Hesston is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

in Galena Township, LaPorte County,

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

History

Originally called Mayes' Corners after Matthew Mayes opened a

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

1835 Events January–March * January 7 – anchors off the Chonos Archipelago on her second voyage, with Charles Darwin on board as naturalist. * January 8 – The United States public debt contracts to zero, for the only time in history. ...

. In 1857, Valentine Smith established a sawmill west of Mayes' Corner near the Galena River. It burned in 1862. In 1865, the

Christian Church In ecclesiology, the Christian Church is what different Christian denominations conceive of as being the true body of Christians or the original institution established by Jesus. "Christian Church" has also been used in academia as a synonym fo ...

established a congregation in this area with Rev. Caleb Davis leading the congregation, before he moved to Michigan. P.M. Hess came to the township in 1856 from New York and began farming. He ran a

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

and operated a store, contributing his name to the location.Chapman, Charles C.; History of LaPorte County, Indiana: History of Indiana, Illustrated: Chas Chapman & Co., Chicago, Illinois; 1880 pgs 693-708 A post office was established at Hesston in 1877, and remained in operation until it was discontinued in 1900. The community was named for P. M. Hess, an early settler.

Culture

The

Hesston Steam Museum Hesston Steam Museum is an outdoor museum operated by the Laporte County Historical Steam Society in Hesston, Indiana. The museum occupies 155 acres and is the home of four different gauge railroads along with numerous other pieces of steam powe ...

, which contains several railroads with multiple track gauges including

narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...

, gauge, and gauge, is located just west of Hesston.

References

2 ft gauge railways in the United States 3 ft gauge railways in the United States 7½ in gauge railways in the United States Unincorporated communities in Indiana Unincorporated communities in LaPorte County, Indiana {{LaPorteCountyIN-geo-stub