Lawrence County, Indiana

Named for War of 1812 captain James "Don't give up the ship" Lawrence and organized in 1818

County Seat: Bedford

Largest City: Bedford (2023 population: 13,855)

Population per Square Mile: 100.61

Square Miles: 449.20

Go to county's in.gov site

Population over Time	Number	Rank in State	Percent of State	Indiana
Yesterday (2020)	45,011	34	0.7%	6,484,050
Today (2024)	45,192	34	0.7%	6,924,275
Tomorrow (2030 projection)*	44,576	35	0.6%	7,013,509
Percent Change 2020 to Today	0.4%	65		2.0%

*Projection based on 2020 Census population estimates.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau; Indiana Business Research Center

Components of Population Change, 2023-2024	Number	Rank in State	Percent of State	Indiana
Net Domestic Migration	327	15		4,268
Net International Migration	14	70		30,852
Natural Increase (births minus deaths)	-181	85	-2.0%	9,159

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Population Estimates by Age, 2023	Number	Rank in State	Pct Dist. in County	Pct Dist. in State
Preschool (0 to 4)	2,499	38	5.5%	5.9%
School Age (5 to 17)	7,031	39	15.6%	17.2%
College Age (18 to 24)	3,325	41	7.4%	9.6%
Young Adult (25 to 44)	10,775	34	23.9%	25.8%
Older Adult (45 to 64)	12,094	30	26.8%	24.2%
Seniors (65 and older)	9,360	30	20.8%	17.2%
Median Age	43.0			Median Age = 38.2

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau; Indiana Business Research Center

Population Estimates by Race and Hispanic Origin, 2023	Number	Rank of	Pct Dist. in County	Pct Dist. in State
American Indian or Alaska Native Alone	260	29	0.6%	0.5%
Asian Alone	287	38	0.6%	2.9%
Black Alone	290	58	0.6%	10.4%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pac. Isl. Alone	18	48	0.0%	0.1%
White	43,566	32	96.6%	83.7%
Two or More Race Groups	663	37	1.5%	2.5%
Hispanic or Latino Origin (can be of any race)
Non-Hispanic	44,139	30	97.9%	91.2%
Hispanic	945	58	2.1%	8.8%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Household Types	Number	Rank in State	Pct Dist. in County	Pct Dist. in State
Households in 2023 (Includes detail not shown below)	19,156	29	100.0%	100.0%
Married With Children	3,298	35	17.2%	18.1%
Married Without Children	5,952	31	31.1%	29.3%
Single Parents	1,286	39	6.7%	8.9%
Living Alone	5,958	27	31.1%	29.6%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

Housing	Number	Rank in State	Pct Dist. in County	Pct Dist. in State
Total Housing Units in 2023 (estimate)	20,573	30	100.0%	100.0%
Total Housing Units in 2023 (includes vacant units)	20,530	30	100.0%	100.0%
Owner Occupied (Pct. distribution based on all housing units)	15,321	29	74.6%	63.9%
Median Value (2023)	$164,500	51
Renter Occupied (Pct. distribution based on all housing units)	3,835	36	18.7%	26.9%
Median Rent (2023)	$599	61

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

Education	Number	Rank in State	Percent of State	Indiana
School Enrollment (2023/2024 Total Reported)	4,813	53	0.4%	1,124,877
Public	4,604	54	0.4%	1,032,265
Adults (25+ in 2023 ACS)	32,024	30	0.7%	4,559,304
with High School diploma or higher	90.4%	44		90.2%
with B.A. or higher degree	20.5%	35		28.8%

Sources: Indiana Department of Education; U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

Income and Poverty	Number	Rank in State	Percent of State	Indiana
Per Capita Personal Income (annual) in 2023	$54,421	45	88.9%	61,243
Median Household Income in 2023	64,958	54	93.5%	$69,458
Poverty Rate in 2023	12.1%	37	99.2%	12.2%
Poverty Rate among Children under 18	16.1%	36	106.6%	15.1%
Welfare (TANF) Monthly Average Families in 2024	18	40	0.4%	4,813
Food Stamp Recipients in 2024	3,690	30	0.6%	608,295
Free and Reduced Fee Lunch Recipients in 2023/2024	2,653	41	0.5%	497,203

Sources: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis; U.S. Census Bureau; Indiana Family Social Services Administration; Indiana Department of Education

Health and Vital Statistics	Number	Rank of	Percent of State	Indiana
Births, 2021	500	35	0.6%	79,946
Births to Teens, 2021	28	29	0.7%	3,845
Deaths, 2019	573	28	0.9%	66,005

Source: Indiana State Department of Health

Labor Force, 2024	Number	Rank in State	Percent of State	Indiana
Total Resident Labor Force	21,480	36	0.6%	3,455,992
Employed	20,505	36	0.6%	3,310,992
Unemployed	975	29	0.7%	145,000
Annual Unemployment Rate	4.5	18	107.1%	4.2
March 2025 Unemployment Rate	3.4	37	100.0%	3.4

Source: STATS Indiana, using data from the Indiana Department of Workforce Development

Employment and Earnings by Industry, 2023	Employment	Pct Dist. in County	Earnings ($000)	Pct Dist. In County	Avg. Earnings Per Job
Total by place of work	19,768	100.0%	$974,040	100.0%	$49,274
Wage and Salary	14,386	72.8%	$718,069	73.7%	$49,914
Farm Proprietors	659	3.3%	$10,810	1.1%	$16,404
Nonfarm Proprietors	4,723	23.9%	$80,976	8.3%	$17,145
Farm	696	3.5%	$13,282	1.4%	$19,083
Nonfarm	19,072	96.5%	$960,758	98.6%	$50,375
Private	17,248	87.3%	$852,759	87.5%	$49,441
Accommodation, Food Serv.	1,279	6.5%	$31,948	3.3%	$24,979
Arts, Ent., Recreation	197	1.0%	$1,654	0.2%	$8,396
Construction	1,301	6.6%	$66,189	6.8%	$50,875
Health Care, Social Serv.	2,619	13.2%	$138,601	14.2%	$52,921
Information	200	1.0%	$8,606	0.9%	$43,030
Manufacturing	2,608	13.2%	$239,419	24.6%	$91,802
Professional, Tech. Serv.	1,022	5.2%	$66,737	6.9%	$65,300
Retail Trade	2,518	12.7%	$79,892	8.2%	$31,728
Trans., Warehousing	633	3.2%	$25,275	2.6%	$39,929
Wholesale Trade	303	1.5%	$21,580	2.2%	$71,221
Other Private (not above)	4,568	23.1%	$172,858	17.7%	$37,841
Government	1,824	9.2%	$107,999	11.1%	$59,210

Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis

Residential Building Permits, 2023	Units	Pct Dist. in County	Pct Dist. in State	Cost ($000)	State Cost ($000)
Total Permits Filed	5	100.0%	100.0%	$599	$7,695,489
Single-Family	5	100.0%	63.0%	$599	$5,961,199
2-Family	0	0.0%	2.0%	0	$99,053
3- and 4-Family	0	0.0%	0.9%	$0	$40,460
5+ Family	0	0.0%	34.2%	$0	$1,594,777

Notes: Detail cost may not sum to total due to rounding. Greene County does not currently issue building permits, so it is excluded.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Largest Cities and Towns in Lawrence County

Name	Population in 2023	Percent of County
Bedford	13,855	30.7%
Mitchell	3,942	8.7%
Oolitic	1,135	2.5%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau annual population estimates