Editing Wakarusa, Indiana (section)

==History==
In 1836, rural Olive Township was formed in western [[Elkhart County, Indiana|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, Indiana|Goshen]] or [[Elkhart, Indiana|Elkhart]] to conduct business. Since there is already a town named [[Salem, Indiana|Salem]] in Indiana, the name was changed to Wakarusa in 1859.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=50QvAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA1103 | title=History of Elkhart County, Indiana | publisher=Chas. C. Chapman Co. | year=1881 | pages=1103}}</ref> The Mt. Olive Post Office was renamed for Wakarusa a year later.<ref name=autogenerated1>[http://www.wakarusa.org Wakarusa's History]</ref>

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".<ref>{{cite book|last=Wenger|first=Amy Lant|title=Around Nappanee: Hometowns of the Heritage Trail|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DMqvx03-UvgC&pg=PA79|year=2003|publisher=Arcadia Publishing|isbn=978-0-7385-3154-0|page=79}}</ref> A more recent source claims a settler named it after a location in Kansas.<ref>{{cite book|last=Baker|first=Ronald L.|title=From Needmore to Prosperity: Hoosier Place Names in Folklore and History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SXB5AAAAMAAJ|date=October 1995|publisher=Indiana University Press|isbn=978-0-253-32866-3|page=336|quote=...suggested changing the name to Wakarusa for a stream or a place in Kansas, where he had once lived.}}</ref>