Blackford county was named in honor of Judge
Blackford, one of the
pioneer judges of Indiana. The surface of this county differs but
slightly from that of Adams. It is quite level, and in some places
gently undulating. The soil is good and well adapted to the cultivation
of wheat, rye, corn, oats, potatoes, etc. The exports consist of wheat,
cattle, homes, and, hogs.
The
soil is well
watered by the Salamonie and Lick creeks, the former a splendid
manufacturing stream. With the exception of the wet prairies, the
surface was principally all upland, heavily timbered with oak, ash,
beech, poplar, sugar tree, walnut, hickory, cherry, etc. The lint
settlement in the county was made in 1835, by Mr. John Blount. In 1887,
a colony of emigrants from Vermont settled in the county, and laid off
the town of Montpelier, named in honor of the capital of their native
State.
Miami and
Delaware
Indians occupied the land that is now Blackford County until they were
pushed west by white settlement. Among the first settlers was Benjamin
Reasoner, who came in 1831. The first birth recorded was Mary Reasoner,
third child of Peter and Rhoda Fry Reasoner. Blackford County was
created by an act of the Indiana Legislature on Feb. 15, 1838, although
local government operations didn't begin until May of 1839. The new
county of roughly 13 square miles had previously been a part of Jay
County. Blackford County was named for Judge Isaac Blackford, one of
Indiana's pioneer judges. Eli Riggon, Jacob Shroyer and Josephus
Streeter were the first commissioners, and Nicholas Friend was
appointed the first sheriff. The first meeting of the commissioners was
held in the log cabin of Andrew Boggs, and the first ballot box was his
coffee pot. The governor named David Kilgore the first judge, and the
first court was held in the Boggs cabin on Sept. 23, 1839. After some
controversy and a civil suit, Hartford (later Hartford City) was
established as the county seat. In late 1841, the commissioners
contracted for construction of the first courthouse, which was used
until 1893, when it was replaced by the present one. The first doctor,
Nelson Clouser, came in 1842. The first newspaper, The Hartford City
Times, was printed in 1852 by Dr. John E. Moler. The county was caught
up in the explosive growth of the gas boom in the late 19th century,
which drew swarms of drillers to the area after natural gas was
discovered in 1885. In 1886, drillers near Trenton in southeastern
Blackford County hit one of the peak producing wells along the
underground Trenton Dome, which produced strikes from Gas City to
Portland and Montpelier to Redkey.
The 30-year
rough-and-tumble boom
era brought rapid industrialization as companies moved close to the
cheap and abundant fuel supply, but the gas ran out and the county has
not seen such dramatic change since.
Hartford City is the
county seat of
Blackford county, and is one of the most enterprising towns of
northeastern Indiana. It has ample railroad facilities, bringing it in
direct communication with Indianapolis, Chicago, Cincinnati, Toledo,
and all the great commercial centers of the northwest This place
affords a splendid opportunity for the investment of capital and
skilled labor. Generally speaking, The county has made good progress in
agricultural pursuits, in commerce, and education. The schools are
excellent. Land is cheap and productive, and there are many inducements
for new settlers to locate in Blackford county.
Montpelier,
another incorporated town in this county, is, if possible, still more
enterprising than Hartford City. While second to the latter in
population, it is fully up in commercial Industry, and is destined to
be the leading commercial and manufacturing mart of the county.
Blackford County
is divided into 4 Civil Townships as follows: Harrison, Jackson,
Licking and Washington.
Blackford County was
organized
February 18, 1839. Hartford City almost wasn't the County Seat.
For several years, the
rival towns
of Hartford and Montpelier were competitors for the County Seat. It
took two separate acts of Legislature before the organization of the
county became effective, and it was not until after the fourth set of
commissioners were appointed, February 24, 1840, that the County Seat
was finally located at Hartford, the site probably selected by the
second set of commissioners.
Hartford was
founded in 1839 and by 1849 had a brick Courthouse along with forty
other homes, five of which were also brick. Its name was changed to
Hartford City at the suggestion of F. L. Shelton.
