Mishawaka

Sister cities

• Soest
• Shiojiri

History

Mishawaka's recorded history began with the discovery of bog iron deposits at the beginning of the 1830s. Settlers arriving to mine the deposits founded the town of St. Joseph Iron Works in 1831. Within a few years, the town had a blast furnace, a general store, a tavern, and about 200 residents. Business prospered, and in 1833 St. Joseph Iron Works, Indiana City, and two other adjacent small towns were incorporated to form the city of Mishawaka. The Mishawaka post office has been in operation since 1833. On June 27, 1859, a bridge carrying a train, which had over 150 people on board, collapsed, killing 60. In September 1872, a fire destroyed three quarters of Mishawaka's business district. However, the citizens rebuilt and attracted new industry. The Dodge Manufacturing Company, Perkins Windmills and the Mishawaka Woolen and Rubber Company (later Ball Band, then Uniroyal) all helped the town to prosper. Mishawaka grew through both industry and agriculture. In the late 19th century, Mishawaka became known as the "Peppermint Capital of the World", as its rich black loam produced great quantities of mint. From 1906 to 1915, Mishawaka was the manufacturing home of the luxurious American Simplex motor car. Ball Band made rubber garments and was hit by a major strike in 1931. It flourished in the 1940s, finally closing in 1997 in the face of cheaper imports. Manufacturing in Mishawaka peaked in the 1940s and began a slow decline due to industrial restructuring. The economic base shifted to retail services and small industry. In 1979, University Park Mall opened in the far northern portion of Mishawaka. In 1990, AM General began producing the Hummer in its Mishawaka plant. The MV-1 is a purpose-built taxicab and replaces the planned Standard Taxi; it was developed in…

Geography

According to the 2010 census, Mishawaka has a total area of , of which , or 97.99%, is land and , or 2.01%, is water.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  15,334
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  12,768
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  12,766
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  10,702
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  10,346
• Downy Woodpecker

  Dryobates pubescens (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  10,340
• White-breasted Nuthatch

  Sitta carolinensis Latham, 1790 · Aves
  10,256
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  9,759

Largest nearby schools

• Penn High School
  High · Mishawaka · 3,624 students · 20.1:1 ratio
• Adams High School
  High · South Bend · 1,976 students · 15.9:1 ratio
• Mishawaka High School
  High · Mishawaka · 1,488 students · 15.7:1 ratio
• Schmucker Middle School
  Middle · Mishawaka · 1,004 students · 19.7:1 ratio
• Riley High School
  High · South Bend · 992 students · 13.4:1 ratio
• Discovery Middle School
  Middle · Granger · 848 students · 19.3:1 ratio
• Washington High School
  High · South Bend · 834 students · 14.4:1 ratio
• John J Young Middle School
  Middle · Mishawaka · 735 students · 13.9:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 4.2 — 2015-05-02
  5 km S of Galesburg, Michigan
• M 3 — 2012-01-26
  5 km NE of Topeka, Indiana