Van Buren Public Library, 115 South First Street
Van Buren Township’s story
Van Buren Township in pictures
Census counts: 871 in 1920, 4,208 in 2020. The archive holds 1 old photo or paper and 2 maps from 1961 on.
Explore the history →Van Buren TownshipLaGrange County, IN
A town of 4,320. Public schools that outperform most of Indiana.
Population
4,320
2025 Census estimate · +2.4% since 2020
Median home value
$407K
Census ACS
Household income
$100K
median
Median age
28.2
years
Jobs based here
397
A commuter town
TownGrade
A
#94 of 585 in IN
Is Van Buren Township a good place to live?
Van Buren Township gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $407K, 4.8 years of the county’s $84K median household income. It grades A overall, ranked 94th of 585 in Indiana. The low prices come with trade-offs. CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 81% of the country. On the plus side, its schools rank ahead of 92% of Indiana towns. Van Buren Township’s median age is 28.2 years, below both the Indiana town median (39.5 years) and the median of U.S. towns (40.5 years). On civic life, just 46 of Indiana’s 1,043 towns do worse.
What makes Van Buren Township stand out
Where Van Buren Township beats most towns.
A growing town
Van Buren Township has grown 25% since 2010
3,439 counted in 2010 and 4,208 in 2020; an estimated 4,320 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
How Van Buren Township grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Indiana), ordered by how far Van Buren Township is from typical.
SchoolsAOpen →Jobs & incomeAOpen →HealthSturgis Hospital 9.5 miles awayC−Open →Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 25% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listA−Open →Cost of livingB+Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 3.6 of 20; 36.4% of households have no car; 4.8% of workers walk, bike or ride transitC+Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
OutdoorsConserved land, trails and parksCOpen →HistoryCOpen →Civic life2 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsDOpen →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Van Buren Township: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Van Buren Township, and how to reach them.
PowerNIPSCO22.1¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterLakeside Manor Mobile Home ParkNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
InternetProviders and speedsData pending · D4
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Van Buren Township’s trash rules yet
Register to voteOnlineIn Indiana you can register online until 29 days before Election Day, in person until 29 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 29 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereLaGrange County Circuit Court ClerkLaGrange County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Aug 2015
ZIP codes46565, 46540, 4674646565 90% · 46540 7% · 46746 3%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Van Buren Township.
Van Buren Township pairs an A for schools with modest home prices and sends most of its workers to Middlebury and beyond, but it trails even towns with similar incomes on health.
SchoolsA
For schools, Van Buren Township earns an A
Its A for schools comes with a B+ for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $407K.
One of its 2 schools is below, with why it’s listed.
92%of IN districts it outscoresASchool Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Ridge School PrivateLargest elementary schoolGrades 1–8 | Grades 1–8 | 37 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IN on state tests and graduation
HealthC−
Compared with most of Indiana and the rest of the country, more of Van Buren Township’s adults feel lonely
Against the 8,535 U.S. towns with household incomes like Van Buren Township’s, it is less healthy than 97%, so it trails even them.
39% of Van Buren Township adults feel lonely. Van Buren Township beats the Indiana average on 3 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 16. 22% of Van Buren Township adults report frequent mental distress.
19%healthier than U.S. townsC−Health Grade
| Van Buren Township | Indiana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 32% | 33% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 18% | 17% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 74% | 80% | 79% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 17% | 14% |
32 measures vs. Indiana
3 better13 too close to call16 worse
| What stands out | Van Buren Township | IN |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 6.9% | 8.3% |
| Fewer adults with diabetes | 11.2% | 13% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 24.2% | 15.4% |
Sturgis Hospital
9.5 mi away · emergency room
2 of 3
care shortages: primary care, mental health
28th
percentile among IN towns
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Work & commuteJobs & income grade A
Fewer of Van Buren Township’s residents live below the poverty line than in the typical Indiana or U.S. town
Van Buren Township has 397 jobs for its 1,518 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. The average commute takes 17.8 minutes, against 24.1 across Indiana.
0.6% of residents live below the poverty line in Van Buren Township. Jobs based in Van Buren Township grew to 397 in 2023, 224 more than in 2013. The median household income in Van Buren Township is $100,000.
6%work in town
| Van Buren Township | Indiana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 0.6% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 18 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $100,000 | $71,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 6.4% | 11% | 8% |
Where working residents work
In Van Buren Township6%
Middlebury10%
York Township10%
Shipshewana9%
Newbury Township7%
10 mi
median commute distance
397
jobs based in Van Buren Township
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
C+
Walkability grade: more walkable than 40% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade A−
Low risk in Van Buren Township, with inland flooding at the top
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 75% of U.S. communities.
25risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingTornadoesCold waves
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Climate
Van Buren Township has snowy winters and pleasant summers
Van Buren Township has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 17° and about 41 inches of snow falls in a winter.
41″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter20–35°
Spring38–59°
Summer60–82°
Fall42–62°
Oct 21
typical first frost
Apr 26
typical last frost
+1.4°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Van Buren Township
17pages on Van Buren Township
The big questions
Out and about
After high school
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Van Buren Township
About 0 of every 100 Van Buren Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Indiana.
A commuter town
94% of working residents leave Van Buren Township for work
Where Van Buren Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
397jobs based in Van Buren Township
6%of working residents work in town
10 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
About Van Buren Township
Township in Indiana, United States
Van Buren Township is one of eleven townships in LaGrange County, Indiana. As of the 2020 census, its population was 4,208, up from 3,439 at the previous census. According to the 2020 "ACS 5-Year Estimates Data Profiles", 39.1% of the township's population spoke only English, while 60.7 spoke an "other [than Spanish] Indo-European language" (basically Pennsylvania German/German).
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 38 sq mi
- Elevation
- 833 ft
Van Buren Township’s neighbors
6 towns share a border with Van Buren Township.
Clay TownshipYork TownshipNewbury TownshipLima TownshipWhite Pigeon TownshipSturgis TownshipVan Buren Township
How the neighbors grade
| Town | IN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Van Buren Township | #94 | A | B+ | — | A | C− |
| Clay Township | #30 | A+ | A | — | A− | C− |
| York Township | #409 | C+ | C | — | B+ | C− |
| Newbury Township | #31 | A+ | A− | — | A | C− |
| Lima Township | — | — | A+ | — | B− | C+ |
Lima Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Van Buren Township, Clay Township, York Township, Newbury Township and Lima Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Van Buren Township with a neighbor →
Questions about Van Buren Township
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Van Buren Township, IN a good place to live?
By most measures, yes. Van Buren Township grades A overall, better than 86% of U.S. towns and #94 of 585 in Indiana. It grades C− for health and A for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a C−.
Is Van Buren Township, IN expensive?
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B+.