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Indiana counties' continued growth comes in suburban areas and among residents from abroad
March 9, 2000
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- New population estimates released by the U.S. Bureau of the Census indicate that more than half of Indiana's 92 counties are growing faster than the state as a whole, with migration into the state accounting for much of this growth, according to an Indiana University researcher.
Population estimates released by the Census Bureau today (March 9) showed that 47 counties in Indiana have grown faster than the state average of 7.2 percent since the most recent census in 1990. Thirty counties have grown in population since 1990, but more slowly than the state as a whole. Seven Hoosier counties have seen little net population change since the census -- less than 1 percent -- and eight Indiana counties have experienced population decline of 1 percent or more between 1990 and 1999.
The fastest-growing Hoosier county continues to be Hamilton County, home of rapidly growing Fishers, Noblesville and Carmel. Hamilton County has added more than 63,000 persons since the 1990 census, for a growth rate of 58 percent between 1990 and 1999. Hamilton County has led the state in population growth rate for each year in the decade, with a rate of about 5 percent each year.
Hamilton County also has been the fastest-growing county in the Midwest (Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Kentucky) since 1990 and the 27th fastest-growing county in the nation. The fastest-growing counties in the nation since the 1990 census are in Colorado and Georgia.
Other Hoosier counties experiencing high rates of growth since 1990 include Hendricks County, which has grown by 30.5 percent; Johnson County, 27.9 percent; Dearborn County, 23.6 percent; and Hancock, 22.2 percent.
"The high population growth rates in these suburban Hoosier counties are consistent with growth patterns experienced by the nation as a whole, with much of the rapid population growth occurring in suburban areas," said Joan Rainey, research director of the Indiana Business Research Center in IU's Kelley School of Business.
The IU center serves as the state's official liaison with the U.S. Bureau of the Census and is working with the state and its localities to provide a full and accurate count in the next census scheduled for this spring. April 1 is census day in Indiana.
The population estimates were produced using a demographic model and are not the result of an attempt to directly count people, as will be done in this year's census. This set of estimates was produced by the U.S. Bureau of the Census using a demographic technique called the Tax Return Method. Estimates are produced annually, and when estimates for the next year are released, estimates for previous years are corrected and/or revised to reflect more up-to-date information that may be available.
Hoosier counties with growth rates exceeding 15 percent since 1990 were Morgan, Owen, Washington, Jennings, Jasper, Harrison, Boone, Warrick, Switzerland, Steuben and Lagrange counties.
Hamilton County also led the state in population growth from 1998 to 1999, with a growth rate of 5.7 percent for the year, compared with 0.6 percent for the state. The increase of 9,300 persons between 1998 and 1999 represented the county's largest annual increase in population. Other counties experiencing growth of 2 percent or more between 1998 and 1999 were Hendricks, Johnson, Morgan, Boone, Harrison and Hancock counties.
Rainey said domestic migration is driving the population growth, with the fastest- growing Hoosier counties experiencing the largest amounts of positive net domestic migration, or more people from other states and counties moving in than moving out.
Not surprising is the fact that international migration to Indiana has steadily increased since 1990, she said, and the counties with the largest numbers of the state's new international residents have the largest populations: Marion, Lake and Allen counties.
Indiana's 10 largest counties, in terms of population, are Marion, Lake, Allen, St. Joseph, Elkhart, Hamilton, Vanderburgh, Porter, Tippecanoe and Madison counties. Hamilton County passed Vanderburgh County in 1999 to become the sixth most-populous county in the state.
The smallest Indiana counties are Ohio, Union, Warren, Switzerland and Benton counties, each with a population of less than 10,000 people.
Marion County's population has seen an overall increase of 13,800 persons since 1990, but has experienced a population decline of 4,800 persons since 1996.
Earlier in the decade, Marion County's natural increase -- more births than deaths -- exceeded its out-migration, resulting in population growth. However, since 1996, the county's out-migration has exceeded its natural increase, resulting in a population loss. Marion County has experienced growing domestic out-migration during the decade, and an increasing number of people have moved from the county to other states. Migration from other countries to Marion County has increased steadily throughout the decade.
Miami County has lost population since the 1990 census due to the restructuring of Grissom Air Force Base in the early 1990s. Miami County's population is down by 8.9 percent since the census, but the county has seen population increases in each of the most recent four years, with population growth of over 1,200 persons since 1995.
Other counties experiencing population decline since 1990 are Delaware County, which has an estimated 4,200 fewer persons or a population decline of 3.5 percent; Grant County, down 2,100 persons or 2.8 percent; Vigo County, down 1,800 persons or 1.7 percent; and Knox County, down 800 persons or 2.1 percent. Counties showing smaller rates of decline include Wabash, Wayne and Blackford counties.
For more information about the new estimates, call Joan Rainey of the IBRC at 812-855-5507 or go to the center's Web site at http://www.iupui.edu/it/ibrc
(George Vlahakis, 812-855-0846, gvlahaki@indiana.edu)