Mishawaka () is a city on the
St. Joseph River, in
St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States. The population was 51,063 as of the
2020 census. Its nickname is "the Princess City". Mishawaka is a principal city of the
South Bend
South Bend is a city in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. It lies along the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. It is the List of cities in ...
-Mishawaka, Indiana — Michigan,
Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
Mishawaka's recorded history began with the discovery of
bog iron
Bog iron is a form of impure iron deposit that develops in bogs or swamps by the chemical or biochemical oxidation of iron carried in solution. In general, bog ores consist primarily of iron oxyhydroxides, commonly goethite (FeO(OH)).
Iron-beari ...
deposits at the beginning of the 1830s. Settlers arriving to mine the deposits founded the town of St. Joseph Iron Works in 1831. Within a few years, the town had a blast furnace, a general store, a tavern, and about 200 residents. Business prospered, and in 1833 St. Joseph Iron Works, Indiana City, and two other adjacent small towns were incorporated to form the city of Mishawaka.
The Mishawaka post office has been in operation since 1833.
On June 27, 1859, a bridge carrying a train, which had over 150 people on board, collapsed, killing 60.
In September 1872, a fire destroyed three quarters of Mishawaka's business district. However, the citizens rebuilt and attracted new industry. The Dodge Manufacturing Company, Perkins Windmills and the Mishawaka Woolen and Rubber Company (later Ball Band, then
Uniroyal
Uniroyal, formerly known as the United States Rubber Company, is an American manufacturer of tires and other synthetic rubber-related products, as well as variety of items for military use, such as ammunition, explosives, chemical weapons and op ...
) all helped the town to prosper. Mishawaka grew through both industry and agriculture. In the late 19th century, Mishawaka became known as the "Peppermint Capital of the World", as its rich black loam produced great quantities of mint.
From 1906 to 1915, Mishawaka was the manufacturing home of the luxurious
American Simplex motor car. Ball Band made rubber garments and was hit by a major strike in 1931. It flourished in the 1940s, finally closing in 1997 in the face of cheaper imports. Manufacturing in Mishawaka peaked in the 1940s and began a slow decline due to industrial restructuring. The economic base shifted to retail services and small industry.
In 1979,
University Park Mall
University Park Mall is a shopping mall in Mishawaka, Indiana, United States. It serves the South Bend, Indiana, South Bend and Michiana areas. Opened in 1979, the mall currently features Barnes & Noble, JCPenney, and Macy's as its anchor store ...
opened in the far northern portion of Mishawaka. In 1990,
AM General
AM General is an American heavy vehicle and contract manufacturer, contract automotive manufacturer based in South Bend, Indiana. It is best known for the civilian Hummer H1, Hummer and the military Humvee that are assembled in Mishawaka, Indiana. ...
began producing the
Hummer
Hummer (stylized in all caps) is an American brand of Pickup truck, pickups launched in 1992 when AM General began selling a civilian version of the M998 Humvee. Although discontinued in 2010, Hummer returned as a model under GMC (automob ...
in its Mishawaka plant. The
MV-1
The Vehicle Production Group LLC (commonly referred as VPG)[taxicab
A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a Driving, driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of thei ...]
and replaces the planned
Standard Taxi
The Vehicle Production Group LLC (commonly referred as VPG)[AM General
AM General is an American heavy vehicle and contract manufacturer, contract automotive manufacturer based in South Bend, Indiana. It is best known for the civilian Hummer H1, Hummer and the military Humvee that are assembled in Mishawaka, Indiana. ...]
.
The car is built in Mishawaka at an
AM General
AM General is an American heavy vehicle and contract manufacturer, contract automotive manufacturer based in South Bend, Indiana. It is best known for the civilian Hummer H1, Hummer and the military Humvee that are assembled in Mishawaka, Indiana. ...
plant. AM General has begun making Mercedes vehicles at this plant since 2015.
Names
One theory for the word Mishawaka proposes that it derives from the name of a Potawatomi
The Potawatomi (), also spelled Pottawatomi and Pottawatomie (among many variations), are a Native American tribe of the Great Plains, upper Mississippi River, and western Great Lakes region. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, ...
village at the junction of the Elkhart and St. Joseph rivers, where there were many dead trees. The village's exact name in the Potawatomi language
Potawatomi (, also spelled Pottawatomie; in Potawatomi , , or ) is a Central Algonquian languages, Central Algonquian languages, Algonquian language. It was historically spoken by the Potawatomi, Pottawatomi people who lived around the Great Lake ...
may have been * ("at the firewood-tree land"). In the Miami-Illinois language, which historically was also spoken in the area, the corresponding placename is ("it is firewood-tree land").
The most probable origin of the word comes from the city's government website, where in a history of Mishawaka paper written by local historian Peter DeKever states, "The Potawatomi had numerous villages in the region, including one on the south bank of the St. Joseph River located in the area bounded today by Lincolnway West and North Main and West Streets. The Potawatomi were drawn to this location by the ease of transport the river provided, a ford near a natural rapids, abundant fish and game, and access to timber. Their term for the area, M’Shehwahkeek, translates as swift flowing water or heavy timbered rapids." This theory is also mentioned by The History Museum of South Bend, and other sources.
The nickname "Princess City", however, derives from a different account of the name's origin. According to this story, "Mishawaka" or something similar was the name of the daughter of a Shawnee
The Shawnee ( ) are a Native American people of the Northeastern Woodlands. Their language, Shawnee, is an Algonquian language.
Their precontact homeland was likely centered in southern Ohio. In the 17th century, they dispersed through Ohi ...
chief named "Elkhart". A love triangle
A love triangle is a scenario or circumstance, usually depicted as a rivalry, in which two people are pursuing or involved in a romantic relationship with one person, or in which one person in a romantic relationship with someone is simultaneo ...
between Mishawaka, a white trader named "Dead Shot", and a Shawnee warrior named "Grey Wolf" led to various adventures. This story originated with Flavius J. Littlejohn
The gens Flavia was a plebeian family at ancient Rome. Its members are first mentioned during the last three centuries of the Republic. The first of the Flavii to achieve prominence was Marcus Flavius, tribune of the plebs in 327 and 323 BC; how ...
, a Michigan author, politician and judge, who published a collection of stories in 1875; in Littlejohn's account, the woman's name was "Mishawaha". Despite the story being completely fictional, it became popular and helped foster the legend that is known to this day. Even though the story is from a work of fiction, many residents believe Princess Mishawaka was real because of a "symbolic grave marker" of her erected by the Daughters of the American Revolution to promote the centennial of the City of Mishawaka in 1932. Lack of context has led to many believing that the site is the actual grave of the princess, and that the legend was true. In many ways, Princess Mishawaka represents a mascot for the city.
Geography
According to the 2010 census, Mishawaka has a total area of , of which (or 97.99%) is land and (or 2.01%) is water.
Demographics
As of 2000 the median income for a household in the city was $33,986, and the median income for a family was $41,947. Males had a median income of $33,878 versus $23,672 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 $18,434. About 7.3% of families and 9.9% 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 11.7% of those under age 18 and 7.3% of those age 65 or over.
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 48,252 people, 21,343 households, and 11,730 families residing 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 24,088 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 86.1% 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 ...
, 6.9% 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 ...
, 0.4% Native American, 1.9% Asian, 0.1% 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 ...
, 1.6% from other races, and 2.9% 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 4.5% of the population.
There were 21,343 households, of which 28.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.5% 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, 14.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 45.0% were non-families. 37.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.92.
The median age in the city was 34.7 years. 23.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 11.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 28.3% were from 25 to 44; 23.7% were from 45 to 64; and 13.6% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.1% male and 52.9% female.
Culture
Old-fashioned neighborhoods are found across the city. Many of the newer residential subdivisions that have been developed within the city in recent years have adopted design guidelines to produce the "hometown" neighborhood feel and encourage community spirit.
The city continually upgrades and develops new neighborhood park and recreation facilities. A total of 29 parks allow Mishawaka residents to golf, play ball, fish and exercise. In 1968, the city opened an outdoor Olympic-size swimming pool
An Olympic-size swimming pool is a swimming pool which conforms to the regulations for length, breadth, and depth made by World Aquatics (formerly FINA) for swimming at the Summer Olympics and the swimming events at the World Aquatics Champions ...
and an adjacent ice skating rink at Merrifield Park. On the south side, Mishawaka's George Wilson Park is home to the city's most popular winter toboggan spot, as well as an 18-hole frisbee golf course. Some of the city's Italian immigrants and their descendants still play traditional games such as bocce
(, or , ), sometimes anglicized as bocce ball, bocci, or boccie, is a ball sport belonging to the boules family. Developed into its present form in Italy, it is closely related to English bowls and French , with a common ancestry from anc ...
. A number of residents of Belgian descent play traditional Rolle Bolle and a few ethnic Belgians continue to raise and race homing pigeons
The homing pigeon is a variety of domestic pigeon (''Columba livia domestica''), selectively bred for its ability to find its way home over extremely long distances. Because of this skill, homing pigeons were used to carry messages, a practice ...
. The city also hosted the nation's oldest and largest wiffleball
Wiffle ball is a scaled back Variations of baseball, variation of baseball that was developed in 1953 in Fairfield, Connecticut. Originally, it was intended to be played in confined space or otherwise small area, but became a popular outdoor ac ...
tournament, the World Wiffle Ball Championship, from 1980 to 2012 and again in 2020.
The city's three high schools
A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...
(Mishawaka High School
Mishawaka High School is a public high school located in Mishawaka, Indiana. The school educates students in grades 9–12 and is part of the School City of Mishawaka.
History
The first Mishawaka High School was proposed by the Mishawaka Town Bo ...
, Penn High School
Penn High School is a public high school located in Mishawaka, Indiana, United States, near South Bend. It is the only high school in the Penn-Harris-Madison (PHM) School Corporation.
The district includes all of Osceola and portions of Gr ...
, and Marian High School) have won a combined 11 state championships in football since 1920.
Transportation
Mishawaka is served by TRANSPO municipal bus system, which also serves South Bend and several smaller suburbs in South Bend-Mishawaka metropolitan region. The Interurban Trolley's Bittersweet/Mishawaka route stops at Martin's Supermarket, connecting riders to the city of Elkhart and the town of Osceola
Osceola (1804 – January 30, 1838, Vsse Yvholv in Muscogee language, Creek, also spelled Asi-yahola), named Billy Powell at birth, was an influential leader of the Seminole people in Florida. His mother was Muscogee, and his great-grandfa ...
. The closest Amtrak station and the closest commercial airport are both located in western South Bend. Amtrak also has a stop in Elkhart which is a bit closer.
Major highways
* Indiana Toll Road
The Indiana Toll Road, officially the Indiana East–West Toll Road, is a controlled-access toll road that runs for east–west across northern Indiana from the Illinois state line to the Ohio state line. It has been advertised as the "Main ...
, which is Interstate 80
Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one of the ori ...
and Interstate 90
Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain states, Mountain West, Great Pla ...
.
* U.S. Route 20
U.S. Route 20 or U.S. Highway 20 (US 20) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway that stretches from the Pacific Northwest east to New England. The "0" in its route number indicates that US 20 is a major coast-to-coast route. ...
* Indiana State Road 23
State Road 23 is a highway in the north-central part of the U.S. state of Indiana. In practice it runs from the southwest to the northeast, though it is designated as a north–south route.
* Indiana State Road 331
State Road 331 (SR 331) is a state highway in the north-central part of the U.S. state of Indiana.
Route description
State Road 331 runs from State Road 25 (Indiana), State Road 25 north of Rochester (IN), Rochester via Bourbon (IN), Bourbon, ...
* Indiana State Road 933
Education
Public schools
Public schools in Mishawaka and/or serving Mishawaka are operated by several school districts. School City of Mishawaka serves the central part of the city. Other sections are within the Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation
Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation, commonly known as simply PHM, is a school district located in north-central Indiana, a region locally known as Michiana. The PHM district is located in and named for the three easternmost townships of S ...
and the South Bend Community School Corporation. Mishawaka High School
Mishawaka High School is a public high school located in Mishawaka, Indiana. The school educates students in grades 9–12 and is part of the School City of Mishawaka.
History
The first Mishawaka High School was proposed by the Mishawaka Town Bo ...
is the sole high school of the Mishawaka school district. School City of Mishawaka (School District of Mishawaka) contains a total of 9 Schools including 2 secondary Schools: Mishawaka High and John Young Middle School, and 7 Elementary Schools which includes the following: Battell, Beiger, Emmons, Hums, LaSalle, Liberty, and Twin Branch.
Penn-Harris elementary schools serving sections of Mishawaka include Walt Disney (in the Mishawaka city limits), Elm Road, Meadow's Edge, Prairie Vista, and Elsie Rogers; the middle schools respectively are Schmucker and Grissom. Penn High School
Penn High School is a public high school located in Mishawaka, Indiana, United States, near South Bend. It is the only high school in the Penn-Harris-Madison (PHM) School Corporation.
The district includes all of Osceola and portions of Gr ...
, outside of the city limits, is the sole public high school of the Penn-Harris-Madison school district. Aside from Walt Disney Elementary, none of the other respective schools are in the Mishawaka city limits. The school zonings for the South Bend School Corporation area are as follows (none of the schools are in Mishawaka): Darden Elementary School Edison Middle School and Adams High School. The section was in 2020 zoned to Tarkington Elementary, which closed in 2021.
Private and tertiary education, and libraries
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of Roman civilization
*Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
operates four private Catholic schools in Mishawaka, including Marian High School.
Bethel University is an accredited evangelical Christian liberal arts school with 1,700 students.
Mishawaka 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 Mishawaka-Penn-Harris Public Library system.
Media
One major daily newspaper serving the South Bend and Mishawaka metro area, the ''South Bend Tribune
The ''South Bend Tribune'' is a daily newspaper and news website which is based in South Bend, Indiana. It is distributed in South Bend, Mishawaka, north central Indiana, and southwestern Michigan. It has been named as a "Blue Ribbon Newspaper ...
''. It is distributed in north central Indiana and southwestern Michigan.
Mishawaka has a wide variety of local radio broadcast available in the area. Stations' programming content contains a wide variety including public radio
Public broadcasting (or public service broadcasting) is radio, television, and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service with a commitment to avoiding political and commercial influence. Public broadcasters receive ...
, classical music
Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...
, religious
Religion is a range of social- cultural systems, including designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relate humanity to supernatural ...
, country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...
, and urban contemporary
Urban contemporary music, also known as urban music, urban pop, or just simply urban, is a music radio format. The term was coined by New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker in the early to mid-1970s as a synonym for Black music. Urban contemporary r ...
among others. For more information, see List of Radio Stations in Mishawaka, Indiana.
As of 2013, the South Bend-Mishawaka-Elkhart designated market area
A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television and radio station offerings, and may also incl ...
was the 95th largest in the United States, with 319,860 (0.3% of the US population)
homes.[The Nielsen Company.]
Nielsen Reports 1.1% increase in U.S. Television Households for the 2006-2007 Season
." ''Nielsen Media Research
Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...
.'' Retrieved on January 26, 2008. Most of the major television networks have affiliates in the Michiana area.
Mishawaka located stations include WSBT-TV
WSBT-TV (channel 22) is a television station in South Bend, Indiana, United States, affiliated with CBS and Fox. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group alongside Heroes & Icons affiliate WSJV (channel 28). The two stations share studios on East ...
(CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
), WBND-LD
WBND-LD (channel 57) is a low-power television station in South Bend, Indiana, United States, affiliated with ABC. It is owned by Weigel Broadcasting (as the company's only ABC affiliate), and is sister to CW affiliate WCWW-LD (channel 25) a ...
(ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting
* Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
), WCWW-LD
WCWW-LD (channel 25) is a low-power television station in South Bend, Indiana, United States, affiliated with The CW. It is owned by Weigel Broadcasting alongside two other low-power stations: American Broadcasting Company, ABC affiliate WBND- ...
( CW) and WMYS-LD
WMYS-LD (channel 69) is a low-power television station in South Bend, Indiana, United States, affiliated with MyNetworkTV. It is owned by Weigel Broadcasting (as the company's only MyNetworkTV affiliate), and is sister to ABC affiliate WBND- ...
(My Network TV
MyNetworkTV (stylized as mynetworkTV; unofficially abbreviated MNT or MNTV) is an American commercial broadcast television syndication service and former television network owned by Fox Corporation, operated by its Fox Television Stations divi ...
).
Stations located in nearby South Bend, IN
South Bend is a city in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. It lies along the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. It is the List of cities in ...
include WNDU-TV
WNDU-TV (channel 16) is a television station in South Bend, Indiana, United States, affiliated with NBC. Owned by Gray Media, it maintains studios on the campus of the University of Notre Dame, the station's founding owner, along State Road 933 ...
(NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
), WNIT-TV (PBS
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
) and WHME-TV
WHME-TV (channel 46) is a television station in South Bend, Indiana, United States, affiliated with the Spanish-language network Univision. The station is owned by locally based Family Broadcasting Corporation (formerly known as LeSEA Broadcast ...
(LeSEA
Family Broadcasting Corporation, formerly known as LeSEA Broadcasting, is an American Christianity, Christian television network. Founded by Lester Sumrall in 1972, Family Broadcasting Corporation is headquartered in South Bend, Indiana, and br ...
).
Notable people
* Sarah Evans Barker — judge
* Remo Belli
Remo Delmo Belli (June 22, 1927 – April 25, 2016) was an American jazz drummer who developed and marketed the first successful synthetic drumheads and founded the Remo company.
Biography
Belli was born in Mishawaka, Indiana, and began drumming ...
— creator of Remo Drum Heads
* Kyle Bornheimer
Kyle Bornheimer (born September 10, 1975) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his roles on the sitcoms ''Worst Week'', ''Brooklyn Nine-Nine'', '' Casual'', and '' Playing House''.
Life and career
Bornheimer attended St. Monica Gr ...
— actor
* John Brademas
Stephen John Brademas Jr. (March 2, 1927 – July 11, 2016) was an American politician and educator originally from Indiana. He served as Majority Whip of the United States House of Representatives for the Democratic Party from 1977 to 1981 a ...
— politician
* Conte Candoli
Secondo "Conte" Candoli (July 12, 1927 – December 14, 2001) was an American jazz trumpeter based on the West Coast. He played in the big bands of Woody Herman, Stan Kenton, Benny Goodman, and Dizzy Gillespie, and in Doc Severinsen's NBC Orc ...
— jazz musician (played trumpet in Doc Severinsen's ''The Tonight Show Band'')
* Pete Candoli
Walter Joseph "Pete" Candoli(June 28, 1923 – January 11, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter. He played with the big bands of Woody Herman and Stan Kenton and worked in the studios of the recording and television industries.
Career
A native ...
— jazz musician (played trumpet in Woody Herman's Big Band)
* Devin Cannady — professional basketball player
* Timothy J. DeGeeter — politician
* Adam Driver
Adam Douglas Driver (born November 19, 1983) is an American actor, recognized for his collaborations with auteur filmmakers. Driver made his film debut in ''J. Edgar'' (2011) and played supporting roles in ''Lincoln (film), Lincoln'' (2012), '' ...
— actor
* Norman Eddy
Norman S. Eddy (December 10, 1810 – January 28, 1872) was an American politician and military officer. He served as a member of the Indiana State Senate from 1850 to 1853 and a U.S. Representative of Indiana from 1853 to 1855. He then served as ...
— Indiana Secretary of State
* Tom Ehlers
Thomas Slick Ehlers (born July 14, 1952) is a former American football linebacker. He played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for the Philadelphia Eagles and the Buffalo Bills. Ehlers played college football at the Universit ...
— NFL
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...
football player
* Buddy Emmons
Buddy Gene Emmons (January 27, 1937 – July 21, 2015) was an American musician who is widely regarded as the world's foremost pedal steel guitarist of his day. He was inducted into the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame in 1981.
Affectionately known ...
— pedal steel guitarist
* Freddie Fitzsimmons
Frederick Landis Fitzsimmons (July 28, 1901 – November 18, 1979) was an American professional baseball right-handed pitcher, manager, and coach, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from to with the New York Giants and Brooklyn Dodg ...
— Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
pitcher and manager
* Todd A. Fonseca — author
* Daniel L. Gard — Navy chaplain
* Lisa Germano
Lisa Ruth Germano (born June 27, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from Indiana. Her album '' Geek the Girl'' (1994) was named one of the best albums of the 1990s by ''Spin'' magazine. She began her career as a viol ...
— musician
* Ben Goldwasser
Benjamin Nicholas Hunter Goldwasser (born December 17, 1982) is an American songwriter and musician in the psychedelic rock band MGMT, for which he primarily plays keyboards and sings. In 2009, his song "Electric Feel" (co-written with bandmate ...
— keyboardist
* Kevin Gosztola — journalist, writer, documentarian
* George Gulyanics
George Gulyanics (June 11, 1921 – January 19, 1990) was born in Mishawaka, Indiana and was a professional American football player who played halfback and punter for six seasons for the Chicago Bears.
Biography
Gulyanics won the South Bend ...
— professional football player (Chicago Bears)
* Robin Hood
Robin Hood is a legendary noble outlaw, heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature, theatre, and cinema. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions o ...
— LPGA Tour golfer
* Zander Horvath
Alexander "Zander" John Horvath (born December 10, 1998) is an American professional Running back for the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at Purdue, and has previously played in the NFL for the Los Ange ...
— NFL running back for the Los Angeles Chargers
* Charles Kuhl — World War II soldier, famous for being slapped by General Patton, which led to Patton losing his command
* Allan Lane
Allan "Rocky" Lane (born Harry Leonard Albershardt; September 22, 1909 – October 27, 1973) was an American studio leading man and the star of many cowboy B-movies in the 1940s and 1950s. He appeared in more than 125 films and TV shows i ...
— actor
* Liz Richardson
Elizabeth Ann Richardson (8 June 1918 – 25 July 1945) was a volunteer for the American Red Cross during World War II known for being one of the four women buried at the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial.
Early life
Richardson was born ...
— Red Cross Volunteer
* Chick Maggioli — professional football player
* Ruth McKenney
Ruth Marguerite McKenney (November 18, 1911 – July 25, 1972) was an American author and journalist, best remembered for ''My Sister Eileen'', a memoir of her experiences growing up in Ohio and moving to Greenwich Village with her sister Eileen ...
— author
* Lou Mihajlovich — professional football player
* William J. Oliver — contractor
* Anna Rohrer
Anna Rohrer (born February 24, 1997) is an American long-distance runner and former student-athlete at the University of Notre Dame. She won four high school national championships and was named the Foot Locker female cross country athlete of the ...
— long-distance runner
* Mike Rosenthal — NFL offensive lineman
* Irene Vernon
Irene Vernon (born Irene Vergauwen, January 16, 1922 – April 21, 1998) was an American actress.
Background
Vernon was born Irene Vergauwen in Mishawaka, Indiana, and graduated from Mishawaka High School. Following graduation, she moved to ...
— actress
* Sharon Versyp
Sharon Versyp (born December 3, 1965) is an American former basketball player who is the head coach of the University of South Carolina Beaufort women's basketball team and the former head coach of the Purdue University women's basketball team ...
— Purdue women's basketball coach
* Joy Lynn White
Joy Lynn White (born October 2, 1961) (also known as Joy White) is an American country music singer-songwriter. White was born in Bentonville, Arkansas but raised in Mishawaka, Indiana. Signed to Columbia Records in 1992, she released her debut al ...
— country western musician
Points of interest
* Beutter Park - The new park includes a river race with elliptical-shaped overlook weirs and fiber-optic underwater lighting, two connecting bridges across the St. Joseph River race to the park, the Mishawaka Riverwalk, the "Shards" sculpture, and an 800-foot perennial garden.
* Battell Park Historic District, has Classical Revival style Band Shell and a WPA-built terraced rock garden.
* Old Mishawaka Carnegie Library on N. Hill St - closed as a library in 1969 and is now a restaurant.
* Shiojiri Garden, located in Merrifield Park, is a Japanese strolling garden that symbolizes the Sister-City relationship between Mishawaka and Shiojiri City, Japan.
* The Beiger Mansion, built in 1903 and restored in 1973, was gutted by arson in 1974. The building has since been renovated. It is operated as a bed-and-breakfast and events facility.
*The Otis R. Bowen Museum, located on the campus of Bethel College, houses memorabilia and artifacts related to Dr. Otis Bowen
Otis Ray Bowen (February 26, 1918 – May 4, 2013) was an American politician and physician who served as the 44th Governor of Indiana from 1973 to 1981 and as Secretary of Health and Human Services in the Cabinet of President Ronald Reagan from ...
's years as Governor of Indiana and Secretary of Health and Human Services. It has a copy of the Otis Bowen bust.
* In addition to the Battell Park Historic District, Beiger Mansion, and Old Mishawaka Carnegie Library, the Dodge House, Eller-Hosford House, Ellis-Schindler House, Kamm and Schellinger Brewery, Merrifield-Cass House, and Normain Heights Historic District are listed on 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 ...
. The Tivoli Theater, demolished in 2005, was formerly listed.Cinema Treasures: Mishawaka's Tivoli Succumbs to Wrecking Ball
/ref>
International Sister cities
* Soest, Germany
Soest (, as if it were 'Sohst'; Westphalian language, Westphalian: ''Saust'') is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, in western Germany. It is the Capital (political), capital of the Soest (district), Soest district.
Geography
Soest is located al ...
* Shiojiri, Japan
References
Further reading
* Babcock, Glenn D. ''History of United States Rubber Company: A Case Study in Corporate Management'' (1966).
* Baker, Ward. "Mishawaka on the Eve of Conflict" ''Indiana Magazine of History'' (1959) 55#1 pp. 25–4
in JSTOR
in 1860
online
* Baker, Ward. "Mishawaka and its Volunteers, Fort Sumter through 1861." ''Indiana Magazine of History'' (1960): 123-152
online
* Bridges, Janice. ''Indiana's princess city: The history of Mishawaka, 1832-1932'' (1976)
* DeKever, Peter J. ''With Our Past: Essays on the history of Mishawaka'' (2003)
* Eisen, D., ed. ''A Mishawaka Mosaic'' (Mishawaka: Friends of the Mishawaka Library, 1983), on diverse ethnic groups
* Fotia, Elizabeth R., and Karen Rasmussen. "The Italian-Americans of the South Bend-Mishawaka Area." (ERIC, 1975
online
* Hume, Susan E. "Belgian Settlement and Society in the Indiana Rust Belt," ''Geographical Review'' (2003) 93#1 pp. 30–5
in JSTOR
on the Flemish settlement in southwest Mishawaka that begin in 1920s
* deals mostly with Mishawaka.
External links
City of Mishawaka, Indiana website
St. Joseph County Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control
Cities in Indiana
Populated places established in 1833
Cities in St. Joseph County, Indiana
South Bend – Mishawaka metropolitan area
1833 establishments in Indiana