Kokomo, IN

Kokomo (/ˈkoʊkəmoʊ/ KOH-kə-moh) is a city in and the county seat of Howard County, Indiana, United States. As of the 2020 census, Kokomo had a population of 59,604. It is the principal city of the Kokomo metropolitan area, which includes all of Howard County, and it is the largest city and regional center for the North-central Indiana region consisting of about 225,000 people across six counties anchored by the city of Kokomo. The city is located roughly 60 miles (97 km) north of Indianapolis and 85 miles (137 km) south of South Bend, Indiana.

Named for the Miami Ma-Ko-Ko-Mo, who was called “Chief Kokomo”, Kokomo first benefited from the legal business associated with being the county seat. Before the Civil War, it was connected with Indianapolis and then the eastern cities by railroad, which resulted in sustained growth. Substantial growth came after the discovery of large natural gas reserves, which produced an economic boom in the mid-1880s. Among the businesses that the boom attracted was the fledgling automobile industry. A significant number of technical and engineering innovations were developed in Kokomo, particularly in automobile production, and as a result, Kokomo became known as the “City of Firsts”. A substantial portion of Kokomo’s employment still depends on the automobile industry.