Editing Floyd County, Indiana (section)

==History==
{{further|History of the French in Louisville}}
Floyd County, originally the [[Shawnee Indians]] hunting ground, was conquered for the [[United States]] by [[George Rogers Clark]] during the [[American Revolutionary War]] from the British.<ref name="floyd">{{cite book |last=Kramer |first=Carl E. |editor-first=John E. |editor-last=Kleber |year=2001 |title=The Encyclopedia of Louisville |chapter=Floyd County, Indiana |pages=300–302 |publisher=[[University Press of Kentucky]] |location=[[Lexington, Kentucky]] |isbn=0-8131-2100-0 |oclc=247857447 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pXbYITw4ZesC}}</ref> He was awarded large tracts of land in Indiana, including almost all of present-day Floyd County. Clark sold land to the settlers who began arriving as soon as peace returned.
[[File:NewAlbany3.jpg|left|thumb|upright|Pearl Street in downtown New Albany. The Knobs can be seen in the distance.]]
[[File:MountSaintFrancisWoods.jpg|thumb|upright|The woods of Mount Saint Francis in Floyds Knobs, Indiana.]]
In 1818, [[New Albany, Indiana|New Albany]] was large enough to become a county seat and form a new county. New Albany leaders sent Nathaniel Scribner and John K. Graham to the capital at [[Corydon, Indiana|Corydon]] to petition the [[Indiana General Assembly|General Assembly]].<ref name="floyd" /> Legislation was passed on January 2, 1819, by the General Assembly, and the county was established on February 1.<ref name="floyd" /><ref name="history">{{Cite web |title=Floyd County History |url=http://www.countyhistory.com/floyd/start.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070704174659/http://www.countyhistory.com/floyd/start.html |archive-date=July 4, 2007}}</ref> The origin of the county's name is debated. According to the [[Indiana State Library and Historical Bureau|State Library]], it was named for [[James John Floyd|John Floyd]], a leading [[Jefferson County, Kentucky|Jefferson County]], [[Kentucky]] [[American pioneer|pioneer]] and uncle of [[Davis Floyd]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Indiana Historical Bureau – Origin of Indiana County Names |url=http://www.in.gov/history/2911.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080323083759/http://www.in.gov/history/5197.htm |archive-date=March 23, 2008}}</ref> John Floyd was killed in 1783 when his party was attacked by Indians in [[Bullitt County]], [[Kentucky]].<ref name="floyd" /> However, some maintain the county was actually named for Davis Floyd, who was convicted of aiding [[Aaron Burr]] in the [[Burr conspiracy|treason of 1809]]. Davis Floyd had also been a leading local political figure and was the county's first circuit court judge.<ref name="floyd" />

In 1814, New Albany was platted and was established as the county seat on March 4, 1819.<ref name="floyd" /> There was an attempt in 1823 to move the county seat, but the motion failed.<ref name="history" /> New Albany would be the largest city in the state for much of the early 19th century, eventually being overtaken by [[Indianapolis]] during the Civil War.<ref>Findling, John ed.  ''A History of New Albany, Indiana''. (Indiana University Southeast, 2003). 53.</ref>

[[File:Scribner House in New Albany.jpg|thumb|left|200px|House of Nathaniel Scribner]]
Between 1800 and 1860, Floyd County experienced a huge boom in population (doubling many times over).<ref name="census" /> A survey in the 1850s found that over half of Indiana's population that made more than $100,000 per year lived in Floyd County, establishing it as having the richest population in the state.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Miller |first=Harold |title=Industrial Development of New Albany, Indiana |journal=Economic Geography |date=January 1938 |page=48}}</ref>

The [[Duncan Tunnel]], the longest tunnel in Indiana, was built in Floyd County in 1881 between New Albany and [[Edwardsville, Indiana|Edwardsville]]. Because no route over the Floyds Knobs was suitable for a railroad line, civil engineers decided to tunnel through them.<ref>{{Cite web |title=PBase.com |url=http://www.pbase.com/kd4jsl/image/93496896 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303232849/http://www.pbase.com/kd4jsl/image/93496896 |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |access-date=April 9, 2018 |website=pbase.com}}</ref> The project was originally started by the Air Line but was completed by [[Southern Railway (U.S.)|Southern Railway]]. It took five years to bore at a cost of $1 million.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Southern Indiana Museums & Galleries |url=https://www.gosoin.com/things-to-do/arts-and-culture/museums/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101223070043/http://www.sunnysideoflouisville.org/history/history.htm |archive-date=December 23, 2010 |website=gosoin.com}}</ref> The Tunnel is {{convert|4311|ft|m}} long.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=G8sddkoqS-gC&dq=duncan+tunnel+indiana&pg=PA89 Railroad Depots of Southern Indiana, By David E. Longest.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240127023111/https://books.google.com/books?id=G8sddkoqS-gC&dq=duncan+tunnel+indiana&pg=PA89#v=onepage&q=duncan%20tunnel%20indiana&f=false |date=January 27, 2024 }} Pg 89. {{ISBN|0-7385-3958-9}}</ref>
[[File:NACemetery.jpg|thumb|The New Albany National Cemetery was one of the original seven first established in 1862 by Congress. More than 5,000 are buried here, from the Civil War to the Vietnam War.]]
Floyd County, during the 19th century, attracted immigrants of [[Irish people|Irish]], [[Germans|German]], [[French people|French]] and [[African American]] origins.<ref name="foreign">''The Encyclopedia of Louisville'' By John E. Kleber (University Press of Kentucky 2000) page 302 {{ISBN|0-8131-2100-0}}</ref> The French settlers located mostly in [[Floyds Knobs, Indiana]]. The Irish began arriving in 1817 and settled in large numbers between 1830 and 1850.<ref name="foreign" /> German immigrants settled mostly in New Albany. By 1850, about one in six county residents had been born in other countries. Mount Saint Francis, a multi-purpose complex owned and administered by the Conventual Franciscan Friars of the Province of Our Lady of Consolation, is located in Floyds Knobs along Highway 150. The property includes 400 acres of woods and Mount Saint Francis Lake, both which are open to the public. Numerous hiking trails meander through the woods and fields containing native prairie grasses. No hunting is allowed on the property.