Peru

History

On August 18, 1827, Joseph Holman bought land near the confluence of the Mississinewa and Wabash rivers from Jean Baptiste "Pechewa" (Wildcat) Drouet de Richardville, the chief of the Miami people. The sale was approved on March 3, 1828, by President John Quincy Adams. On March 12, 1829, Holman had the land surveyed and laid out the town of Miamisport. Peru was founded in 1834 by William N. Hood, who had bought of land from Miamisport's founder Joseph Holman five years earlier. By 1835, court was being held in Peru rather than Miamisport, and the name "Miamisport" quietly disappeared as Peru became the dominant community in the area. like many other early automobile manufacturers, Model did not survive. In 1913, Peru suffered a massive flood, the worst of its time. Between March 24 and March 27, of rain fell on Peru, and sent water from the Wabash and Mississinewa rivers rushing down its streets at speeds of , destroying everything in its path. Before the flood of 1913, Peru was a busy town, full of activity and jobs, with 15,000 inhabitants, 100 factories, a trolley service, railroads, a new hospital (Duke's), a circus (which employed 1,000 people on the road), and a new concrete bridge (largest of its kind in the world at the time). The total loss for Peru was estimated at $3,000,000 (1913 figures). Many people died, as well as many of the circus animals. Public enemy John Dillinger and his gang robbed the Peru police department armory on October 21, 1933. They acquired one Thompson submachine gun, two Winchester rifles, two shotguns, four .38 revolvers and a half-dozen bulletproof vests. On June 23, 1972, Martin J. McNally hijacked American Airlines Flight 119 while in flight from St. Louis to Tulsa. After receiving a ransom of $502,500, he jumped out of the…

Geography

Peru is located in north-central Indiana, in central Miami County, west of Wabash and east of Logansport. Indianapolis, the state capital, is to the south, and South Bend is to the north. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Peru has a total area of , of which are land and , or 1.69%, are water.

Race & ethnicity