Judyville, Indiana Explained

Official Name:Judyville, Indiana
Settlement Type:Unincorporated community and Census-designated place
Pushpin Map:USA Indiana Warren County#Indiana#USA
Pushpin Label:Judyville
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:United States
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Name1:Indiana
Subdivision Type2:County
Subdivision Name2:Warren
Subdivision Type3:Township
Subdivision Name3:Liberty
Established Title:Founded
Established Date:1903
Founder:John F. Judy
Area Total Sq Mi:0.13
Area Land Sq Mi:0.13
Population As Of:2020
Population Total:38
Population Density Km2:114.56
Population Density Sq Mi:296.88
Timezone:Eastern (EST)
Utc Offset:-5
Timezone Dst:EDT
Utc Offset Dst:-4
Coordinates:40.3583°N -87.3969°W
Elevation Ft:764
Postal Code Type:ZIP code
Postal Code:47993
Area Code:765
Blank Name:GNIS feature ID
Blank Info:2806506
Unit Pref:Imperial
Area Footnotes:[1]
Area Total Km2:0.33
Area Land Km2:0.33

Judyville is a small unincorporated community in Liberty Township, Warren County, in the U.S. state of Indiana.

History

Judyville's founder John Finley Judy, born in Ohio on 18 March 1856, arrived in Warren County in 1867 with his parents Skillman and Sarah. (The Judy surname was an anglicization of the German Tschudi.) John attended high school in Attica and afterwards taught school for several years. In 1881 he invested the money he earned from teaching into cattle, then leveraged the profits to establish himself as a farmer and an entrepreneur. The subjects of Judy's enterprises were diverse and included livestock, vehicles, farming equipment, groceries, dry goods and various supplies, blacksmithing, undertaking, grain elevators and real estate.[2]

By the turn of the century, Judy's farm in Liberty Township (already known by that time as Judyville) had become an industrial village containing "six barns, one of them being the largest in Warren County, thirteen dwelling houses, a hotel, an office building and numerous outbuildings ... provided with telephonic communication, there being ten distinct lines of operation.". The site being remote, Judy convinced the Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad to build an eight-mile-long rail line to his farm from their trunk in Vermilion County, Illinois, and also minted a limited form of currency known as "Judy Money" which was accepted both in the village and throughout the Warren County area.[3]

On 9 February 1903, John Judy officially platted the town of Judyville.[4] The town gained a post office on 1 October 1903, with John's son Ole Ruppert Judy as the first postmaster. It operated until 6 January 1961.[5] John married Matilda Ann Hunter on 16 December 1877 and died 12 October 1931. His home in Judyville stood for many years, but was accidentally destroyed by fire on 1 August 2001 while being remodeled.

The commerce and industry that once flourished at Judyville faded during the 20th century, in common with the decline of many rural Midwestern communities. The town is now entirely residential.

Geography

Judyville is located along the western border of the township, about northwest of the county seat of Williamsport in fertile farmland and sits on a gentle rise with an elevation of approximately 770 feet. Spring Branch creek starts just to the north of town, and Fall Creek, which flows over Indiana's tallest waterfall in Williamsport, starts to its south. The town is located on County Road 300 North, a quarter-mile east of County Road 425 West.

Demographics

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files. United States Census Bureau. March 16, 2022.
  2. Biographical History of Tippecanoe, White, Jasper, Newton, Benton, Warren and Pulaski Counties, Indiana. Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company, 1899. p. 338-339
  3. Warren County Historical Society. A History of Warren County, Indiana (175th Anniversary Edition). 2002. p. 41
  4. Clifton, Thomas A. (editor). Past and Present of Fountain and Warren Counties, Indiana. Indianapolis: B. F. Bowen & Co., 1913. p. 310
  5. Warren County Historical Society. A History of Warren County, Indiana (175th Anniversary Edition). 2002. p. 220