Rushville, Indiana

Rushville, Indiana Rville
City
City of Rushville
The John K. Gowdy House in Rushville
Motto:  Leading the Way in Rural Indiana
Location of Rushville in Rush County, Indiana.
Coordinates: 39°37′32″N85°26′45″W / 39.62556°N 85.44583°W / 39.62556; -85.44583
Country	United States
State	Indiana
County	Rush
Township	Rushville
Government
•  Mayor	Mike Pavey (R)[ citation needed ]
Area [1]
• Total	3.31 sq mi (8.56 km2)
• Land	3.31 sq mi (8.56 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)  0%
Elevation [2]	981 ft (299 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	6,208
• Density	1,877.80/sq mi (725.04/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code	46173
Area code	765
FIPS code	18-66438 [3]
GNIS feature ID	2396452 [2]
Website	http://www.cityofrushville.in.gov/

Rushville is a city in Rushville Township, Rush County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. ^[2] The population was 6,185 at the 2020 census. The city is the county seat of Rush County. ^[4] It, like the county, was named in honor of Dr. Benjamin Rush, who signed the Declaration of Independence. ^[5]

History

Rush County was formed from the unorganized Delaware County April 1, 1822. On July 29 town lots were sold and the town started to form. A school had already been started in 1821 by Dr. W.B. Laughlin, who was a member of the Legislature when the county was formed, and is considered the founding father of the town. A jail was built, Charles Veeder, was the first postmaster in 1822, and a courthouse was built in 1823. The Dog Fennel Gazette was published in 1823. The railroad was built in 1850 and after that a bank, factories, mills, and grain elevators sprang up. ^[6]

The Rushville post office has been in operation since 1822. ^[7]

Rushville was the campaign headquarters for Wendell Willkie's 1940 presidential campaign against Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Willkie is buried in the city's East Hill Cemetery.

The Durbin Hotel, John K. Gowdy House, Melodeon Hall, Rush County Courthouse, Rushville Commercial Historic District, St. Paul Methodist Episcopal Church, St. Prendergast Catholic church, ^[6] Booker T. Washington School, and Wendell Lewis Willkie House are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. ^[8]

Geography

Rushville is located along the Flatrock River. ^[9]

According to the 2010 census, Rushville has a total area of 3.09 square miles (8.00 km²), all land. ^[10]

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1850	742		—
1860	972		31.0%
1870	1,696		74.5%
1880	2,515		48.3%
1890	3,475		38.2%
1900	4,541		30.7%
1910	4,925		8.5%
1920	5,498		11.6%
1930	5,709		3.8%
1940	5,960		4.4%
1950	6,761		13.4%
1960	7,264		7.4%
1970	6,686		−8.0%
1980	6,113		−8.6%
1990	5,533		−9.5%
2000	5,995		8.3%
2010	6,341		5.8%
2020	6,208		−2.1%
U.S. Decennial Census [11]

As of the census ^[3] of 2020, there were 6185 people, 2527 households, and 1,552 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,668.8 inhabitants per square mile (1,030.4/km²). There were 2,597 housing units at an average density of 1,156.1 per square mile (446.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 94.5% White, 1.5% Black, 0.20% Indian , 0.85% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.13% from other races, and 3.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.4% of the population.

There were 2,434 households, out of which 31.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.9% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.2% were non-families. 31.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 25.2% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 17.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.0 males.

Rushville from the air, looking west.

The median income for a household in the city was $30,233, and the median income for a family was $36,646. Males had a median income of $30,127 versus $22,440 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,072. About 8.1% of families and 11.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.3% of those under age 18 and 12.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The town has a lending library, the Rushville Public Library. ^[12]

Notable people

• Samuel Bigger, Governor of Indiana
• Carmelita Geraghty, silent film actress
• Gerald Geraghty, screenwriter
• Maurice Geraghty, screenwriter
• Thomas J. Geraghty, screenwriter
• Janet Gray Hayes, 60th mayor of San Jose, California
• Joe Hogsett, politician and lawyer
• Leonidas Sexton, 19th Century politician
• Knowles Shaw, author and composer
• Tony Stewart, NASCAR/NHRA driver, owner
• Frazier Thomas, television personality
• Philip Willkie, politician and businessman
• Wendell Willkie, Presidential candidate, lawyer, businessman
• Edward H. Wolfe, Union Army general

References

1. "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
2. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Rushville, Indiana
3. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 31, 2008.
4. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
5. De Witt Clinton Goodrich & Charles Richard Tuttle (1875). An Illustrated History of the State of Indiana. Indiana: R. S. Peale & co. pp.  572.
6. "The History of Rush County, Indiana". Volume II, Chapter VIII. Rush County INGENWEB. 1996. Retrieved October 11, 2015.
7. "Rush County". Jim Forte Postal History. Retrieved February 25, 2017.
8. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
9. DeLorme (1998). Indiana Atlas & Gazetteer. Yarmouth, Maine: DeLorme. ISBN   0-89933-211-0
10. "G001 - Geographic Identifiers - 2010 Census Summary File 1". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
11. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
12. "Indiana public library directory" (PDF). Indiana State Library. Retrieved March 15, 2018.

External links

• City of Rushville website
• "Wendell Willkie, Presidential Contender" from C-SPAN's The Contenders , broadcast from Rushville