Delaware County Case Study

Delaware County, Indiana is home to 117,074 people according to the United States census. The county is home to the eleventh largest city in the state of Indiana and the third largest university in the state. With the area having such a large footprint on the rest of the state, the next part to understand is how Delaware County became what it is today. The lasting impacts the community has had on millions of people throughout the last 200 years have been thanks in part to a massive expansion in population, infrastructure, and industry. Those expansions started with a boom of the economy in the middle to late 1800s due to the discovery of natural gas in east central Indiana. Starting with the way of life before that discovery, the Delaware County region expanded because of multiple people and industries and now enjoys many successes even years after the gas boom. The gas boom in Delaware County not only affected the area immediately in a positive way, but it also impacted the area in the long run that still to this day affect the way of life in a positive manner.
Before the gas boom even began, a man by the name of James Boyce played a part in preparing for an event such as the boom of 1876. While agriculture was the main source of income for people in the area prior to the industrial era, there was still a need for commercial zoning in Muncie and the rest of Delaware County. Boyce was the key contributor in developing the commercial district in Muncie and promptly named it Boyce Block. The work that he did in creating the sense that businesses could survive within the Muncie area helped to attract companies once the gas boom occurred. People such as the Ball brothers and leaders of other major industries were able to look and see what James Boyce had started and realized that there was reason to believe in the potential that Muncie