Elwood is a city in Madison and

Tipton Tipton is an industrial town in the metropolitan borough of Sandwell, in the county of the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It had a population of 38,777 at the 2011 UK Census. It is located northwest of Birmingham and southeas ...

counties in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

. The Madison County portion, which is nearly all of the city, is part of the Indianapolis–Carmel–Anderson metropolitan statistical area. The population of Elwood was 8,410 at the 2020 census.

History

Elwood was laid out in 1853 under the name "Duck Creek". It was incorporated as a city in 1891. A post office was established under the name "Duck Creek" in 1855, was renamed to Elwood in 1869, and has been operating since. The first railroad was constructed in Elwood in 1857. On August 17, 1940, the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is the primary committee of the Republican Party of the United States. Its members are chosen by the state delegations at the national convention every four years. It is responsible for developing and pr ...

held a formal notification ceremony to recognize Elwood-born

Wendell Willkie Wendell Lewis Willkie (born Lewis Wendell Willkie; February 18, 1892 – October 8, 1944) was an American lawyer, corporate executive and the 1940 History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican nominee for president. Willkie appeale ...

as its nominee for President of the United States to run against

Franklin Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

. Held at Callaway Park on the outskirts of town, the ceremony drew 150,000 people for what would become the largest political rally in American history at the time. People came in 60,000 automobiles, 63 special trains, 300 Pullmans, and 1,200 buses. The

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a state university system, system of Public university, public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. The system has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration o ...

band led a parade in which 249 other bands also marched in the procession. When Willkie stepped onto the platform, the crowd cheered him for ten minutes before he could begin his speech. However, oppressive heat and Willkie's underwhelming, flat speech left many disappointed by the end of the day.

Sundown town

By the 1880s, Elwood had become a

sundown town Sundown towns, also known as sunset towns, gray towns, or sundowner towns, were all-white municipalities or neighborhoods in the United States. They were towns that practiced a form of racial segregation by excluding non-whites via some combinati ...

, prohibiting

Black people Black is a racial classification of people, usually a political and skin color-based category for specific populations with a mid- to dark brown complexion. Not all people considered "black" have dark skin and often additional phenotypical ...

from residing within the town. In 1897, when a number of Black families attempted to settle in the town and were driven out, ''The Evening Times'' in Washington, D.C., reported that for more than two decades Black people had not been "permitted to remain any length of time." This prohibition remained in place for most of the 20th century. At the rally for Wendell Willkie, noted above, which drew around 150,000 people to the city, some prominent Black reporters, such as Marse Callaway of

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

, were allowed to briefly stay in a hotel downtown, but others were unable to stay the night due to the community's sundown status. Other Black people were discouraged from attempting to attend the rally at all due to the sundown signs posted at the city limits. These signs and policies remained in place for decades afterwards. By the late twentieth century sundown policies were less strictly enforced, although as recently as 2002 law enforcement in nearby Marion considered Elwood to still be unwelcoming of Black people. In 2015, after

Goshen, Indiana Goshen ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Elkhart County, Indiana, United States. It is the smaller of the two principal cities of the Elkhart–Goshen Metropolitan Statistical Area, which in turn is part of the South Bend–Elkhart–Mish ...

, passed a resolution acknowledging its history as a sundown town, Elwood's own past became a topic of discussion. The mayor of Elwood stated that while he had had no knowledge of the racially exclusionary policies of Elwood's past, he would address them if they were part of Elwood's "lingering reputation".

Geography

Elwood is located in northwestern Madison County. The equivalent of two half-blocks of land in Tipton County are also within the city limits. Indiana State Road 28 passes through the city as Main Street, leading east to

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

and west to

. State Road 13 (Anderson Street) crosses SR 28 in the center of Elwood; it leads north to Point Isabel and south to

Lapel A lapel ( ) is a folded flap of cloth on the front of a jacket or coat below the collar. It is most commonly found on formal clothing and suit jackets. Usually it is formed by folding over the front edge of the jacket or coat and sewing it to t ...

. State Road 37 crosses the southeast corner of the city limits, leading northeast to Marion and southwest to Noblesville. Anderson, the Madison

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

, is southeast of Elwood by local roads. According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, Elwood has a total area of , all land. Big Duck Creek flows through the center of town, leading southwest to the White River near Strawtown.

Climate

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 8,614 people, 3,455 households, and 2,265 families living in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 4,099 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.7%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.2%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.2% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 1.0% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 3.3% of the population. There were 3,455 households, of which 33.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.8% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 14.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 34.4% were non-families. 28.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.02. The median age in the city was 38.6 years. 25.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.1% were from 25 to 44; 28.1% were from 45 to 64; and 14.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.7% male and 51.3% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 9,737 people, 3,845 households, and 2,660 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 4,179 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.33%

, 0.05%

, 0.12% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.05%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.68% from other races, and 0.52% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 1.64% of the population. There were 3,845 households, out of which 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.9% were

living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.8% were non-families. 26.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.00. In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.3% under the age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 28.8% from 25 to 44, 22.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $30,986, and the median income for a family was $36,239. Males had a median income of $31,527 versus $19,947 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $15,402. About 11.7% of families and 15.2% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 21.0% of those under age 18 and 9.4% of those age 65 or over.

Community and culture

The annual

Glass Glass is an amorphous (non-crystalline solid, non-crystalline) solid. Because it is often transparency and translucency, transparent and chemically inert, glass has found widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in window pane ...

Festival, held every third weekend of August, is one way in which the city tries to promote the area's history with natural gas and glass. In the years surrounding the turn of the century, Elwood, along with the nearby towns of Anderson and Gas City, were a common destination for Welsh immigrant families. Elwood has a

public library A public library is a library, most often a lending library, that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil servic ...

, a branch of the North Madison County Public Library System. The Elwood Downtown Historic District was listed in the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 2002.

Education

It is in the Elwood Community School Corporation.

Notable people

* David Canary, actor * Jared Carter, poet * Joseph Clancy, 24th director of the U.S. Secret Service * James J. Davis, U.S. Secretary of Labor and U.S. senator from Pennsylvania * Ryan Keene (aka "Fry Guy"), computer hacker * Don Mellett, newspaper editor *

John Mengelt John P. Mengelt (born October 16, 1949) is an American former professional basketball player. Early life A two-year starter at Wendell Willkie High School (now Elwood High School) in Elwood, Indiana, Mengelt was named all-conference two years ...

, professional athlete, NBA * Philip Sharp, congressman from Indiana * Ray Still, contemporary classical oboist * Wallace D. Wattles, writer * Edward Willkie, Olympic wrestler *

, 1940 Republican presidential candidate

References

External links

*
Glass Festival Information Center
* {{authority control Cities in Indiana Cities in Madison County, Indiana Cities in Tipton County, Indiana Kokomo, Indiana metropolitan area Sundown towns in Indiana