Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
1895 - Indianapolis

Indianapolis, in-de-an-ap'Q-lis, a city, the capital of Indiana, and of Marion co., is on the West Fork of White River, 109 miles N.W. of Cincinnati, and 195 miles S.S.E. of Chicago. Lat. 39° 50' N.; lon. 86° 5' W. It is within 35 miles of the exact centre of population of the United States. The site is nearly level, and covers an area of 25 square miles. The streets generally cross one another at right angles, except four wide diagonal avenues, which converge at the business centre of the city. Many of the streets are about 100 feet wide. This city contains a fine court-house, the state institution for the deaf and dumb, a hospital for the insane, the Indiana blind institute, 124 churches, a state library, a public library, a masonic hall, an art school, 3 medical colleges, a city hospital, 6 national banks, and a private bank. A new capitol building has been erected at a cost of $2,000,000. Among the notable public buildings may be mentioned the Commercial Club, the Propylaeum, the Chamber of Commerce, and an academy of music. Eight daily and 28 weekly newspapers are published here. Indianapolis is the most populous city of the state. It was selected as the seat of government in 1820, the site being then covered with a dense forest. The city is the terminus of 16 railroads running in all directions, traversing localities unsurpassed in agricultural and mineral resources, and furnishing the best facilities for bringing the country products to the city and for distributing the city manufactures through the country. It is near the centre of the agricultural productive region of the West, and is thus the natural market for an extensive area. It is a great industrial centre, and has about 1000 manufactories employing more than 25,000 people, with an annual output of $60,000,000 worth of products. Among the leading industries of the city are 5 agricultural-implement factories, 4 architectural-iron-works, 2 belting-factories, car works, 38 carriage- and wagon-factories, 2 canned-goods factories, a chemical-factory, 3 electric-light-machinery factories, 24 foundries, engine- and boiler-works, 2 fertilizer-factories, 2 flour-mill-machinery-works, 7 flour-mills, 2 railroad-frog- and switch-works, 40 furniture-factories, 21 builders'-materials mills, malleable-iron-works, 13 medicinal laboratories, 6 natural-gas-supply factories, 3 pork packing establishments, 11 pump-works, 5 railroad-shops, a stove-foundry, starch-works, 5 stave- and heading-factories, 4 breweries, 2 woollen-mills, &c. The city leads in the manufacture of mill-machinery, artistic tiling, terracotta, malleable iron, lounges, builders' materials, &c. The receiving-yards for live-stock cover 105 acres, and the stock-sheds 12 acres; the amount of business done thereat amounts to $25,000,000 a year. The city has an excellent fire department and a complete fire-alarm telegraph. The water supply is ample, and is procured by the Holly system. The different points of the city are connected by electric and horse-cars. Owing to its central location and railroad facilities, it is a favorite meeting-place for organized bodies, and is widely known as the "Convention City." Pop. in 1850, 8090; in 1860, 18,611; in 1870, 48,244; in 1880, 75,056; in 1890, 105,436.

Lippincott's Gazetteer of the World: A Complete Pronouncing Gazetteer Or Geographical Dictionary of the World Containing Notices of Over One Hundred and Twenty-five Thousand Places ... Joseph Thomas January 1, 1895 J.B. Lippincott

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