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A−History
History · Crothersville

Crothersville dates to 1835, and 18% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 75% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Its Register listing is the Crothersville Independent Order of Oddfellows (IOOF) Lodge. Below: maps from 1895 on and the census since 1880.

1835founded
1on the National Register
18%homes built before 1940
4famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Chris Flook · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Crothersville began

When was Crothersville founded?

1835

Crothersville dates its founding to 1835 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 435 in 18802020 census: 1,509191 years

How historic is Crothersville?

A−

More historic than 75% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1857.
History grade

What drives Crothersville’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Crothersville is more historic than 75% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.

A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Crothersville’s overall grade.
Founding era1835, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194018.0% of homes (±6.3) · typical IN town 14.4% · U.S. 8.4%B+National Register1 listing, 5.8 per 10,000 residents · typical IN town 7.9 · U.S. 2.4B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 75%
NewerOlder

Indiana towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Indiana town has 7.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Crothersville’s 5.8 sits near the middle of its state (56% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.3 points). Two sources give 1835.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Crothersville’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Crothersville are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Mapped building by building4 fire insurance maps, 1895 to 1916, drew every building in Crothersville.Deep rootsEstablished in 1835: 191 years of Crothersville.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Crothersville’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Crothersville’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Every building

Crothersville, building by building, 1895–1916

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Crothersville fire insurance map, 1895, sheet 11895Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Timeline

Crothersville, 1835 to 1959

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1835
    FoundingCrothersville is established
  3. 1857Post officeThe Crothersville post office opens
  4. 1885Born hereRoyd R. Sayers is born here
  5. 1886Born hereDavid Hogg is born here
  6. 1890Born hereKatharine Jane Densford is born here
  7. 20th century
  8. 1917Born hereGene Anderson is born here
  9. 1959On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
The story so far

Crothersville, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Crothersville yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Crothersville is a town in Vernon Township, Jackson County, Indiana, United States. As of the 2020 census, Crothersville had a population of 1,509. It was laid out in 1835 and named after Dr. Andrew S. Crothers, a railroad superintendent.

Crothersville was established in 1835. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 1,591 to 1,509 (-5%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

By decade

Crothersville, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Crothersville, Indiana sign2024Crothersville, Indiana signCrothersville, Indiana2016Crothersville, Indiana
On the map

Crothersville on the map, 1959 to 1968

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Crothersville. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Crothersville on the 1959 USGS mapCrothersville on the 1968 USGS map1959Crothersville sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Crothersville.

On the National Register

1 historic place in Crothersville

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
2024
Crothersville Independent Order of Oddfellows (…
All 1 listings
Crothersville Independent Order of Oddfellows (IOOF) LodgeBuilding · listed 2024

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Crothersville, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001,6001,80018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,747

Between 435 and 1,747 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Crothersville’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

4 famous people were born in Crothersville

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
David HoggAmerican politician · b. 1886
Gene AndersonAmerican basketball player · b. 1917
Royd R. SayersAmerican physician · b. 1885
Katharine Jane DensfordNurse · b. 1890

Questions about Crothersville’s history

What year was Crothersville founded?

In 1835, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Crothersville’s post office opened in 1857, and the census of 1880 counted 435 people here.

How does Crothersville rank for history?

Crothersville is more historic than 75% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Crothersville?

One place: the Crothersville Independent Order of Oddfellows (IOOF) Lodge (listed 2024).

How old are the homes in Crothersville?

18% of Crothersville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.3 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1966.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (2), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.