Orange County, Indiana

Orange County is a located in the  of. As of 2000, the population was 19,306. The is.

Geography
According to the, the county has a total area of 1,057 (408 ). 1,035 km² (400 sq mi) of it is land and 22 km² (9 sq mi) of it (2.13%) is water.

Adjacent counties

 * (north)
 * (east)
 * (south)
 * (southwest)
 * (northwest)

History
Orange County was formed from parts of Knox, Gibson and Washington Counties in 1816. The County Seat is at.

The early settlers were mostly Quakers fleeing the institution of slavery in. brought his group of from  to the area in 1811. Under Lindley’s leadership, they were the first to build a religious structure, the Lick Creek Meeting House in 1813. It was from this group that Orange County got its name. 

(See ). The name Orange derives from the, which acquired the English throne with the accession of  in 1689, following the.

In the early 1800s when the Quakers came from North Carolina to settle in Orange County, Indiana, they came to escape slavery. They brought with them a number of freed slaves. These free men were deeded 200 acres of land in the heart of a dense forest. Word of mouth soon spread the news, and this land became part of the "underground railroad" for runaway slaves.

For many years, the freed slaves in this area farmed, traded, and sold their labor to others while living in this settlement. A church was built and a cemetery was provided for their loved ones.

All that remains today is the cemetery. Some of the stones were broken or vandalized over the years. Several years ago, a troop of Boy Scouts came in and restored the cemetery, replacing the lost or broken stones with wooden crosses designating a grave. The name of "Little Africa" came about because of the black settlement, but "Paddy's Garden" was the name those early residents called it.

Demographics


As of the of 2000, there were 19,306 people, 7,621 households, and 5,342 families residing in the county. The was 19/km² (48/sq mi). There were 8,348 housing units at an average density of 8/km² (21/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 97.90%, 0.63% or , 0.31% , 0.17% , 0.01% , 0.25% from , and 0.73% from two or more races. 0.56% of the population were or  of any race. 38.0% were of, 18.1% , 11.8% and 10.3%  ancestry according to.

There were 7,621 households out of which 32.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.60% were living together, 8.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.90% were non-families. 26.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the county the population was spread out with 25.70% under the age of 18, 8.00% from 18 to 24, 28.00% from 25 to 44, 23.50% from 45 to 64, and 14.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 96.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $31,564, and the median income for a family was $38,505. Males had a median income of $28,658 versus $20,238 for females. The for the county was $16,717. About 9.00% of families and 12.40% of the population were below the, including 16.10% of those under age 18 and 12.90% of those age 65 or over.