Editing Blackford County, Indiana (section)

==History==
{{For timeline}}
[[Image:Godfroy Reserve Marker in Montpelier Indiana.jpg|thumb|250px|alt=Historic marker for Godfroy Reserve|right|Historic Marker in Montpelier, Indiana]] [[Image:Blackford County, Indiana map from 1876 atlas.jpg|thumb|250px|alt=1876 map showing Blackford County. One line moves north–south through Hartford City and Montpelier, and the other moves east–west through Hartford City.|right|1876 map of Blackford County]]
Following thousands of years of varying cultures of indigenous peoples, the historic Miami and [[Delaware Indians]] (a.k.a. Lenape) are the first-recorded permanent settlers in the Blackford County area, living on the [[Godfroy Reserve]] after an 1818 [[Treaty of St. Mary's|treaty]].<ref name="Biographical715">{{harvnb|Unlisted (Biographical and historical record...)|1887|p=715}}</ref> The site is located in Blackford County's Harrison Township, east of [[Montpelier, Indiana|Montpelier]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Godfroy Reserve |url=http://www.in.gov/history/markers/45.htm |access-date=July 1, 2011 |publisher=Indiana Historical Bureau}}</ref> Although the Godfroy Reserve was allotted to Miami Native Chief [[Francis Godfroy|Francois (a.k.a. Francis) Godfroy]], Delaware Indians were also allowed to stay there.<ref>{{harvnb|Beeson|p=1}}</ref> The Miami tribe was the most powerful group of Natives in the region, and Francois Godfroy (who was half French) was one of their chiefs. By 1839, Godfroy had sold the reserve, and the Natives had migrated west.<ref name="Biographical715" /> Benjamin Reasoner was the first European–American to enter future Blackford County, and its first land owner.<ref>{{harvnb|Blackford County Historical Society (Ind.)|1986|p=141}}</ref><ref name="LandRec">{{Cite web |title=Blackford County, Indiana, Land Records 1831–1837 |url=http://genealogytrails.com/ind/blackford/land1831-1837.html |access-date=November 26, 2011 |publisher=Genealogy Trails History Group}}</ref> He entered the area on July 9, 1831.<ref name="shinn1900-224">{{harvnb|Shinn|1900|p=224}}</ref> Reasoner and his sons built the county's first [[Watermill|mill]], on their farm.<ref name="76andBC">{{harvnb|Beeson|Bonham|1974|p=4}}</ref>

The land that would become Blackford County was originally the western part of Jay County. A January 30, 1836, act of the Indiana General Assembly created Jay County, effective March 1, 1836.<ref name="MontJay84">{{harvnb|Montgomery|Jay|1922|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=T0LWAAAAMAAJ&dq=indiana+general+assembly+1837+Blackford&pg=PA84 84]}}</ref> In December 1836, a motion was made in the Indiana House of Representatives to review dividing Jay County, but that resolution was not adopted.<ref>{{harvnb|Indiana State House of Representatives|1836|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=0CNFAAAAYAAJ&dq=%22dividing+the+county+of+Jay%2C+and+establishing%22&pg=PA118 118]}}</ref>
Two Blackford County communities, Matamoras and Montpelier, originally existed as part of Jay County. They lie along the Salamonie River in what became the northeast portion of Blackford County. John Blount founded Matamoras, arriving in 1833.{{#tag:ref|"Blount" may have also been spelled "Blunt". In Bureau of Land Management records for the area that would become Blackford County, "John Blunt" is listed as a land purchaser in 1835. (Benjamin Reasoner is listed as the first land purchaser.)<ref name="LandRec" />|group=Note}} This village is Blackford County's oldest community, and is the site of the county's largest water mill.<ref name="AHist117" /> The mill, constructed around 1843, was considered one of the finest in the state.<ref name="76andBC" /> Blackford County's other former Jay County community is Montpelier, west of Matamoras on the Salamonie River. Led by Abel Baldwin, the community was started in 1836 by groups of migrant settlers from [[Vermont]]. They named the settlement after the capital of their previous home state. Blackford County's Montpelier was [[plat]]ted in 1837 (before Matamoras), and is the county's oldest platted community.<ref>{{harvnb|Blackford County Historical Society (Ind.)|1986|p=91}}</ref>

Several sources list the creation year for Blackford County as 1837.{{#tag:ref|At least three sources incorrectly say Blackford County began in 1837:  ''Biographical and historical record of Jay and Blackford Counties...,''<ref>{{harvnb|Unlisted (Biographical and historical record...)|1887|p=724}}</ref> Montgomery and Jay,<ref name="MontJay84" /> and Shinn.<ref name="shinn1900-224" />|group=Note}} However, the law was not finalized until 1838. Indiana bill of the House No. 152 was originally for the creation of a county named Windsor. The name "Windsor" was replaced with the name "Blackford" by the House of Representatives in January 1838.<ref>{{harvnb|Indiana State House of Representatives|1837|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=gyxFAAAAYAAJ&dq=%22title+thereof+was+amended+by+striking+out+%22Windsor%22%22&pg=PA346 346]}}</ref> An "act for the formation of the county of Blackford" was approved on February 15, 1838.<ref name="GeneralA">{{harvnb|Indiana General Assembly|1839|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=mws4AAAAIAAJ&dq=That+the+said+county+of+Blackford+shall+belong+or+appertain&pg=RA2-PA64 64–65 (Chapter XLIX)]}}</ref> This act intended that the county would be "open for business" on the first Monday in April 1838, which was April 2.<ref>{{harvnb|Shockley|1914|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=0CwOAQAAMAAJ&dq=Blackford+was+cut+off+from+Jay+county&pg=PA38 38]}}</ref> However, the county was not organized.<ref>{{harvnb|Monks|Esarey|Shockley|1916|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=WxcaAAAAYAAJ&dq=Blackford+was+cut+off+from+Jay+county&pg=PA564 564–565]}}</ref> Finally, on January 29, 1839, the original February 15 act was amended, stating that Blackford County shall "enjoy the rights and privileges" of an independent county. The act also appointed commissioners, and corrected a misprint that defined the southeast corner of the new county.<ref name="GeneralA" />{{#tag:ref|Multiple dates are designated as the time Blackford County was “created” or “founded”. February 15, 1838, is the date Blackford County was created by legislation, and this date is used by at least one source as the county’s creation date.<ref>{{harvnb|Kane|Aiken|2005|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=yC9vFvCuW84C&q=Blackford&pg=PA413 361]|access-date=June 22, 2012}}</ref> The original legislation expected the county to be organized on April 2, 1838. An additional act clarified the county’s status on January 29, 1839, and the county was finally organized later that year.|group=Note}}

Over the next two years, a political struggle continued to determine the location of the county seat. The tiny community of Hartford was repeatedly selected by the commissioners, but those decisions were challenged by individuals favoring Montpelier. While Licking Township (where Hartford lay) was the most populous township in the county, Montpelier was the county's oldest platted community. After a third and fourth act of the Indiana General Assembly, Hartford was finalized as the location of the county seat—and construction of a courthouse began.<ref>{{harvnb|Shockley|1914|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=0CwOAQAAMAAJ&dq=Blackford+was+cut+off+from+Jay+county&pg=PA38 38–39]}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Blackford County Historical Society (Ind.)|1986|p=14}}</ref> When it was noted that another Indiana community was also named Hartford, Blackford County's Hartford was renamed Hartford City.<ref>{{harvnb|Unlisted (Biographical and historical record...)|1887|p=744}}</ref>

During the next 25 years, the county grew slowly. Plans were made for roads and railroads, and swampland was drained. The first railroad line was authorized in 1849. The plan was for the Fort Wayne & Southern Railroad Company to connect the Indiana cities of [[Fort Wayne, Indiana|Fort Wayne]] and [[Muncie, Indiana|Muncie]]—running north–south through the Blackford County communities of Montpelier and Hartford City.<ref name="RR">{{harvnb|Unlisted (Biographical and historical record...)|1887|pp=759–760, 239–240}}</ref> Although construction began in the 1850s, it was not completed (by connecting Fort Wayne to Muncie) until 1870, and this delay caused it to be the second railroad to operate in Blackford County.<ref name="RR" /> By the time the railroad began operations, it was named Fort Wayne, Cincinnati & Louisville Railroad.<ref name="RR" /> The [[Lake Erie and Western Railroad]] acquired this railroad in 1890.<ref>{{harvnb|Goltra|1895|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=6VsrAAAAYAAJ&dq=%221890%2C+before+it+was+acquired+by+this+Company%22&pg=PA14 14]}}</ref>{{#tag:ref|The railroad changed ownership and names more than once, and was also known as the [[Lake Erie and Western Railroad]], the [[New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad|Nickel Plate Road]], and the [[Norfolk and Western Railway]]. The line is currently owned by the [[Norfolk Southern Railway]].<ref>{{harvnb|Blackford County Historical Society (Ind.)|1986|pp=18–19}}</ref>|group=Note}}

The first railroad to operate in Blackford County crossed somewhat east–west through the county's southern half. The railroad was named Union and Logansport Railroad Company by the time it entered Blackford County.<ref name="RR" /> This line was proposed in 1862, and completed to Hartford City in 1867—running through the Blackford County communities of Dunkirk, [[Converse, Blackford County, Indiana|Crumley's Crossing]], and Hartford City. The small community of Crumley's Crossing was renamed Converse, and two other communities (Millgrove and Renner) became established on this line. The railroad was eventually named [[Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and St. Louis Railroad]].<ref name="RR" /> Other names for the railroad since that time include the Panhandle division of the [[Pennsylvania Railroad]], [[Penn Central Transportation Company]], [[Consolidated Rail Corporation|Conrail]], and [[Norfolk Southern Railway]].<ref name="AHist19">{{harvnb|Blackford County Historical Society (Ind.)|1986|p=19}}</ref> A portion of this line is now abandoned, and the track has been removed between Converse and Hartford City, south of [[Indiana State Road 26|State Road 26]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Norfolk Southern Railway Company—Abandonment Exemption—in Blackford County IN |url=http://www.stb.dot.gov/decisions/readingroom.nsf/0/2436bc3d202c92fe8525747300554ce9?OpenDocument |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120610075325/http://www.stb.dot.gov/decisions/readingroom.nsf/0/2436bc3d202c92fe8525747300554ce9?OpenDocument |archive-date=June 10, 2012 |access-date=July 2, 2011 |publisher=[[Surface Transportation Board]]}}</ref>

===Gas boom===
{{See also|Indiana Gas Boom}}
[[Image:Blackford and Jay.jpg|thumb|alt=Old map from the 1880s with drawings|right|350px|Blackford County in 1887 with western portion of Jay County (east of Blackford) and northeast corner of Delaware County (south of Blackford).]]In 1886, [[natural gas]] was discovered in two counties adjacent to Blackford County. The discoveries were in the small community of [[Eaton, Indiana|Eaton]] (south of Hartford City along railroad line) in Delaware County, and in the city of [[Portland, Indiana|Portland]] in Jay County (east of Hartford City and Millgrove).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Indiana's Natural Gas Boom |url=http://sites.google.com/site/petroleumhistoryresources/Home/indiana-s-natural-gas-boom |access-date=July 1, 2011 |publisher=The American Oil & Gas Historical Society}}</ref> The Hartford City Gas & Oil Company was formed in early 1887, and successfully drilled a natural gas well later in the year. The Montpelier Gas & Oil Mining company was organized in 1887.<ref name="AHistOilGas" /> While natural gas was found throughout Blackford County, crude oil was found mostly in the county's Harrison Township (between Montpelier and Mollie). Blackford County's first successful oil well, located south of Montpelier, began producing in 1890.<ref>{{harvnb|Blatchley|1897|pp=[https://archive.org/details/annualreport87unkngoog/page/n89 <!-- quote=Blackford This county comprises but 165 square miles. --> 71–72]}}</ref> Montpelier was thought to be "the very heart of the greatest natural gas and oil field in the world".<ref name="AHist90" /> Oil was also found in parts of Washington Township, including a well that was thought to be "the most phenomenal well ever drilled in America".<ref>{{Cite news |date=February 12, 1901 |title=GREAT INDIANA OIL STRIKE.; Well in Blackford County Field Surpasses the Famous Texas Gusher |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1901/02/12/archives/great-indiana-oil-strike-well-in-the-blackford-county-field.html |work=The New York Times |page=1 Special ed}}</ref> By 1896, Blackford County had 18 natural gas companies, headquartered in all four of the county's townships, including the communities of Hartford City, Montpelier, Roll, Dunkirk, Trenton (Priam Post Office), and Millgrove.<ref>{{harvnb|Blatchley|1896|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=R6O5af24rYUC&dq=Natural+Gas+Blackford+Trenton+Millgrove&pg=PA405 405]}}</ref>

In June 1880, only 171 people held manufacturing jobs in Blackford County.<ref>{{harvnb|Unlisted (Biographical and historical record...)|1887|p=761}}</ref> The Indiana Gas Boom transformed the region, as manufacturers moved to the area to utilize the natural gas and railroad system. During 1901, Indiana state inspectors visited 21 manufacturing facilities in Blackford County, and these companies employed 1,346 people (compare to 171 two decades earlier).<ref name="DofI">{{harvnb|McAbee|1902|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=p6kXAAAAYAAJ&dq=American+Window+Sneath+Willman&pg=RA2-PA18 57] & 91}}</ref> Since these inspections were in Hartford City and Montpelier only, additional manufacturing employees from the county's small communities (such as [[Millgrove, Indiana#History|Millgrove's]] glass factory) could be added to the count of 1,346. The county's two largest employers were glass factories: [[Hartford City Glass Company#Plant number 3|American Window Glass plant number 3]] and [[Sneath Glass Company]].<ref name="DofI" /> Hartford City's resources (low–cost energy, two railroads, and skilled workforce) were especially favored by glass factories, and a 1904 directory lists 10 of them.<ref>{{harvnb|Dale|1902|pp=120–121}}</ref>{{#tag:ref|Hartford City's workforce became an attraction for glass companies. The city had a community of skilled glass workers from Belgium.<ref>{{harvnb|Blackford County Historical Society (Ind.)|1986|p=48}}</ref>|group=Note}}
In addition to an economic transformation, another byproduct of the gas boom was an upgrade of Blackford County's appearance. Many of the county's landmark buildings were constructed during the gas boom, including the [[Blackford County Courthouse|current courthouse]] and surrounding buildings in Hartford City's Courthouse Square Historic District.<ref name="NRHP-HD" /><ref>{{harvnb|Beetem|1980|p=1 section 7}}</ref> The city's water supply system was also built during that period.<ref>{{harvnb|Indiana State Board of Health|1907|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=-1JNAAAAMAAJ&dq=Indiana+State+Board+Health+1907+Blackford&pg=PA96 250]}}</ref> Additional buildings include the Carnegie Library, and the historic [[First Presbyterian Church (Hartford City, Indiana)|Presbyterian Church]].<ref>{{harvnb|Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana|2005|pp=59–63}}</ref> Many of Montpelier's Downtown Historic District structures were built during the gas boom. Montpelier's historic [[Montpelier, Indiana#Culture|Baptist Church]] and Montpelier's Carnegie Library were constructed in the early 1900s – near the end of the gas boom.<ref>{{harvnb|Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana|2005|pp=42–45}}</ref>

===Post-gas boom===
[[Image:Hartford City Waterworks Building.jpg|thumb|alt=Hartford City's waterworks building with date on front of building of 1894|right|Hartford City's waterworks, built in 1894]] [[Image:Baptist Church Montpelier IN.jpg|thumb|alt=Old red-brick church building with arched entrance and stained-glass window |right|Montpelier's historic Baptist Church, built during Montpelier's Oil Boom]]
The Indiana Gas Boom ended during the first decade of the 20th&nbsp;century,<ref>{{harvnb|Glass|Kohrman|2005|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=C02PktLMIx8C&dq=gas+boom+ghost+town+indiana&pg=PA91 91]|access-date=22 June 2012}}</ref> reducing the county's economy. Gas and oil workers left, some manufacturers moved, and service industries were forced to cut back operations. Adding to the county's problems, machines made the labor–intensive method originally used for producing window glass obsolete, causing many of the county's skilled glass workers at the large American Window Glass plant to lose their jobs.<ref>{{Cite news |date=April 13, 1908 |title=Human Blowers Thing of the Past – Machines Replacing Skilled Trades and Obsolete Methods of Manufacture of Window Glass |work=Daily Times Gazette (Hartford City, Indiana) |page=1 |quote=By June 1 three fourths of the window glass plants now operating by the obsolete way with human blowers will be out of blast and by July all will be idle, many never to resume by the old plan.}}</ref> By 1932, the window glass plant of the county's former largest employer was closed.<ref name="StarGlass">{{Cite news |last=Davis |first=Scott |date=December 1, 2002 |title=East Central Indiana's Glass legacy |work=The Star Press (Muncie, Indiana) |page=4A}}</ref>{{#tag:ref|A second source says the American Window Glass plant closed in 1929 instead of 1932.<ref>{{harvnb|Blackford County Historical Society (Ind.)|1986|p=89}}</ref>|group=Note}} According to the United States Census, Blackford County's population peaked at 17,123 in 1900, and it still has not returned to that zenith over 100 years later.<ref name="forstall" />

The end of the gas boom was especially difficult for the smaller communities in the county, since the loss of a single business has more of an impact on small communities. In the case of Millgrove, the community's major manufacturer (a glass factory) closed.<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 11, 1911 |title=Millgrove Plant is to Move to Albany? |work=The Telegram (Hartford City, IN) |page=4}}</ref> For other communities, such as Mollie, the loss of the gas and oil workers meant that the local post office was a "waste of time", and [[Supply and demand|consumer demand]] at the general store was significantly diminished.<ref name="APostOffice" />

Improvements to the automobile and [[highway]]s, which coincided with the end of the gas boom, also contributed to the decline of the county's smaller communities. The automobile changed "business and shopping patterns at the expense of the small-town merchant". Small–town residents began to drive to larger communities to purchase goods, because of the wider selection.<ref>{{harvnb|McIlwraith|Muller|2001|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=8NS0OTXRlTMC&dq=small+towns+railroads+automobile&pg=PA336 336]|access-date=22 June 2012}}</ref> The improved quality of automobiles and roads competed with passenger service on the railroads (and interurban lines), causing a decline in passenger traffic on the rails. Small towns associated with railroad stations suffered from the loss in traffic. In Blackford County, passenger service on the Lake Erie and Western Railroad line (owned by the [[New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad|Nickel Plate Road]] by that time) was discontinued in 1931, and the last interurban train ran on January 18, 1941.<ref name="AHist19" />

Although many workers left the area after the gas and oil bust, Montpelier's population eventually stabilized—and Hartford City's grew. Some manufacturers remained because of a lack of better alternatives. Hartford City's Sneath Glass Company, a major employer, continued operations until the 1950s.<ref name="Sneath">{{Cite news |date=October 2, 1952 |title=What's Wrong At Sneath? |work=Hartford City News Times |page=2}}</ref> Hartford City leaders attracted businesses such as [[Garage door opener#The electric opener|Overhead Door]] (1923) and [[3M]] (1955) to replace the former companies.<ref name="AHist86" /><ref name="AHist88" /> Overhead Door was a major employer in Hartford City for over 60 years. In the 1960s, Overhead Door moved its headquarters from Hartford City to Dallas, Texas, although its Hartford City manufacturing plant continued until the 1980s as a major manufacturer, when it began reducing its local presence. It ceased the Indiana operation in 2000.<ref>{{harvnb|Grant|2005|pp=214–215}}</ref>{{#tag:ref|Grant's [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_gx5202/is_1999/ai_n19122834/?tag=content;col1 Overhead Door article]{{dead link|date=November 2016}} in volume 70 of the ''International Directory of Company Histories'' has been reproduced on a web page.<ref name="OHDhist">{{Cite news |year=2011 |title=Overhead Door Corporation |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_gx5202/is_1999/ai_n19122834/?tag=content;col1 |access-date=November 27, 2011 |publisher=CBS Interactive Business Network Resource Library |format=PDF}}{{dead link|date=November 2016}}</ref>
|group=Note}} The county lost another 200 jobs in 2011 when Hartford City's Key Plastics plant closed.<ref>{{Cite web |date=January 28, 2011 |title=Plastics Plant to Close, Idling 200 |url=http://www.theindychannel.com/news/26647755/detail.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110131074904/http://www.theindychannel.com/news/26647755/detail.html |archive-date=January 31, 2011 |access-date=July 4, 2011 |publisher=McGraw-Hill Broadcasting Company}}</ref>

Agriculture continues to be an important factor in the county's economy. Over 70&nbsp;percent of Blackford County's land is occupied by [[soybean]] or [[Maize|corn]] fields. Additional crops and livestock are also raised. Good returns in agriculture are not always reflected in the economy of nearby towns, as industrial agriculture has reduced the number of workers it needs, and family farms have declined. Many small towns in the "[[Corn Belt]]", such as the communities in Blackford County, continue to decline in size and affluence.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Belz |first=Adam |date=June 1, 2011 |title=Farm boom leaves Main Street wanting |url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/USAToday/access/2363240601.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Jun+1%2C+2011&author=Adam+Belz&pub=USA+TODAY&edition=&startpage=A.6&desc=Farm+boom+leaves+Main+Street+wanting |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107084248/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/USAToday/access/2363240601.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Jun+1,+2011&author=Adam+Belz&pub=USA+TODAY&edition=&startpage=A.6&desc=Farm+boom+leaves+Main+Street+wanting |archive-date=November 7, 2012 |access-date=July 5, 2017 |work=USA Today |page=6A}}</ref>