Millgrove 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 Jackson Township,

Blackford County Blackford County is located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of Indiana. The county is named for Judge Isaac Blackford, who was the first speaker of the Indiana General Assembly and a long-time chief justice of the Indiana Supreme ...

, 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 sover ...

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 ...

. Nearly all of the community's businesses have been closed for many years. Although the Blackford County Historical Society lists this community as a

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * Ghost Town (1936 film), ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * Ghost Town (1956 film), ''Ghost Town'' ...

home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it. H ...

s are still maintained in the area. Like several other communities in the county, Millgrove originally thrived as a stop on a railroad line. Millgrove also participated in the Indiana Gas Boom, and the Millgrove Natural Gas Company was one of Blackford County's many gas companies that existed during the 1890s. The Gas Boom gradually ended during the beginning of the 20th century, and many small communities never recovered. During the next few decades, the quality of automobiles and roads improved—indirectly contributing to the decline of many small communities as consumers drove to larger cities, and railroads declined in importance.''A History of Blackford County...,'' p. 130.

History

Millgrove was laid out in 1867 when Blackford County’s first railroad came through the southern portion of the county. The community’s post office opened February 25, 1868, and continued until March 31, 1955.''A History of Blackford County....,'' p. 17. An 1882

gazetteer A gazetteer is a geographical index or directory used in conjunction with a map or atlas.Aurousseau, 61. It typically contains information concerning the geographical makeup, social statistics and physical features of a country, region, or co ...

, which listed the community as "Mill Grove", called the town "a place of 50 inhabitants". The gazetteer also listed a

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

, and railroad agent. During the 1880s, Millgrove had three general stores, a blacksmith shop, a sawmill, and a tile factory. During the next decade, a

glass Glass is a non-crystalline, often transparent, amorphous solid that has widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in, for example, window panes, tableware, and optics. Glass is most often formed by rapid cooling (quenching) of ...

factory was built. Millgrove’s glass factory was one of 15 glass factories that have existed in Blackford County, and most of these factories existed during the Indiana Gas Boom. (There were numerous ''glass'' and ''gas'' companies in the county at that time.) Eleven more glass factories have existed in nearby

Dunkirk, Indiana Dunkirk is a city in Blackford and Jay counties in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 2,164 at the 2020 census. Geography Dunkirk is located at (40.37, -85.21) and is primarily in Jay County, though the northwestern portion of the tow ...

. The Millgrove Glass Company was incorporated in 1898, and made glass containers. Originally, the company took advantage of the abundant supply of

natural gas Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...

for a source of fuel. By 1905, the supply of natural gas in the region was diminishing, and the Millgrove Glass Company used gas made from

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

in addition to natural gas. The factory closed in 1911, and this was thought to be “a severe blow to Millgrove”. A Blackford County directory from that time lists over 150 people living in Millgrove.

Railroad

upright=1.0, Railroad map of Blackford County 1890s The

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

line that ran through Millgrove was named Union and Logansport Railroad Company by the time it entered Blackford County, and it was the county’s first railroad. This line was proposed in 1862, and completed to Hartford City in 1867—running through the

communities of

Dunkirk Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label=French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.Converse Converse may refer to: Mathematics and logic * Converse (logic), the result of reversing the two parts of a definite or implicational statement ** Converse implication, the converse of a material implication ** Converse nonimplication, a logical c ...

, Millgrove, Hartford City, and Renner''A History of Blackford County....,'' p. 19. The railroad was eventually named Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and St. Louis Railroad.''Biographical and historical record of Jay and Blackford Counties...,'' pp. 759-760. Other names for the railroad since that time include the Panhandle division of the

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...

Penn Central Transportation Company The Penn Central Transportation Company, commonly abbreviated to Penn Central, was an American class I railroad that operated from 1968 to 1976. Penn Central combined three traditional corporate rivals (the Pennsylvania, New York Central and the ...

Conrail Conrail , formally the Consolidated Rail Corporation, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeastern United States between 1976 and 1999. The trade name Conrail is a portmanteau based on the company's legal name. It continues to do busin ...

, and

Norfolk Southern Railway The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31 ...

. The line is now abandoned between the Blackford County communities of

Converse Converse may refer to: Mathematics and logic * Converse (logic), the result of reversing the two parts of a definite or implicational statement ** Converse implication, the converse of a material implication ** Converse nonimplication, a logical c ...

and Hartford City, including the track that ran by Millgrove.

Geography

Located in the Jackson Township portion of

, Millgrove is situated on a former railroad line. The community is located south of

Fort Wayne Fort Wayne is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Indiana, United States. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 as of the 2020 Censu ...

and northeast of

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

. Millgrove is part of

East Central Indiana East Central Indiana is a region in Indiana east of Indianapolis, Indiana, and borders the Ohio state line. The Indiana Gas Boom, which took place during the 1890s, changed much of the area from small agricultural communities to larger cities wi ...

and

Northern Indiana Northern Indiana is a region of the U.S. State of Indiana, including 26 counties which border the states of Illinois, Michigan, and Ohio. Northern Indiana is also considered part of the Great Lakes Megalopolis. The area is generally classified in ...

. Future Northern Indiana, including what became Jackson Township and Millgrove, was flattened by two

glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its Ablation#Glaciology, ablation over many years, often Century, centuries. It acquires dis ...

s millions of years ago. These glaciers are also responsible for the rich Blackford County farmland, which includes the land surrounding Millgrove.''A History of Blackford County...,'' p. 10.

Nearby cities

Dunkirk Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label=French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.Hartford City (about 8 highway miles northwest) * Eaton (about 8 highway miles southwest) *

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

(about 20 highway miles west) * Upland (about 16 highway miles northwest)

Climate

Millgrove has a typical

Midwestern The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

humid continental A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...

seasonal climate. There are four distinct seasons, with winters being cold with moderate

snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...

fall, while summers can be warm and humid. The highest average temperature is in July at 84 °F (29 °C), while the lowest average temperature is in January at 15 °F (−9 °C). However, summer temperatures can top 90 °F (32 °C), and winter temperatures can drop below 0 °F (−17 °C). Average monthly precipitation ranges from about 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 cm), with the heaviest occurring during May, June, and July. The highest recorded temperature was 110.0 °F (43.3 °C) on July 14, 1936, and the lowest recorded temperature was −25.0 °F (−31.7 °C) on January 21, 1985.

Notes

References

* * * * {{authority control Unincorporated communities in Blackford County, Indiana 1867 establishments in the United States Populated places established in 1867