Local city information for Columbus, IN

Columbus () is the county seat of Bartholomew County, Indiana, United States. The population was 39,059 at the 2000 census. The current mayor is Fred Armstrong. It is located approximately 40 miles (64 km) south of Indianapolis, on the east fork of the White River. It is the state's 20th largest city. It is also the principal city of the Columbus, Indiana, metropolitan statistical area which encompasses all of Bartholomew County.

Not only is Columbus an international architectural showplace, but Columbus is also currently ranked eleventh in the U.S. on the list of safest cities per population. In 2006, Columbus won the highly competitive national contest "America in Bloom." In 2004 it was named as one of "The Ten Most Playful Towns" by Nick Jr. Family Magazine. The July 2005 edition of "GQ Magazine" named Columbus one of the "62 Reasons to Love Your Country." Columbus is the headquarters of the engine company Cummins Inc.

In 1820, the land which is now Columbus was bought by General John Tipton and Luke Bonesteel. General Tipton built a log cabin on Mt. Tipton, a small hill overlooking White River and the surrounding flat, heavily forested, swampy valley. The town was known as Tiptonia, named in honor of General John Tipton. On 20 March, 1821, the town's name was changed to Columbus. General Tipton was very upset by the change of names, and he moved from Columbus. Later in life, General John Tipton became the Highway Commissioner for the State of Indiana, and was given the job of building a highway from Indianapolis, Indiana to Louisville, Kentucky. Upon reaching Columbus, he constructed the first bypass road ever built. Mauxferry Road detoured south around the west side of Columbus on its way to Seymour.

Joseph McKinney was the first to plot the town of Columbus. No date of this plot was recorded by Mr. McKinney.

For years, it was recorded in the local history books that the land on which Columbus sits was donated by General Tipton. However, a deed purporting to show a sale of the land was acquired by the Historic Columbus Indiana website in 2003 which indicated General Tipton actually sold the land.

A ferry was established in order to avoid crossing both the Flat Rock and Driftwood rivers, which join only a short distance above the site of the ferry. This became a village of three or four log cabins and in 1821, the first store was added. In the same year, Bartholomew County was organized by an act of the State Legislature and named after the famous Indian fighter, General Joseph Bartholomew. Columbus, Indiana was incorporated as a city on 28 June, 1864.

In 1844, the first railroad in Indiana reached Columbus from Madison, Indiana. This was known as the Madison branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad. The railroad caused the community to grow into one of the larger communities of the State of Indiana. By 1850, three more railroads came into the city.

Columbus is host to the oldest theater in the State of Indiana: the Crump Theatre , which was built in 1889 by John Crump. Today, the building is a historical landmark and is also an all-ages venue where bands perform occasionally. Columbus is also host to the formerly oldest continually operated bookstore in the State of Indiana: Cummins Bookstore first began its operations in 1892 and ended in late 2007.

The Irwin Union Bank building was built in 1954. It was designated a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service in 2001 because of its architecture.

The building consists of a one-story bank structure adjacent to a three-story office annex. A portion of the office annex was built along with the banking hall in 1954. The remaining, much larger portion, designed by Kevin Roche, John Dinkeloo and Associates, was built in 1973.

Eero Saarinen designed the bank building with its glazed hall to be set off against the blank background of its three-story brick annex. Two steel and glass vestibule connectors lead from the north side of this structure to the annex.

The building was designed to distance the Irwin Union Bank from traditional banking architecture, which mostly echoed imposing, neoclassical style buildings of brick or stone. Tellers were behind iron bars and removed from their customers. Saarinen worked to develop a building that would welcome customers rather than intimidate them.

Columbus has been home to many manufacturing companies, including Arvin Industries, now ArvinMeritor Industries. After merging with Meritor Automotive on July 10, 2000, the headquarters of ArvinMeritor Industries was moved to Troy, Michigan.

Cummins Inc. is by far the region's largest employer, although ArvinMeritor is not far behind. In addition, the Infotech Park accounts for a sizable number of research jobs in Columbus proper. Other notable industries include architecture, a discipline for which Columbus is famous worldwide. The late J. Irwin Miller (then president and chairman of Cummins Engine Company launched the Cummins Foundation, a charitable program which helps subsidize a large number of architectural projects throughout the city by up-and-coming engineers and architects.

Early in the 20th Century, Columbus was also home to a number of pioneering car manufacturers, including Reeves, which produced the unusual four-axle Octoauto and the twin rear axle Sextoauto, both around 1911.

Because Columbus is far enough away from Indianapolis, it benefits tremendously from nearby commuters who recognize Columbus as a major city in its own right. During the day, nearly 19,000 workers commute into the city from the surrounding townships and villages.

In recent years, city officials have looked for ways to revitalize the city and return Columbus to the days when Miller's architectural innovation made it one of the most envied cities in the United States. Economic development, widespread beautification innovations, various tax incentives, and increased law enforcement have helped Columbus overcome what some considered a slump during the 1980s and 1990s.

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