Everything about Columbus Indiana totally explained
Columbus is the
county seat of
Bartholomew County, Indiana,
United States. The population was 39,059 at the 2000 census. The current mayor is
Fred Armstrong. It is a small city approximately 40 miles (64 km) south of
Indianapolis, on the east fork of the
White River. It is also the principal city of the Columbus, Indiana
metropolitan statistical area which encompasses all of Bartholomew County. Not only is Columbus an international architectural showplace, but Columbus is also currently ranked eleventh in the U.S. on the list of safest cities per population. In 2006, Columbus won the highly competitive national contest, "America in Bloom." In 2004 it was named as one of "The Ten Most Playful Towns" by
Nick Jr. Family Magazine. The July 2005 edition of "
GQ Magazine" named Columbus one of the "62 Reasons to Love Your Country." Columbus is the headquarters of the engine company,
Cummins Inc.
History
In 1820, the land which is now Columbus was bought by General
John Tipton and Luke Bonesteel. General Tipton built a log cabin on Mt. Tipton, a small hill overlooking White River and the surrounding flat, heavily forested, swampy valley. The town was known as Tiptonia, named in honor of General
John Tipton. On 20 March, 1821, the town's name was changed to Columbus. General Tipton was very upset by the change of names, and he moved from Columbus. Later in life, General
John Tipton became the Highway Commissioner for the
State of Indiana, and was given the job of building a highway from
Indianapolis,
Indiana to
Louisville,
Kentucky. Upon reaching Columbus, he constructed the first bypass road ever built. Mauxferry Road detoured south around the west side of Columbus on its way to Seymour.
Joseph McKinney was the first to plot the town of Columbus. No date of this plot was recorded by Mr. McKinney.
For years, it was recorded in the local history books that the land on which Columbus sits was donated by General Tipton. However, a deed purporting to show a sale of the land was acquired by the
Historic Columbus Indiana website
in 2003, which indicated General Tipton actually sold the land.
A ferry was established in order to avoid crossing both the Flat Rock and Driftwood rivers, which join only a short distance above the site of the ferry. This became a village of three or four log cabins and in 1821, the first store was added. In the same year, Bartholomew County was organized by an act of the State Legislature and named after the famous Indian fighter, General Joseph Bartholomew. Columbus, Indiana was incorporated as a city on 28 June, 1864.
In 1844, the first railroad in Indiana reached Columbus from Madison, Indiana. This was known as the Madison branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad. The railroad caused the community to grow into one of the larger communities of the State of Indiana. By 1850, three more railroads came into the city.
Columbus is host to the oldest theater in the State of Indiana: the Crump Theatre, which was built in 1889 by John Crump. Today, the building is a historical landmark and is also an all-ages venue where bands perform occasionally. Columbus is also host to the formerly oldest, continually operated bookstore in the State of Indiana: Cummins Bookstore first began its operations in 1892 and ended in late 2007.
The Irwin Union Bank building was built in 1954. It was designated a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service in 2001 because of its architecture.
The building consists of a one-story bank structure adjacent to a three-story office annex. A portion of the office annex was built along with the banking hall in 1954. The remaining, much larger portion, designed by Kevin Roche, John Dinkeloo and Associates, was built in 1973.
Eero Saarinen designed the bank building with its glazed hall to be set off against the blank background of its three-story brick annex. Two steel and glass vestibule connectors lead from the north side of this structure to the annex.
The building was designed to distance the Irwin Union Bank from traditional banking architecture, which mostly echoed imposing, neoclassical style buildings of brick or stone. Tellers were behind iron bars and removed from their customers. Saarinen worked to develop a building that would welcome customers rather than intimidate them.
Columbus has been home to many manufacturing companies, including Arvin Industries, now
ArvinMeritor Industries. After merging with Meritor Automotive on July 10, 2000, the headquarters of ArvinMeritor Industries was moved to Troy, Michigan.
Cummins Inc. is by far the region's largest employer, although ArvinMeritor isn't far behind. In addition, the Infotech Park accounts for a sizable number of research jobs in Columbus proper. Other notable industries include architecture, a discipline for which Columbus is famous worldwide. The late J. Irwin Miller (then president and chairman of
Cummins Engine Company launched the Cummins Foundation, a charitable program which helps subsidize a large number of architectural projects throughout the city by up-and-coming engineers and architects.
Early in the
20th Century, Columbus was also home to a number of pioneering
car manufacturers, including
Reeves, which produced the unusual four-axle Octoauto and the twin rear axle Sextoauto, both around 1911.
Because Columbus is far enough away from Indianapolis, it benefits tremendously from nearby commuters who recognize Columbus as a major city in its own right. During the day, nearly 19,000 workers commute into the city from the surrounding townships and villages.
In recent years, city officials have looked for ways to revitalize the city and return Columbus to the days when Miller's architectural innovation made it one of the most envied cities in the United States. Economic development, widespread beautification innovations, various tax incentives, and increased law enforcement have helped Columbus overcome what some considered a slump during the 1980s and 1990s.
Architecture & Art
Columbus is a city known for its
architecture. J. Irwin Miller, Co-Founder of the
Cummins Engine Company, a local concern manufacturing diesel engines, instituted a program in which Cummins would pay the architects' fee on any building if the client selected a firm from a list they compiled. The plan was initiated with public schools. It was so successful that Miller went on to defray the design costs of fire stations, public housing and other community structures. Columbus has come to have an unusual number of notable public buildings and sculpture, designed by such individuals as
Eero Saarinen,
I.M. Pei,
Robert Venturi,
Cesar Pelli,
Richard Meier and others. Six of its buildings, built between 1942 and 1965, are
National Historic Landmarks, and 60 other buildings sustain the Bartholomew County capital seat's reputation as a showcase of modern architecture.
National Geographic Magazine once devoted an entire article to the town's architecture.
The National Historical Landmarks are:
Other notable buildings include:
Cleo Rogers Memorial Library, designed by I. M. Pei
Commons-Courthouse Center, by César Pelli
Columbus East High School, by Romaldo Giurgola
St. Peter's Lutheran Church, by Gunnar Birkerts
Also Lincoln Elementary. Once visited by Lady Bird Johnson
Notable sculptures include:
Large Arch (External Link), sculpture by Henry Moore
Chaos I sculpture by Jean Tinguely
Columbus is also the home to an orchestra, the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic. Under the direction of Dr. David Bowden and Charles Latshaw, this orchestra has been broadcast nationwide multiple times. In 1996 the orchestra teamed with the internationally famous Indianapolis Children's Choir to form the Columbus Indiana Children's Choir.
Geography
Columbus is located at (39.213998, -85.911056). The Driftwood and Flatrock Rivers join at Columbus to form the East Fork of the White River.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 26.4 square miles (68.3 km²), of which, 26.0 square miles (67.2 km²) of it's land and 0.4 square miles (1.1 km²) of it (1.59%) is water.
Demographics
In 1900, 8,130 people lived in Columbus, Indiana; in 1910, 8,813; and in 1940, 11,738. As of the census of 2000, there were 39,059 people, 15,985 households, and 10,566 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,505.3 people per square mile (581.1/km²). There were 17,162 housing units at an average density of 661.4/sq mi (255.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 91.32% White, 2.71% Black or African American, 0.13% Native American, 3.23% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 1.39% from other races, and 1.19% from two or more races. 2.81% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
Households
There were 15,985 households out of which 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.9% were married couples living together, 11.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.9% were non-families. 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.94.
Ages
In the city the population was spread out with 25.7% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 23.0% from 45 to 64, and 13.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 92.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.6 males.
Income
The median income for a household in the city was $41,723, and the median income for a family was $52,296. Males had a median income of $40,367 versus $24,446 for females. The per capita income for the city was $22,055. About 6.5% of families and 8.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.7% of those under age 18 and 8.8% of those age 65 or over.
Entertainment
There is currently one movie theatre, Kerasotes Showplace 12, which shows new movies. The Commons Cinema, which shows movies close to DVD release, is closing down as the Commons Mall closes its doors as a shopping mall. However, another theatre in the mall, Yes! Cinema which shows independent, older, and foreign films, will remain open throughout, and after the construction.
As mentioned, the downtown landmark Crump theatre is now home only to occasional local performances, such as comedy (rarely) and aspiring local rock or punk bands.
Famous Natives & Residents
Jamie Hyneman: host of MythBusters (Born in Marshall, Michigan)
Tony Stewart: USAC, NASCAR, Indianapolis 500 driver; multiple national championships; race track & race team owner
Chuck Taylor: shoe designer & basketball player
Scott McNealy: Chairman & co-founder of Sun Microsystems
Clessie Cummins: Salesman, Founder of engine manufacturer Cummins Inc.
Bruce Tinsley: creator of Mallard Fillmore
Mike Pence: a Republican who represents Indiana's 6th District in the United States Congress
J.I. Miller: Entrepreneur
Ross Barbour: Founding Member of the group "The Four Freshmen"
Don Barbour: Founding Member of the group "The Four Freshmen"
Mark Weber: Radio & television personality
Tim Hittle: Animator
Neal Snow: Publisher, Founder of Driven Snow Studios
Julie Strietelmeier: Owner and Editor of The Gadgeteer
Arthur W Graham III: Creator of 1st fully automatic electronic race timing & scoring system; long-time Indy 500 Executive Race Official
Forest Lucas owner/creator of Lucas Oil Products; sponsor Indianapolis Colts Lucas Oil Stadium.
Daniel Orr: Chef and Author
Ryan Nerz: Author of Eat This Book
Bob Paris: Best-selling author; award-winning public speaker and social change agent; former Mr. Universe
Alison Bates, Soprano
Dr. Eric Stark: Conductor
Dr. Michael Shwartzkopf: Conductor of "Singing Hoosiers"
Blair Kiel: NFL player
Dick Johnson: Founder of Bigfoot franchise
Brad Garton: Son of Robert Garton, composer
Robert Garton: Longest serving member of the Indiana Senate
Terry Richard Schmidt: NFL cornerback
Quinn Lemley: Singer
Herbert Wright: Producer
Carl Runnels: GuitaristFurther Information
Get more info on 'Columbus Indiana'.
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