Perry County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2020, the population was 19,170. The county seat is Tell City. It is the hilliest county as well as one of the most forested counties in Indiana as it features more than 60,000 acres (240 km) of Hoosier National Forest. The Ohio River Scenic Byway along Indiana State Road 66 runs along the southern border of the county while Interstate 64 traverses the northern portion of the county. Connecting the two is Indiana State Road 37.

The county features three incorporated communities: Tell City (2009 population 7,473), Cannelton (2009 population 1,130) and Troy (2009 population 379). Each is located in Troy Township which is situated along the south western corner of the county.

Coordinated efforts with County officials led to the acquisition of an abandoned rail line that has since been reactivated as the County-owned Hoosier Southern Rail Road. Managed by the Perry County Port Authority, the 22-mile (35 km) short-line rail road connects the Perry County River Port with the Norfolk Southern Rail Road.

Tell City, Indiana
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     3.4     39 24     3.2     45 27     4.5     55 35     4.5     66 44     5.2     75 54     4.3     84 63     4.5     88 68     3.8     86 66     3.4     80 59     3     69 47     4.1     56 38     4     44 29 █ 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     86     4 −4     81     7 −3     113     13 2     114     19 7     133     24 12     110     29 17     114     31 20     97     30 19     86     27 15     76     21 8     103     13 3     102     7 −2 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C █ Precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in Tell City have ranged from a low of 24 °F (−4 °C) in January to a high of 88 °F (31 °C) in July, although a record low of −17 °F (−27 °C) was recorded in January 1985, and a record high of 106 °F (41 °C) was recorded in September 1954. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 2.98 inches (76 mm) in October to 5.22 inches (133 mm) in May.

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 fiscal body 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 and legislative 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 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 six years and must be a member of the Indiana Bar Association. The judge is assisted by a magistrate who is appointed by the judge. 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.

With its predominately "butternut" cultural background, Perry County has historically and ancestrally heavily favored the Democratic Party at the federal, state and local level, and had a reputation for being one of the few Democratic-leaning counties in heavily Republican Indiana. From 1960 to 2012, Republicans only carried the county in three presidential elections, those being in 1972, 1984 and 2004, all of which saw the Republicans carry Indiana by landslide margins, and the county was still one of the closest counties in the state in all three elections.

The county delivered over 60.5% of its vote to Democratic nominee Barack Obama in 2008, clocking in as the state's fourth most Democratic county that year, before giving Obama nearly 55% of the vote in 2012, being the only county in southern Indiana other than the university county of Monroe to back Obama that year. The county has not backed a Democrat since, with the county delivering 56% of its vote to Republican nominee Donald Trump in 2016 and 61% of its vote to Trump the following election. The county's Republican shift was also shown in the coinciding 2020 gubernatorial election, when it backed Republican incumbent Eric Holcomb for re-election with nearly 64% of the vote, marking the first time a Republican had carried the county in a gubernatorial election since 1952.

Perry County is part of Indiana's 8th congressional district and is represented in Congress by Republican Larry Bucshon.

United States presidential election results for Perry County, Indiana

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	5,549	63.91%	2,970	34.20%	164	1.89%
2020	5,345	61.18%	3,203	36.66%	189	2.16%
2016	4,556	56.30%	3,062	37.84%	474	5.86%
2012	3,403	43.21%	4,316	54.81%	156	1.98%
2008	3,202	37.71%	5,141	60.55%	147	1.73%
2004	4,137	49.75%	4,131	49.68%	47	0.57%
2000	3,461	46.85%	3,823	51.75%	103	1.39%
1996	2,554	32.21%	4,427	55.83%	949	11.97%
1992	2,973	31.69%	4,829	51.47%	1,580	16.84%
1988	4,720	49.27%	4,804	50.15%	56	0.58%
1984	4,785	49.91%	4,760	49.65%	43	0.45%
1980	4,350	45.94%	4,540	47.95%	578	6.10%
1976	4,088	41.95%	5,620	57.66%	38	0.39%
1972	5,204	54.72%	4,277	44.97%	29	0.30%
1968	4,211	46.23%	4,343	47.68%	554	6.08%
1964	3,090	33.08%	6,226	66.65%	25	0.27%
1960	4,372	46.97%	4,920	52.86%	16	0.17%
1956	4,946	55.00%	4,037	44.89%	10	0.11%
1952	4,816	54.53%	4,001	45.30%	15	0.17%
1948	3,761	45.02%	4,569	54.69%	24	0.29%
1944	4,087	50.44%	3,996	49.32%	19	0.23%
1940	4,489	50.00%	4,475	49.84%	14	0.16%
1936	3,619	41.99%	4,752	55.13%	248	2.88%
1932	3,253	38.93%	5,053	60.46%	51	0.61%
1928	3,772	49.89%	3,782	50.02%	7	0.09%
1924	3,240	44.30%	3,895	53.25%	179	2.45%
1920	3,864	51.76%	3,560	47.69%	41	0.55%
1916	1,762	45.11%	2,089	53.48%	55	1.41%
1912	520	14.25%	1,931	52.90%	1,199	32.85%
1908	1,903	43.93%	2,356	54.39%	73	1.69%
1904	2,105	48.89%	2,142	49.74%	59	1.37%
1900	2,078	47.20%	2,278	51.74%	47	1.07%
1896	2,139	49.94%	2,109	49.24%	35	0.82%
1892	1,890	46.28%	2,074	50.78%	120	2.94%
1888	1,974	49.54%	2,007	50.36%	4	0.10%

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 386.29 square miles (1,000.5 km), of which 381.73 square miles (988.7 km) (or 98.82%) is land and 4.56 square miles (11.8 km) (or 1.18%) is water.

• Crawford County (north/ET Border)
• Spencer County (west)
• Dubois County (northwest/ET Border)
• Meade County, Kentucky (southeast/ET Border)
• Breckinridge County, Kentucky (South)
• Hancock County, Kentucky (Southwest)

• Interstate 64
• Indiana State Road 37
• Indiana State Road 62
• Indiana State Road 66
• Indiana State Road 70
• Indiana State Road 145
• Indiana State Road 166
• Indiana State Road 545

• Hoosier National Forest (part)

Interstate 64 cuts across the northern portion of the county. State Road 66, designated as the Ohio River Scenic Byway for most of its course in the county, is the most heavily traveled road by residents and visitors alike, adjacent to the three most populous towns in the county as well as most major tourist destinations. State Road 37 connects the county to Bloomington and Indianapolis. Other state roads in the county include State Road 62, which closely parallels I-64; State Road 145, which winds through the western parts of the county; State Road 166, which is little more than a road to and from the hamlet of Tobinsport; State Road 237, which connects Cannelton directly to State Road 37 (also the site of a bridge on the Ohio River); a short run of State Road 545 near Troy; and State Road 70 which connects State Road 37 with State Road 66.

Perry County was formed on November 1, 1814 (two years before the state of Indiana was admitted to the Union) from Warrick and Gibson Counties. It was named for Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry who defeated the British squadron in the decisive Battle of Lake Erie in 1813. The Ohio River made Perry County a focal point and settlers were drawn here due to plentiful supplies of natural resources and the area's scenic beauty.

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1820	2,330		—
1830	3,369		44.6%
1840	4,655		38.2%
1850	7,268		56.1%
1860	11,847		63.0%
1870	14,801		24.9%
1880	16,997		14.8%
1890	18,240		7.3%
1900	18,778		2.9%
1910	18,078		−3.7%
1920	16,692		−7.7%
1930	16,625		−0.4%
1940	17,770		6.9%
1950	17,367		−2.3%
1960	17,232		−0.8%
1970	19,075		10.7%
1980	19,346		1.4%
1990	19,107		−1.2%
2000	18,899		−1.1%
2010	19,338		2.3%
2020	19,170		−0.9%
2023 (est.)	19,209		0.2%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790-1960 1900-1990 1990-2000 2010

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 19,338 people, 7,476 households, and 5,020 families residing in the county. The population density was 50.7 inhabitants per square mile (19.6/km). There were 8,495 housing units at an average density of 22.3 per square mile (8.6/km). The racial makeup of the county was 96.0% white, 2.4% black or African American, 0.4% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.3% from other races, and 0.8% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 37.8% were German, 14.4% were Irish, 11.6% were American, and 8.7% were English.

Of the 7,476 households, 30.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.7% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.9% were non-families, and 28.7% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.91. The median age was 40.4 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $47,697 and the median income for a family was $55,497. Males had a median income of $42,017 versus $26,301 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,806. About 6.7% of families and 10.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.9% of those under age 18 and 6.8% of those age 65 or over.

• Cannelton
• Tell City
• Troy

• Anderson
• Clark
• Leopold
• Oil
• Tobin
• Troy
• Union

School districts include:

• Cannelton City Schools
• Perry Central Community School Corporation
• Tell City-Troy Township School Corporation

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

• Perry County Development Corporation
• Perry County Chamber of Commerce
• Perry County Convention & Visitors Bureau
• Perry County News

38°05′N 86°38′W / 38.08°N 86.64°W / 38.08; -86.64