Editing Decatur, Indiana (section)

==History==

===Founding===
The first non-Native American settlers arrived in what is now Decatur in 1835. They arrived as a result of the end of the [[Black Hawk War]] as well as the completion of the [[Erie Canal]]. They consisted entirely of settlers from [[New England]]. These were "[[Yankee]]" settlers, that is to say they were descended from the [[English people|English]] [[Puritans]] who settled [[New England]] in the colonial era. They were primarily members of the [[Congregational church|Congregational Church]] though due to the [[Second Great Awakening]] many of them had converted to [[Methodism]] and some had become [[Baptists]] before coming to what is now Decatur. The Congregational Church subsequently has gone through many divisions and some factions are now known as the [[Church of Christ]] and [[Church of God (Decatur, Indiana)|Church of God]]. When the [[New England]] settlers arrived in what is now Decatur there was nothing but a dense virgin forest and wild prairie.<ref>John Wilson Tyndall & Orlo Ervin Lesh, ''Standard History of Adams and Wells Counties'' (1918)</ref>

Decatur was founded by Samuel Rugg in 1836.<ref>{{Cite web |title=About Decatur, Indiana - City of Decatur |url=https://www.cityofdecatur.in.gov/services/history-of-decatur/7 |access-date=2024-12-09 |website=www.cityofdecatur.in.gov}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Hellmann|first=Paul T.|title=Historical Gazetteer of the United States|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=REtEXQNWq6MC&pg=PA313|date=14 February 2006|publisher=Routledge|isbn=1-135-94859-3|page=313}}</ref> It was named for [[Stephen Decatur|Stephen Decatur, Jr.]], one of the captains of the original six frigates of the US navy.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.epodunk.com/cgi-bin/genInfo.php?locIndex=5295|title=Profile for Decatur IN|publisher=[[ePodunk]]|access-date=26 August 2014|archive-date=August 27, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140827121306/http://www.epodunk.com/cgi-bin/genInfo.php?locIndex=5295|url-status=dead}}</ref> A post office was established in Decatur in 1837.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.postalhistory.com/postoffices.asp?task=display&state=IN&county=Adams|title=Adams County |publisher=Jim Forte Postal History|access-date=26 August 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140827165043/http://www.postalhistory.com/postoffices.asp?task=display&state=IN&county=Adams|archive-date=27 August 2014}}</ref> Decatur was incorporated in 1853<ref>{{Cite web |title=New to Decatur - Decatur Chamber of Commerce |url=https://www.decaturchamber.org/Services/New%20to%20Decatur |access-date=2025-03-19 |website=www.decaturchamber.org}}</ref>

===Post-Civil War history===
After the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], Decatur was known as a [[sundown town]], where [[African Americans]] were discriminated against and eventually run out of the town completely in 1902.<ref name=":0" /> In a ''[[New York Times]]'' article published on July 14, 1902, the headline read, "Negro Driven Away," and it recounted the story of the violent mob attacks which drove away African Americans from Decatur during the summer of 1902. The last line from the article explicitly concluded, "The anti-negroites declare that as Decatur is now cleared of Negroes they will keep it so, and the importation of any more will undoubtedly result in serious trouble."<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Loewen |first=James W. |author-link=James W. Loewen |title=Sundown Towns: A Hidden Dimension of American Racism |publisher=[[The New Press]] |year=2005 |isbn=9781620974346 |location=New York}}</ref> A month before the last Black person was reportedly forced out of Decatur, the ''[[Indianapolis Freeman]]'' reported that 50 men began driving the Black people out because they "were determined that colored people should not live in the town."<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 25, 2022 |title=Decatur, Indiana |url=https://justice.tougaloo.edu/sundowntown/decatur-in/ |access-date=April 25, 2022 |website=History & Social Justice |archive-date=May 19, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220519111354/https://justice.tougaloo.edu/sundowntown/decatur-in/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Eventually African Americans began slowly settling in town; however, due to the sundown policies that persisted throughout much of the 1900s, the current demographics still indicate a low percentage of Black residents.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://worldpopulationreview.com/us-cities/decatur-in-population/ |title=World Population Review/Decatur IN |access-date=June 27, 2019 |archive-date=June 27, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190627193229/http://worldpopulationreview.com/us-cities/decatur-in-population/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.bymattruff.com/my-novels/lovecraft-country/a-readers-guide-to-lovecraft-country/sundown-towns/ |title=''A Reader's Guide to Sundown Towns'' |access-date=June 27, 2019 |archive-date=October 5, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241005081705/https://bymattruff.com/lovecraft-country/a-readers-guide-to-lovecraft-country/sundown-towns/ |url-status=live }}</ref>[[File:Negroes Driven Away.jpg|alt=Negroes Driven Away|thumb|''[[New York Times]]'' article detailing the last Black man to be forcefully driven out of Decatur, Indiana.|none]]