Crawfordsville, Indiana
City of Crawfordsville, Indiana | |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s): Athens of Indiana (William Compton, 1825) [1] | |
 Location in the state of Indiana | |
| County | Montgomery |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | John Zumer |
| Area | |
| • Total | 21.7 km2 (8.4 sq mi) |
| • Land | 21.7 km2 (8.4 sq mi) |
| • Water | 0.0 km2 (0.0 sq mi) |
| Population (2000) | |
| • Total | 15,243 |
| • Density | 702.3/km2 (1,819/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (EST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| Website | www.crawfordsville.org |
Crawfordsville is a city in Montgomery County, Indiana, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a population of 15,243. The city is the county seat of Montgomery CountyTemplate:GR. Its current mayor is John Zumer, who took office in January, 2004. Zumer's last day in office will be September 23, 2007, as he has enlisted as a journalist in the US military.[2] On September 24, 2007, a new mayor will be chosen by caucus.[3]
Crawfordsville and the unincorporated county areas attached to it are collectively referred to as Union Township.
Geography
Crawfordsville is located at 40°2′20″N 86°53′48″W / 40.03889°N 86.89667°WInvalid arguments have been passed to the {{#coordinates:}} function (40.038831, -86.896755)Template:GR.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 21.7 km² (8.4 mi²), all land.
Crawfordsville is located in west central Indiana, about 1 hour from Indianapolis, the state Capital.
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] 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 four 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]
The city 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 1800s
In 1862, Joseph F. Tuttle, after whom Tuttle Grade School was named in 1906 and 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. The jail is now a museum and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Early 1900s
The beginning of 20th century marked important steps for Crawfordsville, as Culver Union Hospital and the Carnegie Library were built in 1902. Culver moved from its original location near downtown in 1984 and was renamed St. Clare Medical Center in 2000. The Carnegie Library is being reverted to 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. Crawfordsville's major employer for much of the century, commercial printer RR Donnelley, began operations in Crawfordsville in 1922.
Recent history
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 Golden Books all created factories in or near Crawfordsville which provided employment to much of the population. Wabash College won the Division III NCAA basketball title in 1982. In 1998 the state began a proposed project to widen U.S. 231, in an attempt to ease intrastate travel flow.
Silver Dollar fire
On May 8, 2007, approximately a quarter-block of old historic buildings in the 100 block of South Washington Street was burned in a major fire. The fire began in the middle of the night. A woman who was closing up the bar called 911 after noticing smoke.
One person died in the fire. Footage of the fire, some taken by news helicopters, is still available online. 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. [4]
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 censusTemplate:GR, there were 15,243 people, 6,117 households, and 3,664 families residing in the city. The population density was 702.3/km² (1,819.4/mi²). There were 6,623 housing units at an average density of 305.1/km² (790.5/mi²). 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. 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 Residents
- Joseph P. Allen - Astronaut, served as mission specialist on the first fully operational flight of the Space Shuttle in 1982. He was born in Crawfordsville in 1937. He attended Mills School and graduated from Crawfordsville High School.
- Henry S. Lane - One of the city's most prominent 19th century figures - a United States Senator and pallbearer for Abraham Lincoln, has a historical site dedicated to him in the city. He started a law practice in Crawfordsville in 1834.
- James W. Marshall - A New Jersey native who had at some point called Crawfordsville his home, was the discoverer of gold at Sutter's Mill, California in 1848 and thus set off the California Gold Rush.
- Pete Metzelaars - Professional football player, is a graduate of Wabash College.
- Richard O. Ristine, Sr- Lieutenant Governor of Indiana Gubernatorial Candidate in the 1960s. He was the great-great-grandson of Major Henry Ristine — Crawfordsville’s second settler.
- Will Shortz - New York Times puzzle writer, was born in Crawfordsville in 1952 and grew up in the city.
- Lew Wallace - the author of Ben-Hur, has a historical site dedicated to him in the city. He attended Wabash College, moved back to Crawfordsville where he wrote "Ben Hur", and died in Crawfordsville in 1905.
- Susan Wallace - author and poet; wife of Lew Wallace. Born in Crawfordsville, Indiana to Isaac and Maria Elston in 1830.
- James Wilson (Indiana) - United States Representative from Indiana.
- Dick van Dyke - In 1938, just before Dick was of high school age, the Van Dyke family moved to Crawfordsville, returning to Danville, Illinois in 1940
- Bryan Barry James Hellwig - former professional wrestler known as the Ultimate Warrior was born in Crawfordsville in 1959.
Rail Transportation
Until 1967, passenger service was provided by the Monon Railroad, providing service to Chicago, Lafayette, Greencastle and Bloomington, Indiana.
Currently, Amtrak provides service to Crawfordsville. Amtrak Train 51, the westbound Cardinal, serves Lafayette, Rensselaer, Dyer, and Chicago. Amtrak Train 50, the eastbound Cardinal, serves Indianapolis, and other eastbound points, culminating in New York City. Intra-Indiana service is provided by Amtrak Trains 851 and 850.
See also
- The Crawfordsville monster
- Nucor Steel Corporation
References
- ^ a b c d Gronert, Theodore G., Sugar Creek Saga: A History and Development of Montgomery County, Wabash College, 1958.
- ^ http://www.journalreview.com/articles/2007/09/04/news/01zumer.txt
- ^ http://www.journalreview.com/articles/2007/09/15/news/mayor.txt
- ^ Indianapolis Star article