Kouts is a town in Pleasant Township, Porter County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 2,028 at the 2020 census. Since 2010, Kouts has had a population growth of 7.90 percent. History Bernhardt Kautz moved here from Pennsylvania, before the arrival of the railroads, and established a farm where the town now sits. With the arrival of the Chicago and St. Louis Railway in 1865, Kautz and his brother-in-law H.A. Wright laid out the town and established a store. Known as Kouts Station, the town grew slowly until the Chicago and Erie Railroad intersected the line in Kouts. Soon, Kouts became the social and economic center of the township. Railroads Kouts would remain an important railroad town throughout the first half of the 20th century continuing to be served by the Erie Lackawanna Railway and the Pennsylvania Railroad. Railroad traffic in the town began to decline following the bankruptcy of the Pennsylvania Railroad's successor, the Penn Central and the creation of Conrail. As the also bankrupt Erie Lackawanna would similarly be absorbed into the new company. The surplus of Conrail track through Kouts would lead to a decline in both traffic and profitability. The passage of the Staggers Rail Act of 1980 allowed for U.S railways to abandon unprofitable lines, which Conrail would take advantage of in Kouts. First with the Erie Lackawanna tracks in 1981 and then the Pennsylvania tracks in 1984. Currently there are little remnants of Kouts railroading past except for the former Pennsylvania Railroad depot which has been converted into a private business. Geography According to the 2010 census, Kouts has a total area of , all land. Demographics 2000 census As of the census of 2000, there were 1,698 people, 678 households, and 499 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 720 housing units at an average density of 645.4/sq mi (248.2/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 99.00% White, 0.12% Asian, 0.65% from other races, and 0.24% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.24% of the population. There were 678 households, out of which 34.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.5% were married couples living together, 9.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.4% were non-families. 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.6% had someone living alone