Mapping and Research for Elkhart County, Indiana
Named for the Elkhart Indians who dominated the area prior to the
arrival of the first white settlers, Elkhart County was organized by an
act of the Legislature January 29, 1830.
The first County seat was a little town called Dunlap. Later a number
of the western townships were ceded to St. Joseph County and it became
necessary to find a more centrally located county seat, and the site now
known as Goshen was designated February 10, 1831.
By 1849 Goshen contained the Methodist and Presbyterian churches, halls
for the Masons, Odd Fellows and Sons of Temperance, eleven stores, two
groceries, four lawyers, seven physicians, 125 homes and a population of
700....adjoining the town was the flouring and saw mills of J.H. Barnes.
Elkhart is the band instrument capital of the world.
The Bonneyville Mill, at Bristol, is an operating horizontal gristmill, and was built in 1832.
At Goshen, the Mennonite Historical Library on the Goshen College campus
has the largest collection of books dealing with this denomination.
People of the Amish faith are located around the city and surrounding
countryside of Nappanee.
The Amish (Plain People) follow the lifestyle and beliefs of their
forefather, still using horse drawn carriages and plows, simplistic
dress and even the language of 17th century Europe.
It is our desire to gather the most significant information regarding your county to provide you with adequate information for targeting particular prayer marks. We appreciate your patience as we are gathering information and hope you will return to this page to see the results of our mapping and research for your county.
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