Selma was platted in 1852 when the railroad was extended to that point. The Selma post office was established in 1853.
Affected by the Indiana Gas Boom, gas and oil were the primary industries of Selma in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Selma was incorporated as a town in 1907.
On March 14, 2024, Selma was hit by a strong EF2 tornado, which mainly hit northern areas of Selma.
Selma High School was built 1904 and was razed in 1976. It became a middle school from 1967 to 1975.
Passages that mention Selma, cut from the printed page as they were published.
A twentieth century history of Delaware County, Indiana1908 · page 166Read the page →
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Within the present year Selma has obtained town incorporation. May 21, 1907, by a vote of 75 to 10, the inhabitants voted in favor of incorporation. The commissioners considered the report of the election on May 25, and an election of village officers was ordered for June 8. The first set of officiaU chosen at that time to direct the affairs of the corporation were: L. S. Clark, clerk; Eldon Caunaday, treasurer; Dr. Charles Jump, trustee of first district; A. J. Bailey, trustee of second district; Allen Howell, trustee of third district; George Ross, trustee of fourth district; and James Greene-
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A twentieth century history of Delaware County, Indiana1908 · page 97Read the page →
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cial importance as compared with the railroad whose line passed a mile and a half to the north. A railroad station was established, a store was opened by Joseph Babb, and within a short time the activities of the town on the river began to decline, and Selma, fortified along the iron highway, attracted merchants, doctors, churches and schools, and the various interests which have constituted it one of the recognized centers of the county. For many years, however, Smitlificld continued to have a store and blacksmith shop, and a grist mill run with water power.
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Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Selma, 1853 to 1997
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikimedia Commons (4), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
Date?
2024
2024
2016