Lafayette

History

When European explorers arrived at this area, it was inhabited by a tribe of Miami Native Americans known as the Ouiatenon or Weas. In 1717, the French government established Fort Ouiatenon across the Wabash River and south of present-day Lafayette. The fort became the center of trade for fur trappers, merchants and Indians. An annual reenactment and festival known as Feast of the Hunters' Moon is held there each autumn. The town of Lafayette was platted in May 1825 by William Digby, a trader. It was designated as the county seat of the newly formed Tippecanoe County the following year. Like many frontier towns, Lafayette was named for General Lafayette, a French officer who significantly aided George Washington's Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Lafayette toured the United States in 1824 and 1825. In its earliest days, Lafayette was a shipping center on the Wabash River. In 1838, Henry Leavitt Ellsworth, the first United States Patent Commissioner, published a booklet titled Valley of the Upper Wabash, Indiana, with Hints on Its Agricultural Advantages, to promote settlement of the region. By 1845, Ellsworth had purchased of farmland around Lafayette and moved there from Connecticut to supervise land sales. By 1847 Ellsworth was distributing broadsides looking for farmers to purchase his farmland. He became president of the Tippecanoe County Agricultural Society in April 1851 – despite some local resentment over what was called "the Yale Crowd" – but he was defeated the same year when he ran for the Indiana House of Representatives. Ellsworth Street and Ellsworth Historic District are named for him. The Wabash and Erie Canal in the 1840s stimulated trade and affirmed Lafayette's regional prominence. Railroads arrived in the town in the…

Geography

Lafayette is located in Fairfield and Wea Townships. According to the 2010 census, Lafayette has a total area of , all land. Neighborhoods include: *9th Street Hill *Centennial *Columbian Park *Downtown *Ellsworth Romig *Glen Acres *Hanna *Hedgewood *Highland Park *Jefferson *Jesco Hills Estates *Lincoln *Linnwood *Monon *Orchard Heights *Perrin *Potter Hollow *St. Lawrence-McAllister *St. Mary's *Valley Center *Vinton Highlands *Vinton *Wabash *Wallace Triangle Historic neighborhoods include Ninth Street Hill Neighborhood Historic District and Upper Main Street Historic District. In recent years, temperatures in Lafayette have ranged from an average low of in January to an average high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January of both 1963 and 1994, and December 1989, and a record high of was recorded in July 1954. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in February to in July. At most snowfall is

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  19,909
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  19,267
• Canada Goose (canadensis Group)

  Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  14,421
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  14,218
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  13,897
• American Goldfinch

  Spinus tristis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  13,657
• White-breasted Nuthatch

  Sitta carolinensis Latham, 1790 · Aves
  13,096
• Downy Woodpecker

  Dryobates pubescens (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  12,937

Largest nearby schools

• William Henry Harrison High School
  High · West Lafayette · 2,136 students · 17.5:1 ratio
• Jefferson High School
  High · Lafayette · 2,118 students · 15:1 ratio
• McCutcheon High School
  High · Lafayette · 1,825 students · 15.7:1 ratio
• West Lafayette Jr/Sr High School
  High · West Lafayette · 1,112 students · 15:1 ratio
• Lafayette Sunnyside Intermediate
  Middle · Lafayette · 1,047 students · 13.8:1 ratio
• Lafayette Tecumseh Jr High School
  Middle · Lafayette · 1,043 students · 13:1 ratio
• Klondike Elementary School
  Elementary · West Lafayette · 981 students · 18.2:1 ratio
• Burnett Creek Elementary School
  Elementary · West Lafayette · 762 students · 20.1:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.5 — 2023-10-31
  7 km ESE of Linden, Indiana
• M 3.82 — 2021-06-17
  Illinois-Indiana border region
• M 3.8 — 2010-12-30
  6 km SE of Greentown, Indiana