History

St. Joseph County, established in 1830, is a regional center for higher education, health, financial services and tourism. The County has a population of 264,779 with more than 6,300 businesses and a workforce of more than 138,000. Besides the commerce and industry of the South Bend area it is home to the University of Notre Dame, one of the nation’s leading private universities, and several other private colleges: Bethel College, Holy Cross College and St. Mary’s College, Indiana University also has a campus in South Bend.

Two major hospitals, one community hospital and three outpatient Medical Clinics and Surgicenters serve more than four hundred doctors in the County. Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) provides natural gas. NIPSCO, American Electric Power (AEP) provides electricity and several rural electrical cooperatives from Marshall County, Kankakee Valley, Walkerton, Mishawaka, and New Carlisle. The location of the County of many colleges along with the College Football Hall of Fame and the Studebaker National Museum in South Bend, creates a significant tourist industry, ranking fourth in the state for tourism revenue.

There are thirty-five taxing units in the County, including the County itself, thirteen Townships, nine municipalities, six school districts, four library districts, and two special districts. It also includes a Circuit Court with one judge and two magistrates, a Unified Superior Court with eight judges and two magistrates, and a Probate Court with one judge and three magistrates. The St. Joseph County Library and the Mishawaka-Penn Public Library, are the two major public libraries. There are 1,656 miles of road within the County, of which about 69% are County roads. Bus services provided by the South Bend Public Transportation Corporation (TRANSPO). Several modes of travel are provided by twenty-five motor carriers, four mainline railroads and the Michiana Regional Transportation Center in South Bend, which is an intermodal facility with air, bus, and train services, including the South Bend Railroad to Chicago, Illinois.

Potato Creek State Park (3,840 acres), is the largest recreational facility in the County with camping, horse trails, boating, cross-country skiing, a nature center, and a swimming beach. Five County and over one-hundred municipal parks provide 2,040 acres of parkland with many lakes and several rivers in the County. The University of Notre Dame, Indiana University South Bend, and the City of South Bend offer abundant cultural activities.

South Bend (population 107,789) is the County Seat and principal city in the County. With neighboring Mishawaka (population 42,635) and suburbs, the area contains well over 60% of the County’s population. The only other cities with populations exceeding 1,000 are: New Carlisle (1,505), North Liberty (1,402), Osceola (1,859), and Walkerton (2,274).