Crawfordsville, Indiana

City of Crawfordsville, Indiana
—  City  —
Crawfordsville Courthouse, 1997
Nickname(s): Athens of Indiana (William Compton, 1825)[1]
Location in the state of Indiana
Coordinates: 40°2′20″N 86°53′48″W / 40.03889°N 86.89667°W / 40.03889; -86.89667Coordinates: 40°2′20″N 86°53′48″W / 40.03889°N 86.89667°W / 40.03889; -86.89667
Country	United States
State	Indiana
County	Montgomery
Township	Union
Government
– Mayor	Charles Coons (D)
Area
– Total	8.4 sq mi (21.7 km2)
– Land	8.4 sq mi (21.7 km2)
– Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	787 ft (240 m)
Population (2010)
– Total	15,915
– Density	1,818.9/sq mi (702.3/km2)
Time zone	EST (UTC-5)
– Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP codes	47933-47939
Area code(s)	765
FIPS code	18-15742[2]
GNIS feature ID	0433103[3]
Website	http://www.crawfordsville.net/

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1840	1,327		—
1850	1,513		14.0%
1860	1,922		27.0%
1870	3,701		92.6%
1880	5,251		41.9%
1890	6,089		16.0%
1900	6,649		9.2%
1910	9,371		40.9%
1920	10,139		8.2%
1930	10,355		2.1%
1940	11,089		7.1%
1950	12,851		15.9%
1960	14,231		10.7%
1970	13,842		−2.7%
1980	13,325		−3.7%
1990	13,584		1.9%
2000	15,243		12.2%
2010	15,915		4.4%
Source: US Census Bureau

Crawfordsville is a city in Union Township, Montgomery County, Indiana, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 15,915. The city is the county seat of Montgomery County.^[4] It is home to Wabash College, ranked #12 in the United States for undergraduate studies.^[5]

Geography

Crawfordsville is located at 40°2′20″N 86°53′48″W / 40.03889°N 86.89667°W / 40.03889; -86.89667 (40.038831, -86.896755).^[6]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 8.4 square miles (22 km²), all of it land.

Crawfordsville is located in west central Indiana, about an hour west-northwest of Indianapolis, the state's capital and largest city. While the Crawfordsville Micropolitan Area is not yet formally a part of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Area, it is considered a part of the wider Indianapolis Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Indianapolis marketing area.

History

Beginnings

In 1813, Williamson Dunn, Henry Ristine, and Major Ambrose Whitlock noted that the site of present-day Crawfordsville was ideal for settlement, surrounded by deciduous forest and potentially arable land, with water provided by a nearby creek, later named Sugar Creek. They returned a decade later to find at least one cabin built. In 1821, William and Jennie Offield had built a cabin on a little creek, later to be known as Offield Creek, four miles southwest of the future site of Crawfordsville.

Major Whitlock laid out the town in March 1823. Crawfordsville was named in honor of Colonel William H. Crawford, who was the cabinet officer who had issued Whitlock's commission as Receiver of Public Lands.^[1]

According to a diary of Sanford C. Cox, one of the first schoolmasters in the area, in 1824: "Crawfordsville is the only town between Terre Haute and Fort Wayne... Maj. Ristine keeps tavern in a two-story log house and Johnathan Powers has a little grocery. There are two stores, Smith's near the land office, and Issac C. Elston's, near the tavern... David Vance [is the] sheriff.^[7]

It was successfully incorporated as a town in 1834, following a failed attempt three years earlier.

In November 1832, Wabash College was founded in Crawfordsville as "The Wabash Teachers Seminary and Manual Labor College". Today, it is one of only three remaining all-male liberal arts colleges in the country, and has a student body of around 900.

On December 18, 1833, the Crawfordsville Record carried a paid announcement of the opening of Crawfordsville High School.^[1]

Crawfordsville grew in size and amenities, adding such necessities as a bank and fire department. It gained status as a city in 1865, when Indiana granted its charters.

Late 19th century

In 1862, Joseph F. Tuttle, after whom Tuttle Grade School was named in 1906 and Tuttle Junior High School (now Tuttle Middle School) was named in 1960, became President of Wabash College and served for 30 years. "He was an eloquent preacher, a sound administrator and an astute handler of public relations." Joseph Tuttle, together with his administrators, worked to improve relations in Crawfordsville between "Town and Gown".^[1]

In 1880, prominent local citizen Lew Wallace produced Crawfordsville's most famous literary work, Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ, a historical novel dealing with the beginnings of the Christianity in the Mediterranean world.

Perhaps more crucial for Indiana's basketball-oriented culture, both the first official basketball game in the state (Crawfordsville versus Lafayette, March 16, 1894) and the first official intercollegiate basketball game (Wabash versus Purdue, also in 1894) occurred at the city's YMCA.

In 1882, one of the first Rotary Jails in the country opened. It served from 1882 until 1972. The jail is now a museum and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

1900-2010

The beginning of the 20th century marked important steps for Crawfordsville, as Culver Union Hospital and the Carnegie Library were built in 1902. Culver operated as a not-for-profit, municipally-owned facility for 80 years, was then sold to for-profit American Medical International, and in 1984 was relocated from its original location near downtown to a new campus north of the city. The hospital's ownership was transferred to Sisters of St. Francis Health Services, Inc. in 2000, and it was renamed St. Clare Medical Center. The Carnegie Library is being converted into a local museum and the public library has since moved across the street. In 1911, Crawfordsville High School (motto: Enter to Learn, Go Forth to Serve) was founded, and promptly won the state's first high school basketball title.^[8] Crawfordsville's major employer for much of the century, commercial printer RR Donnelley, began operations in Crawfordsville in 1922.

Recent history has held few nationally noteworthy events for the city, but much internal change. Nucor Steel, Alcoa CSI, Raybestos Products Company, Pace Dairy Foods, and Random House have all created factories in or near Crawfordsville which provided employment to much of the population. Manpower has taken over as the primary employer in the city and has allowed most of the local companies to reduce employees. In 2008, Raybestos laid off the majority of its workforce with less than 100 employees left. Wabash College won the Division III NCAA basketball title in 1982. The college plays an annual football game against Depauw University for the Monon Bell, one of the oldest rivalries in all college sports. In 1998, the state began a proposed project to widen U.S. Route 231, in an attempt to ease intrastate travel flow.

Washington and Main street 1997.
(western half of the 100 block of East Main Street, as seen from courthouse.)

Silver Dollar fire

On May 8, 2007, approximately a quarter-block of historic buildings in the 100 block of South Washington Street was burned in a major fire. A woman in one of the buildings reported the fire.

One person, Leslie Eric Largent, died in the fire. The fire was covered by the press statewide. Two buildings, built circa 1882, were completely destroyed: one that housed the Silver Dollar Bar (formerly Tommy Kummings' Silver Dollar Tavern); the other contained the New York Shoe Repair and Bargain Center at the corner of Pike and Washington streets. Above the shoe store were several apartments where residents were sleeping.

On May 22, the fire was ruled to have been an act of arson.^[9]

Local Legend

A monster was seen here in the late 19th century that became known as the Crawfordsville monster. It was described to be made of a cloud with red glowing eyes. It is now believed to have been a flock of birds huddled together in confusion due to the town's newly installed electric street lights. The story was featured in The History Channel's television series Monster Quest, in an episode featuring unidentified flying creatures.

Industry

Crawfordsville is the home of the world's first thin-slab casting minimill (steel manufacturing plant that recycles scrap steel using an electric arc-furnace). Nucor Steel broke ground on its first sheet steel mill and first galvanizing line at its $1 B Crawfordsville facility in 1987.

Demographics

As of the 2000 census,^[2] there were 15,243 people, 6,117 households, and 3,664 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,819.4 people per square mile (702.3/km²). There were 6,623 housing units at an average density of 790.5 per square mile (305.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 94.02% White, 1.61% African American, 0.31% Native American, 0.70% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 2.39% from other races, and 0.91% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.25% of the population.

There were 6,117 households out of which 29.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.0% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.1% were non-families. 33.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the city, the population was spread out with 23.3% under the age of 18, 13.4% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 19.6% from 45 to 64, and 16.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 98.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $34,571, and the median income for a family was $43,211. Males had a median income of $32,834 versus $22,093 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,945. About 10.0% of families and 12.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.9% of those under age 18 and 7.0% of those age 65 or over.

Notable natives and residents

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ by Lew Wallace

• Joseph P. Allen - mission specialist on the first fully operational flight of the Space Shuttle in 1982
• Steven Barnes - head swimming and diving coach for Wabash College (2009–present)
• "Curly Bill" Brocius - Old West outlaw - evidence stating his birthplace as Crawfordsville is tenuous
• Edward Richard Sprigg Canby - Union general in the American Civil War
• Henry Beebee Carrington - Union general during the Civil War
• Joseph Stephen Crane - famed restaurateur of the Luau and Kon Tiki restaurants; Columbia Pictures actor; husband to actresses Lana Turner (1942–44) and Martine Carol (1948–53)
• Sidney & Wilbur de Paris - brothers and famous Jazz musicians
• Dick van Dyke - actor, starred in The Dick Van Dyke Show, Mary Poppins, and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
• Bill Holman - creator of Smokey Stover
• Kent Kessler - avant garde jazz bassist
• Eleanor Lambert - head of NYC Fashion Institute, sister of Ward Lambert
• Janet Lambert - author of numerous young adult fiction books
• Ward Lambert - Purdue University's basketball coach from 1916–1917, 1918–1946, brother of Eleanor Lambert
• Henry S. Lane - United States Senator, Governor of Indiana, and pallbearer for Abraham Lincoln
• Stephen A. Love - musician
• James W. Marshall - gold miner who set off the California Gold Rush.
• Pete Metzelaars - professional football player and coach
• James Atwell Mount - Governor of Indiana from 1897–1901
• Meredith Nicholson - best-selling author (The House of a Thousand Candles, A Hoosier Chronicle, etc.), politician, and diplomat
• Ferdinand Louis Schlemmer - artist
• Will Shortz - The New York Times puzzle writer
• Maurine Dallas Watkins - author of Chicago; Hollywood screenwriter
• William Wheeler Thornton - author, State Supreme Court librarian, Indiana Deputy Attorney General, Crawfordsville City Attorney
• Randal Turner - Professional opera singer; baritone
• Lew Wallace - Union general in the Civil War and author of Ben-Hur
• Susan Wallace - author and poet; wife of Lew Wallace
• Warrior - former professional wrestler, best known as The Ultimate Warrior
• Rev. Dr. Benjamin Franklin West (1858–1933), famous missionary doctor in Singapore and Penang
• Howdy Wilcox - Indy 500 racing pioneer and winner of the 1919 Indy 500
• Henry Lane Wilson - second son of James Wilson, U.S. diplomat and Ambassador to Mexico
• James Wilson - United States Representative from Indiana and United States Ambassador to Venezuela
• John L. Wilson - elder son of James Wilson; United States Representative and Senator from Washington

Rail transportation

Amtrak Station located behind the historic station, now a meeting facility.

Currently, Amtrak provides service to Crawfordsville.

Amtrak Train 51, the westbound Cardinal, is scheduled to depart Crawfordsville at 7:28 am on Monday, Thursday, and Saturday; Amtrak Train 851, the westbound Hoosier State, is scheduled to depart Crawfordsville at 7:28 am on Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday. Both trains go to Lafayette, Rensselaer, Dyer and Chicago Union Station to connect with other trains.

Amtrak Train 50, the eastbound Cardinal, is scheduled to depart Dyer at 10:30 pm on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday with service to Indianapolis, Connersville, Cincinnati, Maysville, South Portsmouth, Ashland, Huntington, Charleston, Montgomery, Thurmond, Prince, Hinton, Alderson, White Sulphur Springs, Clifton Forge, Staunton, Charlottesville, Culpeper, Manassas, Alexandria, and Washington, DC and continuing on to New York City.

Amtrak Train 850, the eastbound Hoosier State, is scheduled to depart Dyer at 10:30 pm on Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday with service to Indianapolis.

Until 1967, passenger service was provided by the Monon Railroad, providing service to Chicago, Lafayette, Greencastle and Bloomington, Indiana. The Monon railroad was merged into the Louisville and Nashville Railroad in 1971.

See also: Crawfordsville (Amtrak station)

See also

• The Crawfordsville monster
• Nucor Steel Corporation

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Gronert, Theodore G., Sugar Creek Saga: A History and Development of Montgomery County, Wabash College, 1958.
2. ^ ^{a b} "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
3. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
4. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
5. ^ Hewitt, Howard W. (August 14, 2008). "Forbes: Wabash Nation's 12th Best". Crawfordsville News. http://www.wabash.edu/news/displaystory.cfm?news_ID=6070. 
6. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
7. ^ History of Montgomery County, together with historic notes on the Wabash Valley, gleaned from early authors, old maps and manuscripts, private and official correspondence, and other authentic ... sources. Author: Beckwith, Hiram Williams, 1833-1903. Published: Chicago : H.H. Hill and N. Iddings, 1881. pg. 117
8. ^ Montgomery County Historical Society Profiles: the First High School Basketball Champion
9. ^ Indianapolis Star article

External links

• City of Crawfordsville, Indiana website
• Community Profile
• Crawfordsville District Public Library