Jay County

Portland | Dunkirk
Bryant | Redkey
| Salamonia

Area

384.08 sq mi

Population

20,993

Density

55/sq mi

County Seat

Portland

Events

Redkey Gas Boom Days
August

Tri-State Antique Gas Engine & Tractor Show
August

Jay County Heritage Festival
September

Pennville Pumpkin Festival
October

Top Employers

FCC (Indiana)

Tyson

Ardagh Group

Motherson Sumi Systems, Ltd.

ATI - Forged Products

Notable Residents

Elwood Haynes
Inventor

Kevin Ford
Astronaut

Trivia

The Natural Gas Boom of East Central Indiana began right here in Jay County in 1886.

Jay County has one of the most competitive and sought-after robotics teams in the Nation.

Key Palace Theatre is home to one of the top 10 historic blues music venues in the U.S.

Ardagh Industries in Dunkirk produces an average of 2.5 million beer bottles per day for Budweiser.

Get to know Jay County

Ambassador: Mark Levall

Mark grew up in Redkey, and after going to college at IU, moved back and currently lives out in the country between Redkey and Portland. He married his wife Shelli in 2014 and they have 5 kids and several grandkids. Mark and Shelli took the leap of purchasing a building in downtown Redkey in 2017 and opened their store, Redkey Junktion, which has expanded to include a large vendor section. In addition to the Fire Dept, he is currently involved with the Redkey Fun For Kidz, Redkey Festival Committee, Jay County Visitor and Tourism Board, Redkey Economic Development Board, and Jay County Development Corporation Board.

Visting Jay County? I may be a little biased, but my favorite place in Jay County is Historic Downtown Redkey. It is exciting to see the small town I grew up in coming back to life with a new genre of downtown businesses opening, and Gas Boom Days in August continuing to grow.

See More ECI Ambassadors >