Sullivan is a city in Hamilton Township and the

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 ...

of Sullivan County, Indiana, United States. The population was 4,249 at the 2010 census. It is part of the

Terre Haute Terre Haute ( ) is a city in Vigo County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 58,389 and its metropolitan area had a population of 168,716. Located along the Wabash River about e ...

Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

The Sullivan post office has been in operation since 1843.

2023 tornado

On the night of March 31, 2023, Sullivan was struck by a large, powerful and deadly tornado as part of a much larger outbreak, causing catastrophic damage in the city and surrounding parts of the county. At least 3 people were confirmed dead and several others injured, while at least 200 structures sustained some sort of damage. The tornado was rated EF3, containing winds up to 165 mph (250 km/h).

Geography

Sullivan is located at (39.096888, -87.406447). According to the 2010 census, Sullivan has a total area of , all land.

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 4,249 people, 1,835 households, and 1,073 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 2,110 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 97.7%

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 ...

, 0.4% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 0.4% from other races, and 1.2% 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 1.4% of the population. There were 1,835 households, of which 29.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.2% 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, 14.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 41.5% were non-families. 37.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.96. The median age in the city was 39.8 years. 23.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.4% were from 25 to 44; 25% were from 45 to 64; and 18.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 46.3% male and 53.7% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 4,617 people, 1,958 households, and 1,176 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 2,264 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 97.92%

, 0.50%

, 0.37% Native American, 0.24% Asian, 0.13% from other races, and 0.84% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.82% of the population. There were 1,958 households, out of which 28.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.0% were

living together, 11.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.9% were non-families. 36.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.95. In the city, the population was spread out, with 23.5% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 20.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 83.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $26,115, and the median income for a family was $35,042. Males had a median income of $28,773 versus $21,992 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 $17,717. About 13.6% of families and 16.6% 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 22.2% of those under age 18 and 11.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The town is served by the Southwest School Corporation, and students go to Sullivan High School. Sullivan 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 Sullivan County Public Library.

Notable people

* Will H. Hays (1879–1954) - Chairman of 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 ...

(1918–21),

Postmaster General of the United States The United States postmaster general (PMG) is the chief executive officer of the United States Postal Service (USPS). The PMG is responsible for managing and directing the day-to-day operations of the agency. The PMG is selected and appointed by ...

(1921–22), President of the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America (1922–45) and namesake of the movie industry's

Hays Code The Motion Picture Production Code was a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content that was applied to most motion pictures released by major studios in the United States from 1934 to 1968. It is also popularly known as th ...

. * Nelson Poynter (1903–1978) - Newspaperman and founder of the

Poynter Institute The Poynter Institute for Media Studies is a non-profit journalism school and research organization in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. The school is the owner of the ''Tampa Bay Times'' newspaper and the International Fact-Checking Netw ...

. * Antoinette Dakin Leach (April 3, 1859 – June 11, 1922) was an American lawyer and a women's rights pioneer who was an active organizer on behalf of

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the women's rights, right of women to Suffrage, vote in elections. Several instances occurred in recent centuries where women were selectively given, then stripped of, the right to vote. In Sweden, conditional women's suffra ...

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 ...

. *

Paul Dresser Paul Dresser (born Johann Paul Dreiser Jr.; April 22, 1857 – January 30, 1906) was an American singer, songwriter, and comedic actor of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Dresser performed in traveling minstrel and medicine-wa ...

(1857–1906) - Late 19th century singer, songwriter and comedic actor. Wrote one of the best-selling songs of the 19th century, "

On the Banks of the Wabash, Far Away "On the Banks of the Wabash, Far Away" is a song written and composed by the American songwriter Paul Dresser in 1897. It is among the best-selling songs of the 19th century, earning over $100,000 from sheet music, sheet-music revenues. Writ ...

References

External links

* * {{authority control Cities in Indiana Cities in Sullivan County, Indiana County seats in Indiana Terre Haute metropolitan area