kids encyclopedia robot

Southwestern Indiana facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
"Southwest Indiana" redirects here. For the community in Elkhart County, see Southwest, Indiana.
Quick facts for kids
Southwestern Indiana
Region
Evansville skyline
Evansville skyline
Counties of Southwestern Indiana
Counties of Southwestern Indiana
Country  United States
State  Indiana
Largest city Evansville
Population
474,251

Southwestern Indiana is a special part of southern Indiana, United States. It's made up of 11 counties and is located at the very bottom and west side of the state. In 2010, about 474,251 people lived here.

Evansville is the biggest city in this area. It's also a main center for a larger region that includes parts of Kentucky and Illinois. Other important towns are Jasper, Vincennes, and Washington. Even though Indiana is a Midwestern state, Southwestern Indiana has a culture and way of speaking that feels more like the Upland South. It's a mix of Midwest and Southern influences!

Exploring Southwestern Indiana's Geography

The land in Southwestern Indiana is very interesting and changes a lot. You can find big forests, wet marshlands, rolling fields, and flat valleys. Towards the north and east, there are also low mountains, high hills, and sharp valleys.

Rivers and Waterways

Every county in Southwestern Indiana has a river as part of its border.

  • The Wabash River runs along the west.
  • The Ohio River forms the southern border.
  • The White River splits into two parts, dividing the six northern counties.
  • Many other smaller rivers are also important.

More than half of the borders for Daviess, Knox, Perry, Posey, and Spencer Counties are made by a river or creek. For Gibson and Pike counties, rivers make up almost half of their borders. Knox County is almost like a "river peninsula" because about 80% of its borders are rivers! A big part of this area is also in the Wabash Valley Seismic Zone, which means it's an area where earthquakes can happen.

City Layouts and History

Towns in Southwestern Indiana have different designs.

  • Vincennes is laid out in a French style, with streets forming squares.
  • Jasper and Princeton use a standard grid pattern.
  • Evansville has both styles. Its downtown follows the river, while the rest of the city is a grid.

Southwestern Indiana is home to some of Indiana's oldest counties. Knox County is the very oldest county in the state! Gibson, Perry, Posey, and Warrick counties were even created before Indiana became a state. Pike County was the first county made after Indiana became a state. The newest county in this region is Martin County, created in 1820.

How Southwestern Indiana is Organized

Many Indiana state groups and businesses see Southwestern Indiana as one whole area. All the counties in Southwestern Indiana are part of Indiana's 8th Congressional District. Most of the area is also part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Evansville, which is a church region. However, Perry County and a part of Spencer County belong to a different church region called the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.

This region is also known for its wine! The southern part of Southwestern Indiana is in the Ohio River Valley American Viticultural Area. This is the second-largest wine-growing area in the United States. It includes all of Perry, Posey, Spencer, Vanderburgh, and Warrick Counties, plus most of Gibson County, and parts of Pike and Dubois Counties.

Counties of Southwestern Indiana

Here's a look at the counties that make up Southwestern Indiana:

IN
No.		 County
name
 Established
date
 County
seat
 Time
zone
 Population
(2015)
 Area
sq mi (km2)
 Twps
 ZIP code
Prefix(es)
  % of
Boundary
by water
14 Daviess February 2, 1818 Washington Eastern 32,906 437 sq mi (1,130 km2) 10 475 55%
19 Dubois December 20, 1817 Jasper Eastern 42,461 435 sq mi (1,130 km2) 12 475 24%
26 Gibson April 1, 1813 Princeton Central 33,775 526 sq mi (1,360 km2) 10 475/476 59%
42 Knox June 6, 1790 Vincennes Eastern 37,927 516 sq mi (1,340 km2) 10 475/478 84%
51 Martin January 7, 1820 Shoals Eastern 10,226 341 sq mi (880 km2) 6 475 18%
62 Perry November 1, 1814 Tell City Central 19,347 386 sq mi (1,000 km2) 7 474/475 52%
63 Pike December 21, 1816 Petersburg Eastern 12,594 342 sq mi (890 km2) 9 475/476 35%
65 Posey November 11, 1814 Mt. Vernon Central 25,512 429 sq mi (1,110 km2) 10 476 63%
74 Spencer January 10, 1818 Rockport Central 20,715 401 sq mi (1,040 km2) 9 475/476 73%
82 Vanderburgh January 7, 1818 Evansville Central 181,877 236 sq mi (610 km2) 8 476/477 26%
87 Warrick April 30, 1813 Boonville Central 61,897 424 sq mi (1,100 km2) 10 475/476/477 19%

Major Cities and Their Areas

Southwestern Indiana has several important city areas.

Evansville Metropolitan Area

The Evansville area is a large region that includes cities like Evansville, Henderson, and Princeton. It covers counties in both Indiana and Kentucky. In 2005, about 352,943 people lived here.

Smaller City Areas

There are also smaller city areas, called micropolitan areas:

Highways in Southwestern Indiana

Southwest Indiana Townships
The Townships of Southwestern Indiana

Interstate Highways

  • I-64.svg Interstate 64: This older highway runs east to west. It's mostly flat in some counties but gets very hilly as it goes through Warrick County and towards Perry County.
  • I-69.svg Interstate 69: This newer highway connects Evansville to Bloomington and eventually Indianapolis. It's flat near Evansville but becomes hilly in Gibson and Pike counties. Some parts in Daviess County are flatter, but it gets very hilly again as it leaves the area.

U.S. Highways

  • US 41.svg U.S. Route 41: This four-lane highway goes all the way from Florida to Michigan. It passes through Evansville, becoming six lanes in some parts. It also goes around Princeton and Vincennes.
  • US 50.svg U.S. Route 50: This highway stretches from Maryland to California. In Southwestern Indiana, it's a winding two-lane road in the east, but becomes four lanes near Washington. It joins US 41 near Vincennes and crosses into Illinois on the Red Skelton Bridge.
  • US 150.svg U.S. Route 150: This road runs with US 50 from Vincennes to Shoals, then heads east on its own.
  • US 231.svg U.S. Route 231: This highway is mostly new and has four lanes. It's being updated to connect Rockport to Greene County, where it will meet Interstate 69.

Fun Festivals and Celebrations

Southwestern Indiana has many exciting festivals and events throughout the year!

Time Zones: Central vs. Eastern

Main article: Time in Indiana

For many years, from 1966 to 2006, five counties in Southwestern Indiana (Gibson, Posey, Spencer, Vanderburgh, and Warrick) used Central Daylight Time. The other six counties (Daviess, Dubois, Knox, Martin, Perry, and Pike) stayed on Eastern Standard Time all year, like most of the rest of Indiana.

In 2006, the governor of Indiana, Mitch Daniels, made a new rule. He wanted all Indiana counties to use Daylight Time and switch to Eastern Daylight Time. This caused a lot of confusion in Southwestern and Northwestern Indiana. Counties started to decide if they wanted to go back to the Central Time Zone or stay in the Eastern Time Zone and start observing Daylight Time. On April 2, 2006, all of Southwestern Indiana ended up in the Central Time Zone.

But soon after, people started to complain. One big problem was that the Crane Naval Surface Warfare Center became a "time island." This meant its workers were on a different time than many nearby areas. The workers asked for Martin County to switch back to Eastern Time. This started a chain reaction, and many counties asked to go back to Eastern Time, including some that had been in the Central Time Zone.

On September 20, 2007, after only 15 months, the government decided to move only five of the eight counties back to the Eastern Time Zone. Gibson, Perry, and Spencer counties did not get enough support to switch. However, Daviess, Knox, and Pike counties were moved to Eastern Time because it was thought to be better for business. In Dubois County, there was a big debate between Huntingburg and Jasper. Huntingburg's economy was more connected to the Central Time Zone, while Jasper felt it was better for their businesses to be on Eastern Time. In the end, Daviess, Dubois, Knox, Martin, and Pike counties went back to the Eastern Time Zone on November 4, 2007. This meant Southwestern Indiana was divided by time zones once again.

kids search engine
All content from Kiddle encyclopedia articles (including the article images and facts) can be freely used under Attribution-ShareAlike license, unless stated otherwise. Cite this article:
Southwestern Indiana Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.