Elkhart, Indiana

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City of Elkhart, Indiana
Location in the state of Indiana
Location in the state of Indiana
Coordinates: 41°40′59″N, 85°58′08″W
County Elkhart
Mayor David Miller
Area  
 - City 57.7 km²
 - Land 55.3 km²
 - Water 2.3 km²
Population  
 - City (2000) 51,874
 - Density 937.7/km²
Time zone EST (UTC-5)
 - Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
Website: www.elkhartindiana.org

Elkhart (IPA: [ˈɛl.kɑɹt]) is a city in Elkhart County, Indiana, United States. The population was 55,874 at the 2000 census.

Contents

[edit] Industry

Elkhart has long been the headquarters of numerous manufacturers of musical instruments and accessories, of which most of the surviving companies have been absorbed into the Conn-Selmer conglomerate.

In 1884 Dr. Franklin Miles launched the Miles Medical Co. in Elkhart, which in later decades produced products like Alka-Seltzer and One-A-Day vitamins. Later, the Miles Medical Co. was purchased by the German company Bayer, in 1979 and was consolidated into the larger Pittsburgh-based Bayer, Inc. by 1995. [1]

Elkhart is home to many Recreational vehicle (RV) manufacturers, including the Damon Corporation, Four Winds, Hy-Line, Keystone, Monaco, Skyline, Sun Valley, and Travel Supreme. Many other manufacturers, including Dutchman, Heartland, Gulf Stream, and Jayco, can be found nearby in Goshen, Middlebury, Nappanee, and Wakarusa. Due to the high concentration of the RV industry in the area, Elkhart is dubbed the "RV Capital of the World." [2]

[edit] Rail transportation

Amtrak, the national passenger rail system, provides service to Elkhart. Amtrak Train 29, the westbound Capitol Limited, is scheduled to depart Elkhart at 7:04am daily with service to South Bend and Chicago. Amtrak Train 30, the eastbound Capitol Limited, is scheduled to depart Elkhart at 8:24pm daily with service to Waterloo, Toledo, Sandusky, Elyria, Cleveland, Alliance, Pittsburgh, Connellsville, Cumberland, Martinsburg, Harpers Ferry, Rockville, and Washington, DC. Amtrak Train 49, the westbound Lake Shore Limited, is scheduled to depart Elkhart at 7:45am daily with service to South Bend and Chicago. Amtrak Train 48, the eastbound Lake Shore Limited, is scheduled to depart Elkhart at 10:47pm daily with service to Waterloo, Bryan, Toledo, Sandusky, Elyria, Cleveland, Erie, Buffalo-Depew, Rochester, Syracuse, Utica, Schenectady, and Albany-Rensselaer. Train 48 splits at this point with one section proceeding to Boston via Pittsfield, Springfield, Worcester and Framingham. The other section continues to Croton-Harmon and New York City.

[edit] Geography

Elkhart is located at 41°40′59″N, 85°58′8″W (41.683149, -85.968798)GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 57.7 km² (22.3 mi²). 55.3 km² (21.4 mi²) of it is land and 2.3 km² (0.9 mi²) of it (4.00%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 51,874 people, 20,072 households, and 12,504 families residing in the city. The population density was 937.7/km² (2,428.0/mi²). There were 21,688 housing units at an average density of 392.0/km² (1,015.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 71.48% White, 14.75% African American, 0.43% Native American, 1.17% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 9.16% from other races, and 2.95% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 14.80% of the population.

The St. Joe River widens as it flows west through Elkhart.
Enlarge
The St. Joe River widens as it flows west through Elkhart.

There were 20,072 households out of which 33.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.9% were married couples living together, 15.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.7% were non-families. 30.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.16.

In the city the population was spread out with 28.4% under the age of 18, 11.1% from 18 to 24, 31.7% from 25 to 44, 18.0% from 45 to 64, and 10.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 96.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $34,863, and the median income for a family was $40,514. Males had a median income of $30,674 versus $22,760 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,890. About 11.1% of families and 13.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.6% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Town Twinning

[edit] Sports teams

The Elkhart Express is a semi-pro Men's Basketball Team started in 2006. Their home games are played at the Northside Gymnasium at Northside Middle School.

[edit] Notable residents and natives

State of Indiana
Regions Michiana | Nine-County Region | Northern Indiana | Northwest Indiana | Southern Indiana | Wabash Valley
Largest cities Anderson | Bloomington | Carmel | Columbus | East Chicago | Elkhart | Evansville | Fishers | Fort Wayne | Gary | Goshen | Greenwood | Hammond | Indianapolis | Jeffersonville | Kokomo | Lafayette | Lawrence | Marion | Merrillville | Michigan City | Mishawaka | Muncie | New Albany | Noblesville | Portage | Richmond | South Bend | Terre Haute | Valparaiso | West Lafayette
Counties Adams | Allen | Bartholomew | Benton | Blackford | Boone | Brown | Carroll | Cass | Clark | Clay | Clinton | Crawford | Daviess | De Kalb | Dearborn | Decatur | Delaware | Dubois | Elkhart | Fayette | Floyd | Fountain | Franklin | Fulton | Gibson | Grant | Greene | Hamilton | Hancock | Harrison | Hendricks | Henry | Howard | Huntington | Jackson | Jasper | Jay | Jefferson | Jennings | Johnson | Knox | Kosciusko | Lagrange | Lake | LaPorte | Lawrence | Madison | Marion | Marshall | Martin | Miami | Monroe | Montgomery | Morgan | Newton | Noble | Ohio | Orange | Owen | Parke | Perry | Pike | Porter | Posey | Pulaski | Putnam | Randolph | Ripley | Rush | Saint Joseph | Scott | Shelby | Spencer | Starke | Steuben | Sullivan | Switzerland | Tippecanoe | Tipton | Union | Vanderburgh | Vermillion | Vigo | Wabash | Warren | Warrick | Washington | Wayne | Wells | White | Whitley

[edit] External links

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