6 km) NNE of Farlen. The county is drained by the White River flowing to the southwest, whose two main forks (East White and West White) come together at the county's SW corner. The county's west boundary is defined by the West White River's course and its south boundary is defined by the East White River's course; their confluence defines the county's corner point.

According to the 2010 census, Daviess County has a total area of 436.87 square miles (1,131.5 km), of which 429.49 square miles (1,112.4 km) (or 98.31%) is land and 7.39 square miles (19.1 km) (or 1.69%) is water.

• Washington Transit System

Washington, Indiana
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     2.8     39 23     2.7     45 27     4.2     56 36     4.2     67 45     5.5     77 55     4.2     85 64     4.9     88 68     3.8     86 66     2.9     80 58     3.1     69 47     4.4     55 38     3.4     43 28 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F █ Precipitation totals in inches Source: The Weather Channel
Metric conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     72     4 −5     68     7 −3     105     13 2     107     19 7     140     25 13     106     29 18     125     31 20     98     30 19     74     27 14     79     21 8     111     13 3     86     6 −2 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C █ Precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in Washington have ranged from a low of 23 °F (−5 °C) in January to a high of 88 °F (31 °C) in July, although a record low of −19 °F (−28 °C) was recorded in December 1989 and a record high of 113 °F (45 °C) was recorded in July 1930. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 2.69 inches (68 mm) in February to 5.52 inches (140 mm) in May.

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1820	3,432		—
1830	4,543		32.4%
1840	6,720		47.9%
1850	10,352		54.0%
1860	13,323		28.7%
1870	16,747		25.7%
1880	21,552		28.7%
1890	26,227		21.7%
1900	29,914		14.1%
1910	27,747		−7.2%
1920	26,856		−3.2%
1930	25,832		−3.8%
1940	26,163		1.3%
1950	26,762		2.3%
1960	26,636		−0.5%
1970	26,602		−0.1%
1980	27,836		4.6%
1990	27,533		−1.1%
2000	29,820		8.3%
2010	31,648		6.1%
2020	33,381		5.5%
2023 (est.)	33,656		0.8%
US Decennial Census 1790-1960 1900-1990 1990-2000 2010 2020

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 31,648 people, 11,329 households, and 8,116 families in the county. The population density was 73.7 inhabitants per square mile (28.5/km). There were 12,471 housing units at an average density of 29.0 per square mile (11.2/km). The racial makeup of the county was 95.0% white, 0.5% black or African American, 0.5% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 2.6% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 4.2% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 31.4% were German, 13.1% were Irish, 10.8% were American, and 10.6% were English.

Of the 11,329 households, 36.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.1% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 28.4% were non-families, and 24.6% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.29. The median age was 35.4 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $47,697 and the median income for a family was $53,769. Males had a median income of $36,405 versus $29,652 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,254. About 7.6% of families and 12.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.7% of those under age 18 and 7.6% of those age 65 or over.

Daviess County Racial Composition

Race	Num.	Perc.
White (NH)	29,708	89%
Black or African American (NH)	619	1.85%
Native American (NH)	38	0.11%
Asian (NH)	132	0.4%
Pacific Islander (NH)	8	0.02%
Other/Mixed (NH)	773	2.32%
Hispanic or Latino	2,103	6.3%

The Amish (Swiss Amish) community in Daviess County, established in 1868, had a total population of 4,855 people (in 29 congregations) in 2017 or 14.6% of the county's population, stretching along the eastern side of the county from Alfordsville, to Cannelburg and Montgomery to Odon.

• Washington

• Raglesville

The county government is a constitutional body, and is granted specific powers by the Constitution of Indiana, and by the Indiana Code. The county council is the legislative branch of the county government and controls 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.

A board of commissioners constitutes the county's executive body. Commissioners are elected county-wide, in staggered four-year terms. One commissioner serves as president. The board executes the council's legislative acts, collects revenue, and manages the county's government functions.

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.

The county has 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.

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

Daviess County is part of Indiana's 8th congressional district; Indiana Senate districts 39 and 48; and Indiana House of Representatives districts 45, 63 and 64.

United States presidential election results for Daviess County, Indiana

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	9,576	79.99%	2,169	18.12%	226	1.89%
2016	8,545	78.98%	1,800	16.64%	474	4.38%
2012	7,638	74.42%	2,437	23.74%	189	1.84%
2008	7,098	67.05%	3,370	31.83%	118	1.11%
2004	7,936	74.87%	2,573	24.28%	90	0.85%
2000	6,872	70.40%	2,697	27.63%	192	1.97%
1996	5,531	56.35%	3,230	32.91%	1,054	10.74%
1992	5,591	53.15%	3,201	30.43%	1,728	16.43%
1988	6,768	65.75%	3,483	33.84%	43	0.42%
1984	7,721	68.26%	3,545	31.34%	45	0.40%
1980	7,022	60.89%	4,057	35.18%	453	3.93%
1976	6,829	57.69%	4,952	41.83%	57	0.48%
1972	8,490	70.33%	3,538	29.31%	43	0.36%
1968	7,036	56.77%	4,071	32.85%	1,286	10.38%
1964	6,319	49.00%	6,528	50.62%	48	0.37%
1960	8,285	60.20%	5,433	39.48%	45	0.33%
1956	8,608	62.80%	5,057	36.89%	42	0.31%
1952	8,328	60.89%	5,247	38.37%	101	0.74%
1948	7,030	53.89%	5,867	44.98%	147	1.13%
1944	7,458	57.14%	5,523	42.32%	71	0.54%
1940	7,615	54.10%	6,401	45.48%	59	0.42%
1936	6,459	47.95%	6,848	50.84%	163	1.21%
1932	5,838	45.29%	6,772	52.54%	279	2.16%
1928	7,116	56.73%	5,324	42.45%	103	0.82%
1924	6,427	51.42%	5,558	44.46%	515	4.12%
1920	6,748	53.42%	5,587	44.23%	298	2.36%
1916	3,191	47.56%	3,143	46.84%	376	5.60%
1912	2,005	31.62%	2,759	43.51%	1,577	24.87%
1908	3,424	48.38%	3,253	45.97%	400	5.65%
1904	3,682	52.97%	2,802	40.31%	467	6.72%
1900	3,298	46.93%	3,424	48.73%	305	4.34%
1896	3,120	45.00%	3,785	54.59%	29	0.42%
1892	2,610	42.99%	2,498	41.15%	963	15.86%
1888	2,691	49.60%	2,689	49.57%	45	0.83%

Daviess County is a Republican stronghold in presidential elections and is consistently one of the most Republican counties in Indiana, giving John McCain 67% of the vote in 2008 and Mitt Romney nearly 75% of the vote in 2012. Donald Trump nearly won 80% of the vote in 2020.

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

38°42′N 87°05′W / 38.70°N 87.08°W / 38.70; -87.08