Haubstadt

History

Haubstadt was originally called Haub's Station, and under the latter name, meaning "Haub town" in German, was laid out in 1855. Named after an early settler, Henry Haub, the town was incorporated in 1913. Haub built the community's first home, combining a stagecoach shop, general store, and trading post to accommodate travelers on the Noon Day Stage Coach route running to Vincennes. A dance hall was later also built above Mr. Haub's tavern and store. The Haubstadt State Bank (now Town Hall) was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. On June 14, 1990, a train, operated by Jacksonville, Florida-based CSX Transportation, was coming into Haubstadt from the south and around 7:00pm suddenly there was a large crash followed by a lightning-like flash from an electric pole accompanied by a thunderclap and a town-wide power failure. It did not take long for people to realize that a train had de-railed. In the derailment, at least five buildings, most of downtown and much of Haubstadt's history was destroyed in about ten seconds. When it was later learned the train was possibly carrying ammonia, Haubstadt was mostly evacuated, mainly by people with respiratory illnesses such as asthma. It was later found that the ammonia cars were empty and that the smell was residue that was released into the air. It was also discovered that the tracks had not been maintained properly and that a couple of loose ties coupled with the speed at which the trains move through Haubstadt and neighboring Fort Branch (between 55 - 65 mph) were to blame for the accident. There is fear among many in Haubstadt and nearby Fort Branch and Princeton that a worse train wreck may occur as the track's speed limit was increased to 70 mph from Princeton to Darmstadt in 2000.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, Haubstadt has a total area of , of which (or 98.59%) is land and (or 1.41%) is water. Haubstadt has several schools, including Haubstadt Community School (or HCS), Saints Peter and Paul (or Sts. P&P), and Saint James, located approximately 2 miles south of town. The Haubstadt area has two catholic churches, Saint James and Saints Peter & Paul, both having their own K-8 schools, plus several smaller churches scattered in town or around the surrounding Johnson Township.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  4,492
• Canada Goose (canadensis Group)

  Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  3,971
• Red-winged Blackbird

  Agelaius phoeniceus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  3,822
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  3,736
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  3,317
• Great Blue/Cocoi Heron

  Ardea herodias Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  3,312
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  3,252
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  3,205