Mishawaka () is a city on the St. Joseph River, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States. The population was 51,063 as of the 2020 census. Its nickname is "the Princess City". Mishawaka is a principal city of the

South Bend South Bend is a city in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. It lies along the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. It is the List of cities in ...

-Mishawaka, Indiana — Michigan, Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Mishawaka's recorded history began with the discovery of

bog iron Bog iron is a form of impure iron deposit that develops in bogs or swamps by the chemical or biochemical oxidation of iron carried in solution. In general, bog ores consist primarily of iron oxyhydroxides, commonly goethite (FeO(OH)). Iron-beari ...

deposits at the beginning of the 1830s. Settlers arriving to mine the deposits founded the town of St. Joseph Iron Works in 1831. Within a few years, the town had a blast furnace, a general store, a tavern, and about 200 residents. Business prospered, and in 1833 St. Joseph Iron Works, Indiana City, and two other adjacent small towns were incorporated to form the city of Mishawaka. The Mishawaka post office has been in operation since 1833. On June 27, 1859, a bridge carrying a train, which had over 150 people on board, collapsed, killing 60. In September 1872, a fire destroyed three quarters of Mishawaka's business district. However, the citizens rebuilt and attracted new industry. The Dodge Manufacturing Company, Perkins Windmills and the Mishawaka Woolen and Rubber Company (later Ball Band, then Uniroyal) all helped the town to prosper. Mishawaka grew through both industry and agriculture. In the late 19th century, Mishawaka became known as the "Peppermint Capital of the World", as its rich black loam produced great quantities of mint. From 1906 to 1915, Mishawaka was the manufacturing home of the luxurious American Simplex motor car. Ball Band made rubber garments and was hit by a major strike in 1931. It flourished in the 1940s, finally closing in 1997 in the face of cheaper imports. Manufacturing in Mishawaka peaked in the 1940s and began a slow decline due to industrial restructuring. The economic base shifted to retail services and small industry. In 1979, University Park Mall opened in the far northern portion of Mishawaka. In 1990,

AM General AM General is an American heavy vehicle and contract manufacturer, contract automotive manufacturer based in South Bend, Indiana. It is best known for the civilian Hummer H1, Hummer and the military Humvee that are assembled in Mishawaka, Indiana. ...

began producing the

Hummer Hummer (stylized in all caps) is an American brand of Pickup truck, pickups launched in 1992 when AM General began selling a civilian version of the M998 Humvee. Although discontinued in 2010, Hummer returned as a model under GMC (automob ...

in its Mishawaka plant. The MV-1 is a purpose-built

taxicab A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a Driving, driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of thei ...

and replaces the planned Standard Taxi; it was developed in collaboration with

. The car is built in Mishawaka at an

plant. AM General has begun making Mercedes vehicles at this plant since 2015.

Names

One theory for the word Mishawaka proposes that it derives from the name of a Potawatomi village at the junction of the Elkhart and St. Joseph rivers, where there were many dead trees. The village's exact name in the

Potawatomi language Potawatomi (, also spelled Pottawatomie; in Potawatomi , , or ) is a Central Algonquian languages, Central Algonquian languages, Algonquian language. It was historically spoken by the Potawatomi, Pottawatomi people who lived around the Great Lake ...

may have been * ("at the firewood-tree land"). In the Miami-Illinois language, which historically was also spoken in the area, the corresponding placename is ("it is firewood-tree land"). The most probable origin of the word comes from the city's government website, where in a history of Mishawaka paper written by local historian Peter DeKever states, "The Potawatomi had numerous villages in the region, including one on the south bank of the St. Joseph River located in the area bounded today by Lincolnway West and North Main and West Streets. The Potawatomi were drawn to this location by the ease of transport the river provided, a ford near a natural rapids, abundant fish and game, and access to timber. Their term for the area, M’Shehwahkeek, translates as swift flowing water or heavy timbered rapids." This theory is also mentioned by The History Museum of South Bend, and other sources. The nickname "Princess City", however, derives from a different account of the name's origin. According to this story, "Mishawaka" or something similar was the name of the daughter of a Shawnee chief named "Elkhart". A love triangle between Mishawaka, a white trader named "Dead Shot", and a Shawnee warrior named "Grey Wolf" led to various adventures. This story originated with Flavius J. Littlejohn, a Michigan author, politician and judge, who published a collection of stories in 1875; in Littlejohn's account, the woman's name was "Mishawaha". Despite the story being completely fictional, it became popular and helped foster the legend that is known to this day. Even though the story is from a work of fiction, many residents believe Princess Mishawaka was real because of a "symbolic grave marker" of her erected by the Daughters of the American Revolution to promote the centennial of the City of Mishawaka in 1932. Lack of context has led to many believing that the site is the actual grave of the princess, and that the legend was true. In many ways, Princess Mishawaka represents a mascot for the city.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, Mishawaka has a total area of , of which (or 97.99%) is land and (or 2.01%) is water.

Demographics

As of 2000 the median income for a household in the city was $33,986, and the median income for a family was $41,947. Males had a median income of $33,878 versus $23,672 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $18,434. About 7.3% of families and 9.9% 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 ...

, including 11.7% of those under age 18 and 7.3% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 48,252 people, 21,343 households, and 11,730 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...

was . There were 24,088 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 86.1%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 6.9%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.4% Native American, 1.9% Asian, 0.1%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 1.6% from other races, and 2.9% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 4.5% of the population. There were 21,343 households, of which 28.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.5% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 14.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 45.0% were non-families. 37.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.92. The median age in the city was 34.7 years. 23.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 11.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 28.3% were from 25 to 44; 23.7% were from 45 to 64; and 13.6% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.1% male and 52.9% female.

Culture

Old-fashioned neighborhoods are found across the city. Many of the newer residential subdivisions that have been developed within the city in recent years have adopted design guidelines to produce the "hometown" neighborhood feel and encourage community spirit. The city continually upgrades and develops new neighborhood park and recreation facilities. A total of 29 parks allow Mishawaka residents to golf, play ball, fish and exercise. In 1968, the city opened an outdoor Olympic-size swimming pool and an adjacent ice skating rink at Merrifield Park. On the south side, Mishawaka's George Wilson Park is home to the city's most popular winter toboggan spot, as well as an 18-hole frisbee golf course. Some of the city's Italian immigrants and their descendants still play traditional games such as bocce. A number of residents of Belgian descent play traditional Rolle Bolle and a few ethnic Belgians continue to raise and race homing pigeons. The city also hosted the nation's oldest and largest wiffleball tournament, the World Wiffle Ball Championship, from 1980 to 2012 and again in 2020. The city's three high schools ( Mishawaka High School, Penn High School, and Marian High School) have won a combined 11 state championships in football since 1920.

Transportation

Mishawaka is served by TRANSPO municipal bus system, which also serves South Bend and several smaller suburbs in South Bend-Mishawaka metropolitan region. The Interurban Trolley's Bittersweet/Mishawaka route stops at Martin's Supermarket, connecting riders to the city of Elkhart and the town of

Osceola Osceola (1804 – January 30, 1838, Vsse Yvholv in Muscogee language, Creek, also spelled Asi-yahola), named Billy Powell at birth, was an influential leader of the Seminole people in Florida. His mother was Muscogee, and his great-grandfa ...

. The closest Amtrak station and the closest commercial airport are both located in western South Bend. Amtrak also has a stop in Elkhart which is a bit closer.

Major highways

* Indiana Toll Road, which is Interstate 80 and Interstate 90. * U.S. Route 20 * Indiana State Road 23 * Indiana State Road 331 * Indiana State Road 933

Education

Public schools

Public schools in Mishawaka and/or serving Mishawaka are operated by several school districts. School City of Mishawaka serves the central part of the city. Other sections are within the Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation and the South Bend Community School Corporation. Mishawaka High School is the sole high school of the Mishawaka school district. School City of Mishawaka (School District of Mishawaka) contains a total of 9 Schools including 2 secondary Schools: Mishawaka High and John Young Middle School, and 7 Elementary Schools which includes the following: Battell, Beiger, Emmons, Hums, LaSalle, Liberty, and Twin Branch. Penn-Harris elementary schools serving sections of Mishawaka include Walt Disney (in the Mishawaka city limits), Elm Road, Meadow's Edge, Prairie Vista, and Elsie Rogers; the middle schools respectively are Schmucker and Grissom. Penn High School, outside of the city limits, is the sole public high school of the Penn-Harris-Madison school district. Aside from Walt Disney Elementary, none of the other respective schools are in the Mishawaka city limits. The school zonings for the South Bend School Corporation area are as follows (none of the schools are in Mishawaka): Darden Elementary School Edison Middle School and Adams High School. The section was in 2020 zoned to Tarkington Elementary, which closed in 2021.

Private and tertiary education, and libraries

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend operates four private Catholic schools in Mishawaka, including Marian High School. Bethel University is an accredited evangelical Christian liberal arts school with 1,700 students. Mishawaka has a

public library A public library is a library, most often a lending library, that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil servic ...

, a branch of the Mishawaka-Penn-Harris Public Library system.

Media

One major daily newspaper serving the South Bend and Mishawaka metro area, the '' South Bend Tribune''. It is distributed in north central Indiana and southwestern Michigan. Mishawaka has a wide variety of local radio broadcast available in the area. Stations' programming content contains a wide variety including

public radio Public broadcasting (or public service broadcasting) is radio, television, and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service with a commitment to avoiding political and commercial influence. Public broadcasters receive ...

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

religious Religion is a range of social- cultural systems, including designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relate humanity to supernatural ...

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

, and

urban contemporary Urban contemporary music, also known as urban music, urban pop, or just simply urban, is a music radio format. The term was coined by New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker in the early to mid-1970s as a synonym for Black music. Urban contemporary r ...

among others. For more information, see List of Radio Stations in Mishawaka, Indiana. As of 2013, the South Bend-Mishawaka-Elkhart designated market area was the 95th largest in the United States, with 319,860 (0.3% of the US population) homes.The Nielsen Company.
Nielsen Reports 1.1% increase in U.S. Television Households for the 2006-2007 Season
." ''

Nielsen Media Research Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...

.'' Retrieved on January 26, 2008. Most of the major television networks have affiliates in the Michiana area. Mishawaka located stations include WSBT-TV ( CBS), WBND-LD ( ABC), WCWW-LD ( CW) and WMYS-LD ( My Network TV). Stations located in nearby South Bend, IN include WNDU-TV ( NBC), WNIT-TV ( PBS) and WHME-TV ( LeSEA).

Notable people

* Sarah Evans Barker — judge *

Remo Belli Remo Delmo Belli (June 22, 1927 – April 25, 2016) was an American jazz drummer who developed and marketed the first successful synthetic drumheads and founded the Remo company. Biography Belli was born in Mishawaka, Indiana, and began drumming ...

— creator of Remo Drum Heads * Kyle Bornheimer — actor * John Brademas — politician * Conte Candoli — jazz musician (played trumpet in Doc Severinsen's ''The Tonight Show Band'') * Pete Candoli — jazz musician (played trumpet in Woody Herman's Big Band) * Devin Cannady — professional basketball player * Timothy J. DeGeeter — politician * Adam Driver — actor * Norman Eddy — Indiana Secretary of State * Tom Ehlers — NFL football player * Buddy Emmons — pedal steel guitarist * Freddie Fitzsimmons —

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

pitcher and manager * Todd A. Fonseca — author * Daniel L. Gard — Navy chaplain * Lisa Germano — musician * Ben Goldwasser — keyboardist * Kevin Gosztola — journalist, writer, documentarian * George Gulyanics — professional football player (Chicago Bears) *

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary noble outlaw, heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature, theatre, and cinema. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions o ...

— LPGA Tour golfer * Zander Horvath — NFL running back for the Los Angeles Chargers * Charles Kuhl — World War II soldier, famous for being slapped by General Patton, which led to Patton losing his command * Allan Lane — actor * Liz Richardson — Red Cross Volunteer * Chick Maggioli — professional football player * Ruth McKenney — author * Lou Mihajlovich — professional football player * William J. Oliver — contractor * Anna Rohrer — long-distance runner * Mike Rosenthal — NFL offensive lineman *

Irene Vernon Irene Vernon (born Irene Vergauwen, January 16, 1922 – April 21, 1998) was an American actress. Background Vernon was born Irene Vergauwen in Mishawaka, Indiana, and graduated from Mishawaka High School. Following graduation, she moved to ...

— actress * Sharon Versyp — Purdue women's basketball coach * Joy Lynn White — country western musician

Points of interest

* Beutter Park - The new park includes a river race with elliptical-shaped overlook weirs and fiber-optic underwater lighting, two connecting bridges across the St. Joseph River race to the park, the Mishawaka Riverwalk, the "Shards" sculpture, and an 800-foot perennial garden. * Battell Park Historic District, has Classical Revival style Band Shell and a WPA-built terraced rock garden. * Old Mishawaka Carnegie Library on N. Hill St - closed as a library in 1969 and is now a restaurant. * Shiojiri Garden, located in Merrifield Park, is a Japanese strolling garden that symbolizes the Sister-City relationship between Mishawaka and Shiojiri City, Japan. * The Beiger Mansion, built in 1903 and restored in 1973, was gutted by arson in 1974. The building has since been renovated. It is operated as a bed-and-breakfast and events facility. *The Otis R. Bowen Museum, located on the campus of Bethel College, houses memorabilia and artifacts related to Dr. Otis Bowen's years as Governor of Indiana and Secretary of Health and Human Services. It has a copy of the Otis Bowen bust. * In addition to the Battell Park Historic District, Beiger Mansion, and Old Mishawaka Carnegie Library, the Dodge House, Eller-Hosford House, Ellis-Schindler House, Kamm and Schellinger Brewery, Merrifield-Cass House, and Normain Heights Historic District are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. The Tivoli Theater, demolished in 2005, was formerly listed.Cinema Treasures: Mishawaka's Tivoli Succumbs to Wrecking Ball
/ref>

International Sister cities

Soest, Germany Soest (, as if it were 'Sohst'; Westphalian language, Westphalian: ''Saust'') is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, in western Germany. It is the Capital (political), capital of the Soest (district), Soest district. Geography Soest is located al ...

* Shiojiri, Japan

References

External links

City of Mishawaka, Indiana websiteSt. Joseph County Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control Cities in Indiana Populated places established in 1833 Cities in St. Joseph County, Indiana South Bend – Mishawaka metropolitan area 1833 establishments in Indiana