Washington

Formed December 21, 1813 (10^th county)

Washington County (28,176), Salem (6,365)

A unique tower sits on the stone structure, built in 1888, in a square at the intersection of Market and Main streets.  Indiana State Highway 135 is Main Street in the town.  Harry, Kenneth, and Roy McDonald are the architects of this Richardsonian Romanesque courthouse.  There are veteran memorials on the grounds.  Washington County was formed on December 21, 1813 as the 10^th county and named for United States President George Washington.  He is also the namesake for the county seat of Daviess County.  The county was taken from parts of Clark, Harrison, and Knox counties.  One tradition says the county seat is named for Salem, North Carolina while another says it comes from Salem, Massachusetts.  Salem has always been the county seat. 

Washington County government consists of a sheriff, an auditor, a clerk, a coroner, a treasurer, and an assessor (executive).  It has 7 Council Members (legislative.)  A Circuit Court Judge, a Superior Court Judge, and a prosecutor serve Washington County (judicial.) The county is in the southern part of Indiana.  Indianapolis, Indiana is north and Louisville, Kentucky is southeast of the county.  The county center is 7.7 miles Northeast of Salem.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Jackson, Scott, Clark, Floyd, Harrison, Crawford, Orange, and Lawrence counties. 

The area of the county is 514 square miles.  It is 7 out of 92 in the state.  It ranks 57 out of 92 in population in the state.  It has a density of 54.8 persons per square mile making it 71 out of 92 in the state.  Washington County has 31.3% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 150 cuts the southwest corner of the county from Orange County, west, to Harrison County, south.  The county is a small letter r.  Salem is slightly west of center in the county.  Salem is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 22.6% of the county population.  This county is in the Louisville/Jefferson County Metropolitan Statistical Area.