On January 21, 1818, the northern portion of Sullivan County was partitioned off to create Vigo County. The first county commissioners organized the government later that same year including naming Terre Haute as its seat. The county’s borders changed several times in 1821, for example, part of the county was formed into Parke County, and later that year Putnam County was formed which also affected Vigo’s borders. The county is named after former Colonel Francis Vigo who was one of George Rogers Clark’s rigt hand men. The county has a total area of 410 square miles along with a population count of 107,038 residents.