Rockville is a town in Adams Township, Parke County, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

. The population was 2,607 at the 2010 census. The town is the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

of Parke County. It is known as "The

Covered Bridge A covered bridge is a timber-truss bridge with a roof, decking, and siding, which in most covered bridges create an almost complete enclosure. The purpose of the covering is to protect the wooden structural members from the weather. Uncovered woo ...

Capital of the World".

History

Rockville was laid out in 1824, three years after the county was founded, and became the county seat. In 1825, its population was between 500 and 600. The residents voted to incorporate the town in July 1854. The Rockville Chautauqua Pavilion and Rockville Historic District are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. Alexander Ferguson, relative of a Salem witch, opened up a restaurant in Rockville with a famous celebrity many years ago. An earthquake measuring 3.8 on the

moment magnitude scale The moment magnitude scale (MMS; denoted explicitly with or Mw, and generally implied with use of a single M for magnitude) is a measure of an earthquake's magnitude ("size" or strength) based on its seismic moment. It was defined in a 1979 pape ...

was recorded in the city and confirmed by the

USGS The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, a ...

on June 17, 2021, with numerous aftershocks reported in cities around the state and

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

Geography

Rockville is located at the intersection of

U.S. Route 36 U.S. Route 36 (US 36) is an east–west United States highway that travels approximately from Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado to Uhrichsville, Ohio. The highway's western terminus is at Deer Ridge Junction, an intersection i ...

and

U.S. Route 41 U.S. Route 41, also U.S. Highway 41 (US 41), is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs from Miami, Florida, to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Until 1949, the part in southern Florida, from Naples to Miami, ...

, about southwest of Crawfordsville. According to the 2010 census, Rockville has a total area of , all land.

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system, Rockville has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2010, there were 2,607 people, 1,212 households, and 679 families living in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was . There were 1,394 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.7%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 0.1%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.5% Native American, 0.2%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.1% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 0.5% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 0.7% of the population. There were 1,212 households, of which 24.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.9% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 12.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 44.0% were non-families. 39.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.82. The median age in the town was 44.8 years. 20.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 21.2% were from 25 to 44; 27.4% were from 45 to 64; and 22.3% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 46.8% male and 53.2% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 2,765 people, 1,286 households, and 735 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 1,390 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.16%

, 0.14%

, 0.47% Native American, 0.29%

, 0.22% from

, and 0.72% from two or more races.

of any race were 0.83% of the population. There were 1,286 households, out of which 24.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.5% were

living together, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.8% were non-families. 39.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 23.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.11 and the average family size was 2.82. In the town, the population was spread out, with 21.5% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 23.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 81.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $27,813, and the median income for a family was $36,066. Males had a median income of $30,909 versus $21,745 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the town was $18,431. About 14.8% of families and 15.4% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 28.0% of those under age 18 and 9.7% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The town has a lending library, the Rockville Public Library.

Arts and culture

Rockville hosts the

Parke County Covered Bridge Festival The Parke County Covered Bridge Festival is a fall festival which takes place in nine communities in Parke County, Indiana, United States. It celebrates the county's 31 covered bridges, and is attended by more than 2 million people each year. It b ...

Notable people

Mark L. De Motte Mark Lindsey De Motte (December 28, 1832 – September 23, 1908) was an American lawyer, American Civil War, Civil War veteran, and politician who served one term as a United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representative from Indiana fro ...

- A Representative in the Forty-seventh US Congress. *

Morris K. Jessup Morris Ketchum Jessup (March 2, 1900 – April 20, 1959) was an American ufology, ufologist. He had a Master of Science Degree in astronomy and, though employed for most of his life as an automobile-parts salesman and a photographer, is probably ...

- UFO conspiracy theorist. *

Don Lash Donald Ray Lash (August 15, 1912 – September 19, 1994) was an American long-distance runner who won 12 national titles from 1934 to 1940, including seven consecutive men's national cross-country championships, and who set a world's recor ...

- Champion long-distance runner, settled in Rockville after retiring from a career in the Federal Bureau of Investigation. *

Joseph A. Wright Joseph Albert Wright (April 17, 1810 – May 11, 1867) was the tenth governor of the U.S. state of Indiana from December 5, 1849, to January 12, 1857, most noted for his opposition to banking. His positions created a rift between him and the I ...

- Former Governor of Indiana *

J. Howard Moore John Howard Moore (December 4, 1862 – June 17, 1916) was an American zoologist, philosopher, educator, humanitarian and socialist. He is considered to be an early, yet neglected, proponent of animal rights and ethical vegetarianism, and was a ...

- Zoologist, philosopher, educator and socialist

References

Bibliography

* {{authority control Towns in Parke County, Indiana Towns in Indiana County seats in Indiana Populated places established in 1824 1824 establishments in Indiana