Brooksburg, Indiana
Encyclopedia
Brooksburg is a town in Milton Township
, Jefferson County
, Indiana
, United States
. The population was 81 at the 2010 census. Brooksburg was incorporated as a town on August 24, 1878.
The town and surrounding countryside was populated heavily by settlers from eastern Stokes and neighboring western Rockingham counties in North Carolina, who arrived largely between 1815 and 1833. These include the Brooks, Vernon, Joyce, Bondurant and Larimore families, many of whom had moved into the area from neighboring Virginia in the late 19th century.
The earliest person reported to have settled on the site was James Lochard, a Revolutionary War soldier, who arrived in 1810 and died about 1815. Commerce probably grew up because of the need for a ferry across the Indian-Kentuck Creek near the point it enters the Ohio River. Ferries crossed the river as early as May 20, 1820 when Isaac Canby was licensed for a ferry across the river and another to cross the creek. There had been stores and taverns on the site earlier as in 1829, In May 1827, Daniel Larimore and Wiley Brooks received a license from the county commissioners to sell foreign merchandise (items such as coffee and sugar), while Larimore was licensed to operate a store and tavern in May 1829. It continued to be a small commercial center throughout the 19th century.
The town was not separately enumerated in the 1850, 1860 or 1870 censuses. The 1880 census showed a population of 148, which dropped to 120 in the 1890 census, but bounced back to 149 in the 1900 census year.
An 1889 history that covered several Indiana counties says that in 1878 the town had several stores, a blacksmith shop, a church, school, and a printing office. However, the church must have been either the nearby Morris Chapel or Home Church, both Methodist congregations, because there was no known church within the town boundaries until October 25, 1891, when the Brooksburg Methodist Church was dedicated.
In fact, from 1830 on, the town and surrounding area was served by the Home post office, which was about two miles up the Indian-Kentuck Creek, until the Brooksburg post office opened on Oct. 19, 1880 with Theodore McKay as the first post master. The name was originally spelled as Brooksburgh, but the "H" was dropped from the post office designation in 1893.
A second church, the Brooksburg Baptist Church, was admitted to the Long Run Association with 36 members at an association meeting held August 8 and 9, 1894. The Brooksburg Wesleyan Methodist Church was founded by 1925. Both the Baptist and Methodist Church are still active. The Methodist church owns the cemetery on the northern side of the town. A weekly newspaper, The Brooksburg Sun, was published from August 1886 through September 1906. It was edited by Thomas Wright and published by William Wright.
Telephone service reached Brooksburg and Vevay by Sept. 13, 1883 when that day's issue of the Madison Daily Courier reported that, “The Brooksburg Band has celebrated Vevay by telephone.” The Moorefield Farmers Mutual Telephone Co. was headquartered there in the 1920s.
A state statistical report for the years 1907 and 1908 reported in had 175 residents and three general stores and was served by the Bell telephone system. Its only industry was a creamery, which other records show closed in 1911. A Knights of Pythias building was built in 1899, with parts later used as school classrooms.
No school operates in the town. The oldest surviving school structure was about 1850, while a stone structure on the east side of town was built in 1888. Brooksburg High School, built in 1920, was later razed.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the town has a total area of 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²), all of it land. It is home to some very classic tobacco barns that are great examples of Mid-West design at the time. Brooksburg also has some buildings dating back to the mid-to-late 19th century. One example is the "Webster" house (named after its original occupants) that was built in the 1870s. This house is now owned by the Fisher family who have resided there for many years and, subsequently, own much of the land in the surrounding area, including four houses in the town itself.
of 2000, there were 74 people, 31 households, and 23 families residing in the town. The population density
was 673.5 people per square mile (259.7/km²). There were 37 housing units at an average density of 336.8 per square mile (129.9/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.65% White, and 1.35% from two or more races.
There were 31 households out of which 41.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.8% were married couples
living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.8% were non-families. 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.83.
In the town the population was spread out with 27.0% under the age of 18, 4.1% from 18 to 24, 32.4% from 25 to 44, 29.7% from 45 to 64, and 6.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 111.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.2 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $37,500, and the median income for a family was $41,250. Males had a median income of $37,917 versus $17,250 for females. The per capita income
for the town was $19,016. There were no families and 2.5% of the population living below the poverty line, including no under eighteens and 28.6% of those over 64.
Brooksburgh at one time had a car lot run by Oren Don Lockwood affectinately called Doanz. The youngest son of Oliver Perry and Inez Cordelia Ricketts Lockwood East Enterprise Switzerland county Indiana. In 1960s Oren had one of the first amphibious cars that could go on land and water His salesmanship began as a salesman for Marge Schott in Cincinnati Ohio. He had the little amphibious car it in all the parades around. It was red and white and I remember it being in the Rising Sun Indiana parade then he drove it across the river from the ferry landing with all the girls riding and waving as they went. Oren was known for his big cigar that he smoked. He often stopped by East Emterprise at his brother Freds to show Fred the latest in cars.
Milton Township, Jefferson County, Indiana
Milton Township is one of ten townships in Jefferson County, Indiana, USA. As of the 2000 census, its population was 864.-History:The township was created by the Jefferson County Court of Common Pleas on May 12, 1818 from Madison Township and Pittsburgh Township...
, Jefferson County
Jefferson County, Indiana
Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2010, the population was 32,428. The county seat is Madison.-History:Jefferson County was formed in 1811...
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 81 at the 2010 census. Brooksburg was incorporated as a town on August 24, 1878.
History
The town was laid out by Fletcher Tevis and Noah Brooks on September 18, 1839. The plat, filed in Jefferson County Deed Book Q page 445, showed 116 lots. There were there three streets running east-west, Bridge, Cross, and Water, and two running north-south, High and Main.The town and surrounding countryside was populated heavily by settlers from eastern Stokes and neighboring western Rockingham counties in North Carolina, who arrived largely between 1815 and 1833. These include the Brooks, Vernon, Joyce, Bondurant and Larimore families, many of whom had moved into the area from neighboring Virginia in the late 19th century.
The earliest person reported to have settled on the site was James Lochard, a Revolutionary War soldier, who arrived in 1810 and died about 1815. Commerce probably grew up because of the need for a ferry across the Indian-Kentuck Creek near the point it enters the Ohio River. Ferries crossed the river as early as May 20, 1820 when Isaac Canby was licensed for a ferry across the river and another to cross the creek. There had been stores and taverns on the site earlier as in 1829, In May 1827, Daniel Larimore and Wiley Brooks received a license from the county commissioners to sell foreign merchandise (items such as coffee and sugar), while Larimore was licensed to operate a store and tavern in May 1829. It continued to be a small commercial center throughout the 19th century.
The town was not separately enumerated in the 1850, 1860 or 1870 censuses. The 1880 census showed a population of 148, which dropped to 120 in the 1890 census, but bounced back to 149 in the 1900 census year.
An 1889 history that covered several Indiana counties says that in 1878 the town had several stores, a blacksmith shop, a church, school, and a printing office. However, the church must have been either the nearby Morris Chapel or Home Church, both Methodist congregations, because there was no known church within the town boundaries until October 25, 1891, when the Brooksburg Methodist Church was dedicated.
In fact, from 1830 on, the town and surrounding area was served by the Home post office, which was about two miles up the Indian-Kentuck Creek, until the Brooksburg post office opened on Oct. 19, 1880 with Theodore McKay as the first post master. The name was originally spelled as Brooksburgh, but the "H" was dropped from the post office designation in 1893.
A second church, the Brooksburg Baptist Church, was admitted to the Long Run Association with 36 members at an association meeting held August 8 and 9, 1894. The Brooksburg Wesleyan Methodist Church was founded by 1925. Both the Baptist and Methodist Church are still active. The Methodist church owns the cemetery on the northern side of the town. A weekly newspaper, The Brooksburg Sun, was published from August 1886 through September 1906. It was edited by Thomas Wright and published by William Wright.
Telephone service reached Brooksburg and Vevay by Sept. 13, 1883 when that day's issue of the Madison Daily Courier reported that, “The Brooksburg Band has celebrated Vevay by telephone.” The Moorefield Farmers Mutual Telephone Co. was headquartered there in the 1920s.
A state statistical report for the years 1907 and 1908 reported in had 175 residents and three general stores and was served by the Bell telephone system. Its only industry was a creamery, which other records show closed in 1911. A Knights of Pythias building was built in 1899, with parts later used as school classrooms.
No school operates in the town. The oldest surviving school structure was about 1850, while a stone structure on the east side of town was built in 1888. Brooksburg High School, built in 1920, was later razed.
Geography
Brooksburg is located at 38°44′9"N 85°14′44"W (38.735781, -85.245524). It is located on the south side of the Indian-Kentuck Creek just north of State Road 56 and just before the creek enters the Ohio River.According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the town has a total area of 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²), all of it land. It is home to some very classic tobacco barns that are great examples of Mid-West design at the time. Brooksburg also has some buildings dating back to the mid-to-late 19th century. One example is the "Webster" house (named after its original occupants) that was built in the 1870s. This house is now owned by the Fisher family who have resided there for many years and, subsequently, own much of the land in the surrounding area, including four houses in the town itself.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 74 people, 31 households, and 23 families residing in the town. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 673.5 people per square mile (259.7/km²). There were 37 housing units at an average density of 336.8 per square mile (129.9/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.65% White, and 1.35% from two or more races.
There were 31 households out of which 41.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.8% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.8% were non-families. 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.83.
In the town the population was spread out with 27.0% under the age of 18, 4.1% from 18 to 24, 32.4% from 25 to 44, 29.7% from 45 to 64, and 6.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 111.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.2 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $37,500, and the median income for a family was $41,250. Males had a median income of $37,917 versus $17,250 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the town was $19,016. There were no families and 2.5% of the population living below the poverty line, including no under eighteens and 28.6% of those over 64.
Brooksburgh at one time had a car lot run by Oren Don Lockwood affectinately called Doanz. The youngest son of Oliver Perry and Inez Cordelia Ricketts Lockwood East Enterprise Switzerland county Indiana. In 1960s Oren had one of the first amphibious cars that could go on land and water His salesmanship began as a salesman for Marge Schott in Cincinnati Ohio. He had the little amphibious car it in all the parades around. It was red and white and I remember it being in the Rising Sun Indiana parade then he drove it across the river from the ferry landing with all the girls riding and waving as they went. Oren was known for his big cigar that he smoked. He often stopped by East Emterprise at his brother Freds to show Fred the latest in cars.