Wabash Township, Parke County, Indiana

Township in Indiana, United States

39°43′56″N 87°20′00″W / 39.73222°N 87.33333°W / 39.73222; -87.33333Country

United StatesState

IndianaCountyParkeGovernment

• TypeIndiana townshipArea

• Total27.79 sq mi (72.0 km²) • Land27.49 sq mi (71.2 km²) • Water0.3 sq mi (0.8 km²) 1.08%Elevation

^[1]

620 ft (189 m)Population

(2020)

• Total768 • Density28/sq mi (11/km²)Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)ZIP codes

47860, 47862, 47872

Area code765GNIS feature ID453966

Wabash Township is one of thirteen townships in Parke County, Indiana, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 768 and it contained 325 housing units.^[2]

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1890	787	—
1900	1,273	61.8%
1910	1,955	53.6%
1920	1,445	−26.1%
1930	1,559	7.9%
1940	1,338	−14.2%
1950	1,207	−9.8%
1960	970	−19.6%
1970	875	−9.8%
1980	1,028	17.5%
1990	778	−24.3%
2000	839	7.8%
2010	818	−2.5%
2020	768	−6.1%
Source: US Decennial Census^[3]

History

When General William Henry Harrison took an army from Vincennes to the Battle of Tippecanoe in late 1811, Zachariah Cicott served as a scout. Cicott was familiar with the area because of his time trading up and down the Wabash River starting circa 1801. The trail taken by Harrison's army passed through the area that later became Parke County on its way to and from the battle site in Tippecanoe County. The settlement of Armiesburg was so named because Harrison and his army crossed the Raccoon Creek and camped near there on their way to the battle.^[4]

The Phillips Covered Bridge and Sim Smith Covered Bridge were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.^[5]

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the township has a total area of 27.79 square miles (72.0 km²), of which 27.49 square miles (71.2 km²) (or 98.92%) is land and 0.3 square miles (0.78 km²) (or 1.08%) is water.^[6]

Cities, towns, villages

Mecca
Montezuma (south edge)

Unincorporated towns

Arabia at 39°45′58″N 87°19′19″W / 39.766150°N 87.321960°W / 39.766150; -87.321960
Armiesburg at 39°45′48″N 87°21′04″W / 39.763372°N 87.351128°W / 39.763372; -87.351128
Bradfield Corner at 39°43′56″N 87°17′56″W / 39.732261°N 87.298905°W / 39.732261; -87.298905
Midway at 39°46′31″N 87°19′03″W / 39.775317°N 87.317516°W / 39.775317; -87.317516

(This list is based on USGS data and may include former settlements.)

Cemeteries

The township contains these four cemeteries: Arabia, Armiesburg, Hixon and Watts.

Major highways

U.S. Route 36
U.S. Route 41

School districts

Southwest Parke Community School Corporation

Political districts

State House District 42
State Senate District 38

References

"Wabash Township, Parke County, Indiana". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved November 1, 2009.
United States Census Bureau 2009 TIGER/Line Shapefiles
IndianaMap

^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
^ "Township Census Counts: STATS Indiana".
^ Bowen 1913, pp. 52–53, 221.
^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
^ "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County – County Subdivision and Place – 2010 Census Summary File 1". United States Census. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved May 10, 2013.