1. GIS in Prevention, County Profiles, Series 4 (2007) 3. Geographic and Historical Notes 1 Indiana Prevention Resource Center GIS in Prevention County Profiles Series, No. 4 Benton County, Indiana Barbara Seitz de Martinez, PhD, MLS, CPP, Project Director The Indiana Prevention Resource Center at Indiana University is funded, in part, by a contract with the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, financially supported through HHS/Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Block Grant. The IPRC is operated by the Department of Applied Health Science and The School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation.

2. GIS in Prevention, County Profiles, Series 4 (2007) 3. Geographic and Historical Notes GIS in Prevention County Profile Series, No. 4 Benton County, Indiana Barbara Seitz de Martinez, PhD, MLS, CPP Project Director Project Staff : Indiana Prevention Resource Center Opinions expressed herein are those of the authors, and not necessarily those of the Trustees of Indiana University or the Division of Mental Health and Addiction. Indiana University accepts full Responsibility for the content of this publication. ©2005 The Trustees of Indiana University. Permission is extended to reproduce this County Profile for non-profit educational purposes. All other rights reserved. Ritika Bhawal, MPH Ryan Chopra, MPH Kyoungsun Heo, MPA Tuba M. Pervin Altay, MPH

3. GIS in Prevention, County Profiles, Series 4 (2007) 3. Geographic and Historical Notes Benton County Map The maps and tables in this publication were prepared using PCensus for MapInfo and MapInfo Professional.

4. GIS in Prevention, County Profiles, Series 4 (2007) 3. Geographic and Historical Notes Benton County is located in south central Indiana. It is bordered by Illinois to the west, Newton and Jasper counties to the north, White to the northeast, Tippecanoe to the southeast, and Warren County to the south. U.S. Highways 41 and 52 cross Benton County. The landscape features oak, elm, ash, cottonwood, and hickory. This county is part of the Northern Illinois and Indiana Heavy Till Plain land resource area. The landscape is nearly flat across almost all of the county, but slopes slightly along the Pine Creek and tributaries in the southeast. This County is in the Eastern Time Zone and observes DST. Average daily January temperatures are 14 ٥ / 32 ٥ in January and 62 ٥ / 85 ٥ in July. Annual precipitation is 34-38 and snowfall 20-36 inches. Typically the first freeze of the season is around October 10-15 and the last freeze is around April 25-30 (southeast) and May 1- 5 (northwest). The growing season lasts about 158-173 days. Main agricultural activities and crops include corn for grain, soybeans, and sweet corn. Nuts, strawberries and apples are grown. Main vegetable crops are sweet corn, pumpkins and snap beans. A special crops is popcorn. Main natural resources include commercial forestland. Cities include Fowler, the county seat. Towns include Ambia, Boswell, Earl Park, Fowler, Otterbein (which extends into Tippecanoe County), and Oxford. Townships include Bolivar, Center, Gilboa, Grant, Hickory Grove, Oak Grove, Parish Grove, Pine, Richland, Union and York. 3. Geographic and Historical Notes Sources: Map from PCensus for MapInfo; Notes from Indiana Facts: Flying the Colors by John Clements, 1995.

5. GIS in Prevention, County Profiles, Series 4 (2007) 3. Geographic and Historical Notes Benton County The maps and tables in this publication were prepared using PCensus 7.06 for MapInfo and MapInfo Professional 7.0.

6. GIS in Prevention, County Profiles, Series 4 (2007) 3. Geographic and Historical Notes Famous sons and daughters of Benton County include Donald Williams and Dan Patch. Donald Williams was a space shuttle crew commander on Atlantis in 1989. Williams loved watching the night sky from his farm home in Otterbein. Dan Patch was a racehorse from Oxford at the turn of the 20 th century. He competed nationally, never lost, was acclaimed perhaps the nation’s greatest athlete, and was used to market a myriad of products. (Nelson Price, Indiana Legends, Carmel: Guild Press of Indiana, Inc., 1997, p. 123, 244, 258, 259) Benton County is not a tobacco-producing county, according to the Strategic Development Group’s “Alternative Agricultural Strategy” (Bloomington, March 15, 2001) report, which is part of Governor Joseph E. Kernan’s “Recipient Final Reports for Office of the Commissioner of Agriculture Grant Programs” (http://www.in.gov/oca/grants/valueadd/VAFinalReports.html):http://www.in.gov/oca/grants/valueadd/VAFinalReports.html 3. Location and Historical Notes

7. GIS in Prevention, County Profiles, Series 4 (2007) 3. Geographic and Historical Notes Don’t Know Your Block Group Number? You can find it easily at the American Factfinder Web Site (www.census.gov)www.census.gov 3. Benton County Block Group Maps

8. GIS in Prevention, County Profiles, Series 4 (2007) 3. Geographic and Historical Notes Benton County Block Groups Close-up