Wakarusa

History

In 1836, rural Olive Township was formed in western Elkhart County, and in 1849, as the population grew, a post office named Mt. Olive opened. After more population growth, a new village named Salem was established to prevent people from having to travel to either Goshen or Elkhart to conduct business. Since there is already a town named Salem in Indiana, the name was changed to Wakarusa in 1859. The Mt. Olive Post Office was renamed for Wakarusa a year later. Railroad - In 1891 work began on the Wabash Railroad line through town, with the official opening of the line in the spring of 1893. The line, which connected Chicago with Montpelier, Ohio, became part of the Norfolk & Western Railway in 1964 and lasted until the 1980s. Today, the original Wabash depot along with two Norfolk & Western rail cars are featured along with many other displays at the Wakarusa Historical Museum. The etymology of the name "Wakarusa" is not known. According to tradition, the name Wakarusa is from a Native American language, meaning "knee-deep in mud". A more recent source claims a settler named it after a location in Kansas.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, Wakarusa has a total area of , of which (or 96.62%) is land and (or 3.38%) is water.

Race & ethnicity