Evansville, IN–KY Metropolitan Statistical Area

Updated on Dec 05, 2023

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Country United States Largest city Evansville Lowest elevation 320 ft (98 m)		State(s) Indiana, Kentucky Highest elevation 595 ft (181 m) Area 6,131 km²

Other cities – Boonville – Henderson – Newburgh – Princeton – Mount Vernon

The Evansville, IN–KY, Metropolitan Statistical Area is the 142nd largest Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) in the United States. The primary city is Evansville, Indiana, the largest city in Southern Indiana and hub for Southwestern Indiana. Other Indiana cities include Boonville, Mount Vernon, Oakland City, and Princeton. Large towns in Indiana include Chandler, Fort Branch, and Newburgh. Cities in Kentucky include Henderson, Dixon, Providence, and Robards and currently covers an area of 2,367 sq mi (6,130 km²). It is the primary metropolitan area in the Illinois–Indiana–Kentucky Tri-State Area.

History

It was originally named the Evansville, IN, Standard Metropolitan Area and was formed by the United States Census Bureau in 1950, consisting solely of Vanderburgh County, Indiana. As surrounding counties saw an increase in their population densities and the number of residents employed within Vanderburgh County, they met Census criteria to be added to the MSA. Four Indiana counties and two Kentucky counties are now a part of this MSA.

Because it includes counties in both Indiana and Kentucky, the Evansville metropolitan area is sometimes referred to as "Kentuckiana". The entire region is usually referred to as the Tri-State because of Illinois bordering Posey County less than 20 miles west of Evansville and to distinguish it from the Louisville metropolitan area.

Possibilities for expansion and combination

Another Kentucky county, Union, and two Illinois counties, White and Wabash, may be added to the metropolitan area as a significant amount of all three counties' populations commute to jobs in Vanderburgh County or any of the other five counties. Another Indiana County, Spencer, may find itself in either the Evansville or Owensboro areas. There is also a possibility that the Owensboro and Evansville Metros could become the Evansville–Owensboro, IL–IN–KY Combined Statistical Area as travel time decreases and interaction increases with improved infrastructure between the two areas with Interstate 69, the expansion of the Lloyd Expressway, as well as the new U.S. 231 corridor. The two metro areas are already a single television market.