Charlestown

History

Charlestown was established in 1808, named after one of its surveyors, Charles Beggs, upon , of which was designated for a town square. It was established one mile (1.6 km) northeast of Springville, and was responsible for Springville's demise. Milling was important to the town, as the first mill was built in the area, on Fourteen Mile Creek, in 1804. This mill would be abandoned when John Work built a mill by use of a tunnel in 1814. Today, that mill is part of the Tunnel Mill Scout Reservation. From 1811 to 1878 Charlestown was the county seat of Clark County, but as Jeffersonville had surpassed it economically, the county seat reverted to Jeffersonville in 1878. In 1818, the first Grand Lodge of Free & Accepted Masons in Indiana met in Charlestown, due to Jonathan Jennings' influence. In 1871, three black Charlestown residents were lynched for the murders of local farmer, Cyrus Park, along with his family. Park's two daughters were found on the brink of death alongside the dismembered corpses of Park, his wife, and his son. Park's neighbor claimed to have letters that park had received from a "high-profile" member of the community which threatened Park's life if he did not leave Charlestown. The night Park's neighbor made this testimony, he fought off a group of attackers, who he later described as, Park's murderers and "definitely white." Despite this, Park's neighbor was ignored. A manhunt had already commenced for George Johnson, a black Charlestown man known locally for his vagrancy. Upon capture, Johnson was quickly forced into confessing through harassment and torture, implicating Squire Taylor and Charles Davis, two other black Charlestown residents in his confession as well. After being arrested, all three men were found not guilty, but were…

Geography

According to the 2010 census, Charlestown has a total area of , of which (or 99.66%) is land and (or 0.34%) is water.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  11,980
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  11,197
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  9,373
• Carolina Chickadee

  Poecile carolinensis (Audubon, 1834) · Aves
  8,855
• Tufted Titmouse

  Baeolophus bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  8,735
• Carolina Wren

  Thryothorus ludovicianus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  8,627
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  8,073
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  7,915

Largest nearby schools

• Jeffersonville High School
  High · Jeffersonville · 2,130 students · 17.8:1 ratio
• Silver Creek High School
  High · Sellersburg · 935 students · 17:1 ratio
• Silver Creek Elementary School
  Elementary · Sellersburg · 899 students · 18.7:1 ratio
• River Valley Middle School
  Middle · Jeffersonville · 850 students · 14.4:1 ratio
• Charlestown Senior High School
  High · Charlestown · 788 students · 16.4:1 ratio
• Silver Creek Middle School
  Middle · Sellersburg · 760 students · 17.7:1 ratio
• Rock Creek Community Academy
  Other · Sellersburg · 661 students · 15.7:1 ratio
• Henryville Elementary School
  Elementary · Henryville · 647 students · 18:1 ratio