Prairie Township, Warren County, Indiana

Prairie Township
Township
Location of Prairie Township in Warren County
Location of Indiana in the United States
Coordinates: 40°26′28″N87°27′23″W / 40.44111°N 87.45639°W / 40.44111; -87.45639
Country	United States
State	Indiana
County	Warren
Established	1864
Government
• Type	Indiana township
Area
• Total	47.66 sq mi (123.4 km2)
• Land	47.66 sq mi (123.4 km2)
• Water	0 sq mi (0 km2)  0%
Elevation [1]	728 ft (222 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	230
• Density	4.8/sq mi (1.9/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
Area code	765
GNIS feature ID	453772

Prairie Township is one of twelve townships in Warren County, Indiana, United States. According to the 2020 census, its population was 230 and it contained 110 housing units; ^[2] the population density is the lowest of any township in the county, at 6.1 inhabitants per square mile (2.4/km²). ^[3]

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1890	763		—
1900	826		8.3%
1910	792		−4.1%
1920	801		1.1%
1930	838		4.6%
1940	742		−11.5%
1950	667		−10.1%
1960	583		−12.6%
1970	397		−31.9%
1980	396		−0.3%
1990	318		−19.7%
2000	290		−8.8%
2010	257		−11.4%
2020	230		−10.5%
Source: US Decennial Census [4]

History

Prairie Township was formed in 1864 out of a portion of Pine Township. ^[5]

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the township has a total area of 47.66 square miles (123.4 km²), all land. ^[3] It is almost entirely agricultural and contains a single town, Tab. Two other small communities in the eastern part of the township, Locust Grove and Walnut Grove, dwindled away during the 20th century and are now extinct.

Map of Prairie Township

Cloudscape over fields near Tab

Transportation

U.S. Route 41 runs along a portion of the township's eastern border, starting at the northeastern corner and going south for about 1 mile (1.6 km) before veering to the east. ^[6] Indiana State Road 26 runs from the Illinois state line and across the northern part of the township, reaching U.S. Route 41 at the eastern border. ^[7] Indiana State Road 352 leaves State Road 26 at the western border and runs north for about 1 mile (1.6 km) before leaving the township (and the county) on its way through the small town of Ambia in Benton County. ^[8] The township contains Dalton Airport.

Education

Most of Prairie township lies in the Benton Community School Corporation, and the southern portion of Prairie Township is part of the Metropolitan School District of Warren County. ^[9]

Government

Prairie Township has a trustee who administers rural fire protection and ambulance service, provides relief to the poor, manages cemetery care, and performs farm assessment, among other duties. The trustee is assisted in these duties by a three-member township board. The trustees and board members are elected to four-year terms. ^[10]

Prairie Township is part of Indiana's 8th congressional district, Indiana House of Representatives District 42, ^[11] and Indiana State Senate District 38. ^[12]

References

1. "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
2. "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
3. "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County – County Subdivision and Place – 2010 Census Summary File 1". United States Census. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved May 10, 2013.
4. "Township Census Counts: STATS Indiana".
5. Warren County Historical Society 1966, p. 94.
6. "U.S. Route 41". Highway Explorer. Archived from the original on December 7, 2010. Retrieved September 21, 2010.
7. "State Road 26". Highway Explorer. Archived from the original on October 7, 2011. Retrieved September 21, 2010.
8. "State Road 352". Highway Explorer. Archived from the original on October 3, 2012. Retrieved September 21, 2010.
9. "Corporation Snapshot, M S D Warren County #8115". Indiana Department of Education. Archived from the original on July 6, 2002. Retrieved January 27, 2011.
10. "Government". United Township Association of Indiana. Retrieved January 6, 2011.
11. "Indiana Senate" (PDF). State of Indiana. Retrieved December 2, 2013.
12. "Indiana House Districts" (PDF). State of Indiana. Retrieved December 2, 2013.

• "Prairie Township, Warren County, Indiana". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior . Retrieved September 24, 2009.
• United States Census Bureau TIGER/Line Shapefiles

Bibliography

• Goodspeed, Weston A. (1883). "Part II. History of Warren County". Counties of Warren, Benton, Jasper and Newton, Indiana. Chicago: F. A. Battey and Company. pp. 31–156. Retrieved September 19, 2010.
• Clifton, Thomas, ed. (1913). Past and Present of Fountain and Warren Counties Indiana. Indianapolis: B. F. Bowen and Company. pp. 201–335. Retrieved September 19, 2010.
• Warren County Historical Society (1966). A History of Warren County, Indiana. Williamsport, Indiana.
• Warren County Historical Society (2002). A History of Warren County, Indiana (175th Anniversary Edition). Williamsport, Indiana.