page_title: Blackford County, Indiana
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Blackford County, Indiana / History
caption_attribution_description: Map of w:Blackford County, Indiana, United States
context_page_description: Blackford County is located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of Indiana. The county is named for Judge Isaac Blackford, who was the first speaker of the Indiana General Assembly and a long-time chief justice of the Indiana Supreme Court. Created in 1838, Blackford County is divided into four townships, and its county seat is Hartford City. Two incorporated cities and one incorporated town are located within the county. The county is also the site of numerous unincorporated communities and ghost towns. Occupying only 165.58 square miles, Blackford County is the fourth smallest county in Indiana. As of the 2010 census, the county's population was 12,766 people in 5,236 households. Based on population, the county is the 8th smallest county of the 92 in Indiana. Although no interstate highways are located in Blackford County, three Indiana state roads cross the county, and an additional state road is located along the county's southeast border. The county has two railroad lines. A north–south route crosses the county, and intersects with a second railroad line that connects Hartford City with communities to the west.
context_section_description: Following thousands of years of varying cultures of indigenous peoples, the historic Miami and Delaware Indians (a.k.a. Lenape) are the first-recorded permanent settlers in the Blackford County area, living on the Godfroy Reserve after an 1818 treaty. The site is located in Blackford County's Harrison Township, east of Montpelier. Although the Godfroy Reserve was allotted to Miami Indian Chief Francois (a.k.a. Francis) Godfroy, Delaware Indians were also allowed to stay there. The Miami tribe was the most powerful group of Indians in the region, and Francois Godfroy (who was half French) was one of their chiefs. By 1839, Godfroy had sold the reserve, and the Indians had migrated west. Benjamin Reasoner was the first European–American to enter future Blackford County, and its first land owner. He entered the area on July 9, 1831. Reasoner and his sons built the county's first mill, on their farm.
  The land that would become Blackford County was originally the western part of Jay County. A January 30, 1836 act of the Indiana General Assembly created Jay County, effective March 1, 1836. In December 1836, a motion was made in the Indiana House of Representatives to review dividing Jay County, but that resolution was not adopted.
  Two Blackford County communities, Matamoras and Montpelier, originally existed as part of Jay County. They lie along the Salamonie River in what became the northeast portion of Blackford County. John Blount founded Matamoras, arriving in 1833. This village is Blackford County's oldest community, and is the site of the county's largest water mill. The mill, constructed around 1843, was considered one of the finest in the state. Blackford County's other former Jay County community is Montpelier, west of Matamoras on the Salamonie River. Led by Abel Baldwin, the community was started in 1836 by groups of migrant settlers from Vermont. They named the settlement after the capital of their previous home state. Blackford County's Montpelier was platted in 1837 (before Matamoras), and is the county's oldest platted community.
  Several sources list the creation year for Blackford County as 1837. However, the law was not finalized until 1838. Indiana bill of the House No. 152 was originally for the creation of a county named Windsor. The name "Windsor" was replaced with the name "Blackford" by the House of Representatives in January 1838. An "act for the formation of the county of Blackford" was approved on February 15, 1838. This act intended that the county would be "open for business" on the first Monday in April 1838, which was April 2. However, the county was not organized. Finally, on January 29, 1839, the original February 15 act was amended, stating that Blackford County shall "enjoy the rights and privileges" of an independent county. The act also appointed commissioners, and corrected a misprint that defined the southeast corner of the new county.
  Over the next two years, a political struggle continued to determine the location of the county seat. The tiny community of Hartford was repeatedly selected by the commissioners, but those decisions were challenged by individuals favoring Montpelier. While Licking Township (where Hartford lay) was the most populous township in the county, Montpelier was the county's oldest platted community. After a third and fourth act of the Indiana General Assembly, Hartford was finalized as the location of the county seat—and construction of a courthouse began. When it was noted that another Indiana community was also named Hartford, Blackford County's Hartford was renamed Hartford City.
  During the next 25 years, the county grew slowly. Plans were made for roads and railroads, and swampland was drained. The first railroad line was authorized in 1849. The plan was for the Fort Wayne & Southern Railroad Company to connect the Indiana cities of Fort Wayne and Muncie—running north–south through the Blackford County communities of Montpelier and Hartford City. Although construction began in the 1850s, it was not completed (by connecting Fort Wayne to Muncie) until 1870, and th
caption: 1876 map of Blackford County
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