Индиана штатындағы Старк округі

County in Indiana, United States

Starke County is a county in the U. S. state of Indiana. As of the 2020 United States Census, its population was 23,371. The county seat is Knox.

The Indiana State Legislature passed an omnibus county bill on February 7, 1835, that authorized the creation of 13 counties in northeast Indiana, including Starke. The county government organization commenced in 1850. It was named for Gen. John Stark, who commanded New Hampshire troops at the Battle of Bunker Hill in 1775 in the American Revolutionary War, and who defeated the British at the Battle of Bennington in 1777. Before white settlement, all of the land that forms modern day Starke County and adjacent LaPorte County to the north was inhabited by the Potawatami Indian nation. These groups were forcibly removed to Kansas by the United States government in 1838, and many died on what has been called the Potawatomi Trail of Death. When Starke County was created, it included the present LaPorte County townships of Cass, Dewey, Hanna, and Prairie. Residents in this area had to travel some distance east to Lemon's Bridge to cross the Kankakee River to travel south to the center of the county, the future site of the county seat at Knox. Therefore, because they were effectively isolated from the rest of Starke County, residents north of the river petitioned to be annexed to LaPorte county and this was done on January 28, 1842.

Despite being named for General John Stark and originally being known and appearing on maps as Stark County when initially created and organized, an e was added to the county's name fairly early in its history. No solid evidence has been found to clearly explain this alteration. Three possible explanations have been advanced an early scribe had "fancy lettering", including a k with a long tail or flourish that appeared to others as ke, with the new spelling sticking; General Stark himself may have used a similar flourish at the end of his signature; which became a point of confusion to Indiana officials (unlikely, since Stark County, Ohio (1808) and Illinois (1839) both preceded Starke County, Indiana, not to mention numerous other smaller midwestern toponyms spelled "Stark"); or an Indianapolis official's clerical error around 1860.

Starke County consists of low, rolling hills covered with vegetation or brush. Its boundaries include three prominences that rise to 780 feet (238 m) above sea level two adjacent swells 0.6 mile (1 km) northeast of Bass Lake, and a small ridge 3.0 mile (5 km) east southeast of Bass Lake. According to the 2010 census, Starke County has a total area of 312.21 square miles (809 km2), of which 3.07 square miles (8 km2) (or 0.98%) are covered by water.