Steele Township is one of ten

townships A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, C ...

Daviess County, Indiana Daviess County is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 31,648. The county seat is Washington. About 15% of the county's population is Amish of Swiss origin, as of 2017. History After ...

. As of the 2010 census, its population was 903 and it contained 399 housing units.

History

Steele Township was organized in 1835 out of what had been northern Washington Township. It was settled later than most other Daviess County townships—the earliest settlers in the county were primarily hillfolk from

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 36th-largest by ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

, and

the Carolinas The Carolinas are the U.S. states of North Carolina and South Carolina, considered collectively. They are bordered by Virginia to the north, Tennessee to the west, and Georgia to the southwest. The Atlantic Ocean is to the east. Combining Nor ...

; they were unfamiliar with the

bottomland Upland and lowland are conditional descriptions of a plain based on elevation above sea level. In studies of the ecology of freshwater rivers, habitats are classified as upland or lowland. Definitions Upland and lowland are portions of p ...

prevalent in the township, and folklore of the day held that

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. ...

was far more prevalent in lowlands. The first settlement was made around 1820; in the township's earliest years, it was isolated by poor transportation, but the construction of the

Wabash and Erie Canal The Wabash and Erie Canal was a shipping canal that linked the Great Lakes to the Ohio River via an artificial waterway. The canal provided traders with access from the Great Lakes all the way to the Gulf of Mexico. Over 460 miles long, it was th ...

led to an economic boom for a short time, before the canal was abandoned.Fulkerson, A.O., ed. ''History of Daviess County Indiana: Its People, Industries, and Institutions''. Bowen:

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

, 1915, 278–279.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the township has a total area of , of which (or 98.55%) is land and (or 1.45%) is water. Melton Pond is in this township.

Cities and towns

* Plainville

Unincorporated towns

* Capehart

Adjacent townships

* Elmore Township (northeast) * Bogard Township (east) * Washington Township (south) * Vigo Township, Knox County (northwest)

Major highways

* *

Cemeteries

The township contains one cemetery, Plainville.

References

United States Census Bureau cartographic boundary files

U.S. Board on Geographic Names

External links

Indiana Township Association

United Township Association of Indiana
{{authority control Townships in Daviess County, Indiana Townships in Indiana Populated places established in 1835 1835 establishments in Indiana