Editing Tipton, Indiana (section)

==History==
The [[Tipton County Courthouse (Tipton, Indiana)|Tipton County Courthouse]] and [[Tipton County Jail and Sheriff's Home]] were added to the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 1984.<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|version=2010a}}</ref>

===Samuel King founds Kingston===
The first non-native person to settle in the area now known as Tipton was Samuel King, who purchased land between 1835 and 1836. The land was still a part of [[Hamilton County, Indiana|Hamilton County]]. He resided in [[Rush County, Indiana|Rush County]], but visited the area frequently. [[Strawtown, Indiana]], was the closest trading post. King decided to found a town on the land he purchased and he [[platted]] the town on April 16, 1839. The town was named Kingston.<ref name="Pershing92">Pershing, p. 92</ref> Despite efforts, King failed to sell any of the plots that he platted. A few [[Miami Indians]] resided in the area still.<ref name="Pershing93">Pershing, p. 93</ref>

In January, 1844, [[Tipton County, Indiana|Tipton County]] was founded and a county seat needed to be created. The county seat was originally going to be located in the middle area of the county, however, Miami Indians resided on the land and they were unable to create a town there. The county commissioners put out a call for landowners to propose that the county seat be placed on their land. King offered to donate 100 acres of Kingston. On October 16, 1844, the commissioners accepted his offer.<ref name="Pershing93" />

===Canton===
The commissioners were in charge of also naming the new town. Commissioner John D. Smith, who used to reside in [[Ohio]], proposed to name the town Canton, after [[Canton, Ohio]]. The commission accepted the name. After October, it was decided to [[plat]] Canton. The area had to be cleared of trees and plants, and John Criswell did the surveying for $2 a day. Sales of the plots began in November. As of March 1845, 34 lots had been sold.<ref name="Pershing94">Pershing, p. 94</ref>

===Canton becomes Tipton===
In 1845, a [[post office]] was going to be established in Canton. However, this did not proceed because it was discovered that there was a town already named [[Canton, Indiana|Canton]] in the state, which was founded in 1838.<ref name="Pershing95" /><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_EVQ0AQAAMAAJ |title=History of Lawrence, Orange, and Washington Counties, Indiana: From the Earliest Time to the Present |publisher=Higginson Book Company |year=1884 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_EVQ0AQAAMAAJ/page/n792 781]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Stevens, Warder William |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rk80AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA549 |title=Centennial History of Washington County, Indiana: Its People, Industries and Institutions |last2=Davis, Lulie |publisher=McDowell Publications |year=1916 |pages=549 |name-list-style=amp}}</ref> The town was renamed Tipton, after [[John Tipton]], a veteran of the [[Battle of Tippecanoe]] and the [[War of 1812 in Indiana|War of 1812]]. He was also the leader of the [[Indiana Rangers]].<ref name="Pershing95" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=M.W. Pershing |url=https://archive.org/stream/lifeofgeneraljoh00pers/lifeofgeneraljoh00pers_djvu.txt |title=The Life of General John Tipton And Early Indiana History |publisher=Tipton Literary And Suffrage Club of Tipton, Indiana |year=c. 1905 |location=Indiana |pages=45}}</ref> Tipton served as [[United States Senator]] for Indiana from 1831 until shortly before his death in 1839.<ref>{{Cite book |last=De Witt Clinton Goodrich |url=https://archive.org/details/anillustratedhi02tuttgoog |title=An Illustrated History of the State of Indiana |last2=Charles Richard Tuttle |publisher=R. S. Peale & co. |year=1875 |location=Indiana |pages=[https://archive.org/details/anillustratedhi02tuttgoog/page/n586 574] |name-list-style=amp}}</ref> Finally, a post office was founded and John S. Ressler became the first [[postmaster]].<ref name="Pershing95" />

Early Tipton was unorganized, with log cabins and poorly built homes riddling the streets and not following the platting. Cows wandered through town and wild game was chased by residents through the streets. It was very [[rural]]. There was no telegraph or steam train, so communication with areas outside of the area were rare during this time. Residents lived mainly on hunting. Agriculture was poorly developed.<ref name="Pershing96" /> Tipton was also known for flooding and mud, with people having to frequently walk through flood waters and swamp-like areas to get from house to house during wet seasons. By 1850, the population doubled and a physician, Isaac Parker, had founded his practice in the city.<ref name="Pershing97">Pershing, p. 97</ref>

===Cholera epidemic===
Around August 1, 1845, the city entered into a [[cholera]] epidemic. The majority of residents fled the city. Livestock began dying of starvation and dehydration due to being left in their pens due to their owners deaths or fleeing of the city. One resident, Mason Lyons, freed all the animals that were still alive, allowing them to wander into the forest to feed. Stores and businesses closed. There were three doctors in town, including Isaac Parker. Over 20 people died. The epidemic lasted approximately one month.<ref name="Pershing97" /><ref name="Pershing98">Pershing, p. 98</ref>

===Late 1800s and incorporation===
In 1854, the Tipton [[Presbyterian]] Church was founded in the city, after being dissolved in [[Normanda, Indiana|Normanda]].<ref name="Pershing209">{{Cite web |last=Pershing |first=Marvin W. |date=August 27, 1914 |title=History of Tipton County, Indiana: Her People, Industries and Institutions |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NJFuAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA209 |publisher=B.F. Bowen |via=Google Books}}</ref> A [[Christian churches and churches of Christ|Christian church]] was founded in Tipton in 1855. Its congregation met at the Methodist Episcopal church until a church was built in 1870. The congregation built a new church, the West Street Christian church, that was completed in 1908.<ref name="Pershing201">{{Cite web |last=Pershing |first=Marvin W. |date=August 27, 1914 |title=History of Tipton County, Indiana: Her People, Industries and Institutions |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NJFuAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA201 |publisher=B.F. Bowen |via=Google Books}}</ref> The court house burnt down in 1857. The Methodist church served as the court house for three years until the new courthouse was finished.<ref name="Pershing196">{{Cite web |last=Pershing |first=Marvin W. |date=August 27, 1914 |title=History of Tipton County, Indiana: Her People, Industries and Institutions |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NJFuAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA196 |publisher=B.F. Bowen |via=Google Books}}</ref> In 1872, the Jefferson street canal was built, which helped to drain the surface areas of the town. The canal was nonexistent by 1914.<ref name="Pershing98" />  The first [[Catholic]] church was built in Tipton in 1874.<ref name="Pershing204">{{Cite web |last=Pershing |first=Marvin W. |date=August 27, 1914 |title=History of Tipton County, Indiana: Her People, Industries and Institutions |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NJFuAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA204 |publisher=B.F. Bowen |via=Google Books}}</ref> By 1880, Tipton was primarily low-income and had little to no economy. Saloons were the most profitable businesses. Starting in 1880, the town began to rebuild its reputation. An incentive was offered to whoever built the first brick building. The Methodist church outgrew its building and the new church was the first brick building, starting the trend for two-story brick buildings in the town.<ref name="Pershing98" />  Tipton was [[Municipal corporation|incorporated]] in 1884, becoming the "city" of Tipton. The first city election was held in 1884.<ref name="Pershing99">{{Cite web |last=Pershing |first=Marvin W. |date=August 27, 1914 |title=History of Tipton County, Indiana: Her People, Industries and Institutions |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NJFuAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA199 |publisher=B.F. Bowen |via=Google Books}}</ref>

In 1888, the [[Sisters of St. Joseph]] arrived in Tipton to settle. A small church was built and they founded St. Joseph Academy, a [[parochial school]].<ref name="Pershing205">{{Cite web |last=Pershing |first=Marvin W. |date=August 27, 1914 |title=History of Tipton County, Indiana: Her People, Industries and Institutions |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NJFuAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA205 |publisher=B.F. Bowen |via=Google Books}}</ref> The school closed in 1977.<ref name="cullen">{{Cite news |last=Cullen |first=Kevin |title=Sisters to leave St. Joseph Center in Tipton |url=http://www.thecatholicmoment.org/archive/2012/07-29/sisters-to-leave-tipton.html |access-date=18 April 2015 |work=The Catholic Moment |publisher=Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana}}</ref> A [[Baptist church]] was organized in Tipton in 1898, with a church being built in 1900.<ref name="Pershing206">{{Cite web |last=Pershing |first=Marvin W. |date=August 27, 1914 |title=History of Tipton County, Indiana: Her People, Industries and Institutions |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NJFuAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA206 |publisher=B.F. Bowen |via=Google Books}}</ref>