North Judson is a town in Wayne Township, Starke County, 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 population was 1,857 as of the 2020 census.

History

The area now known as North Judson was originally Brantwood, a town platted on October 1, 1859, less than a mile northwest of the current town. The town post office was established on September 24, 1860, as North Judson after William D. Judson, President of the Cincinnati & Chicago Railroad (later a part of the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad), which had just been laid through the town. The 'North' was likely added to eliminate confusion with downstate Judson, Indiana. The town of North Judson proper was later laid out in 1866 and incorporated in 1888. In 1881, the Indiana, Illinois and Iowa Railroad and Chicago and Atlantic Railroad were each laid through the town. The town formerly owned and remains the headquarters of the Chesapeake & Indiana Railroad.

Geography

North Judson is located at the intersection of State Road 10 and State Road 39. According to the 2010 census, North Judson has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the census of 2020, there were 1,857 people.

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 1,772 people, 706 households, and 456 families residing in the town. 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 791 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town 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 ...

, 0.1%

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 ...

, 0.3% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 1.2% 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 7.3% of the population. There were 706 households, of which 32.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.5% 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, 14.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 35.4% were non-families. 30.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.11. The median age in the town was 37.7 years. 27% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.5% were from 25 to 44; 24.7% were from 45 to 64; and 15.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 48.0% male and 52.0% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 1,675 people, 648 households, and 425 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 704 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.01%

, 0.06%

, 0.12% Native American, 0.06% Asian, 1.97% from other races, and 0.78% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 6.39% of the population. There were 648 households, out of which 34.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.7% were

living together, 12.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.4% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.27. In the town, the population was spread out, with 31.1% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 29.0% from 25 to 44, 16.2% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 85.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $29,779, and the median income for a family was $39,792. Males had a median income of $31,071 versus $21,467 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 town was $13,052. About 10.5% of families and 12.7% 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 12.3% of those under age 18 and 15.2% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Library

The town has a lending library, the North Judson-Wayne Township Library.

Public Education

The town has an elementary school that teaches kindergarten through sixth grade, while North Judson-San Pierre High School teaches seventh grade through twelfth grade.

Arts and culture

The town hosts the annual Mint Festival over

Father's Day Father's Day is a day set aside for honoring one's father, as well as fatherhood, paternal bonds, and the influence of fathers in society. "Father's Day" complements similar celebrations honoring family members, such as Mother's Day and, in som ...

weekend in celebration of the history of mint farming in the area. Musicians perform live throughout the weekend on a stage at Norwayne Field, a

Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; from 1935 to 1939, then known as the Work Projects Administration from 1939 to 1943) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to car ...

-built park situated north at the intersection of SRs 10 and 39. Additionally, North Judson is home to the Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum, a memorial to American railroad culture that offers old-fashioned train rides on Saturdays. A short train ride reaches English Lake, at the Kankakee and Yellow Rivers' confluence, before returning to the museum. Ten miles to the east, Bass Lake, a popular resort, offers summer relaxation opportunities to visitors and locals alike. Just south of the lake, the Melody Drive-in shows movies on two screens. The community of North Judson is also a strong supporter of its high school North Judson-San Pierre, and the athletic teams the Blue Jays, particularly in football, and basketball, both boys and girls. The Blue Jays have a longtime football rivalry with the Knox High School Redskins, and games are among the biggest high school sports events each season.

Notable people

* David Haugh, sports columnist of the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

'' * Henry F. Schricker, 36th and 38th

Governor of Indiana The governor of Indiana is the head of government of the U.S. state of Indiana. The governor is elected to a four-year term and is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day management of the functions of many agencies of the Indiana state gover ...

Notes

External links

Official website
{{authority control Towns in Starke County, Indiana Towns in Indiana Northwest Indiana