Howard County, Indiana
county in Indiana, United States
Howard County is one of 92 counties in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 83,658. The county seat is Kokomo. Originally named Richardville County, it was renamed in 1846 to commemorate General Tilghman Ashurst Howard.
Howard County comprises the Kokomo Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau. Kokomo is also the principal city of the area known as North Central Indiana, the area around Kokomo with economic ties. The six county area including Cass, Clinton, Fulton, Howard, Miami, and Tipton counties had population of 228,331 people in 2010.
Geography
According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 293.92 square miles (761.2 km2), of which 293.06 square miles (759.0 km2) (or 99.71%) is land and 0.86 square miles (2.2 km2) (or 0.29%) is water.
Adjacent counties
Miami County, Indiana (North)
Grant County, Indiana (East)
Tipton County, Indiana (South)
Clinton County, Indiana (Southwest)
Carroll County, Indiana (West)
Cass County, Indiana (Northwest)
History
This county was organized in 1844. It was first known as Richardville County.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Howard County, Indiana” as county in Indiana, United States. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as county in Indiana, United States. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 16, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q507353. VIAF identifies the subject as 123172057. The Library of Congress control number is n82010888. Authority coordinates are 40.480, -86.120. 4 of 5 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2020, 1846, 2010 and 1844.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Howard County, Indiana”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Howard County, Indiana primary sources, Howard County, Indiana archive and Howard research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Howard County, Indiana”?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Howard County, Indiana” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.