Chalmers

History

Chalmers dates back to the early 1850s. Land was donated by Gardner Mudge to the Chicago, Indianapolis and Louisville Railway in 1854 after the company constructed a rail line through Big Creek in 1853. Mudge and his brother-in-law operated a general store. On April 21, 1854, a Post Office was established with Mudge serving as postmaster. Chalmers was platted on July 24, 1873; it included 103 lots on six streets. Several homes and stores were erected, and a school was constructed in the early 1870s. The first church was organized in 1878, and a tile factory was erected in the same year. The Bank of Chalmers was established by Jacob Raub in the early 1890s with a capital of $10,000. Chalmers became an incorporated town in 1892. "The Ledger" served as the first community newspaper, published initially in 1893. In 1895, a train station which later became a symbol of the town's history was constructed. The village was originally known by many as "Mudge's Station," after Gardner Mudge. The name "Chalmers" was listed on railroad timetables of New Albany and Salem as early as 1856. By 1912, Chalmers had approximately 600 residents. It consisted of two grain elevators, a factory, fifteen stores, two banks, two livery barns, three blacksmith shops, a lumber yard, two hotels, two garages, and dozens of homes. Although the depot was demolished in 1976, the railroad which passes through Chalmers is still in use and is operated by CSX Transportation.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, it has a total area of , all land. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Chalmers has a hot-summer humid continental climate, abbreviated "Dfa" on climate maps. The hottest temperature recorded in Chalmers was on June 27, 2005, and July 8, 2012, while the coldest temperature recorded was on January 3, 2018. |source 2 = National Weather Service (mean maxima/minima 2006–2020) }}

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• Twin Lakes Senior High School
  High · Monticello · 674 students · 13.5:1 ratio
• Meadowlawn Elementary School
  Elementary · Monticello · 567 students · 17.7:1 ratio
• Roosevelt Middle School
  Middle · Monticello · 523 students · 13.4:1 ratio
• Frontier Elementary
  Elementary · Brookston · 380 students · 13.6:1 ratio
• Oaklawn Elementary School
  Elementary · Monticello · 348 students · 15.8:1 ratio
• Frontier Jr-Sr High School
  High · Chalmers · 291 students · 10.4:1 ratio