1872-Present

Village of Judson

Parke County, Indiana          IN

Little Raccoon Creek runs through Judson, Indiana, which was platted by Alexander Buchanan on May 4, 1872. In recognition of her founder, the village of Judson was occasionally called Buchanan or Buchanan’s Springs. Judson is an unincorporated community in Washington Township, Parke County, Indiana, northeast of Rockville. It was christened by Mr. Buchanan in honor of Adoniram Judson, the pioneer Baptist missionary to Burma.

Buchanan platted four streets to run north and south with an equal number running east and west. Guinon Road (570E) provides access from the east while Nyesville Road (160E) enters from the west.  Judson Road approaches the village from the north where it passes Goshen Baptist Church. Both a Masonic lodge and an Odd Fellows lodge were formed in 1874.  In 1910 when the railroad was completed and the first store was opened by Glover & Milligan, the village had less than 200 inhabitants. Presbyterian and Methodist congregations were soon organized and churches constructed in which to worship.[1] The community of Judson originally had a U.S. Post Office but it has now been closed and incorporated into the Rockville, Indiana, postal region. Judson Road runs north out of Judson, Indiana, for about 10 miles and thus also bears the name of Adoniram Judson

[Compiler’s Note: There is another village named Judson in Indiana, an unincorporated community in Ervin Township of Howard County and part of the Kokomo, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area. This Judson, Indiana, is also known as Poplar Grove and is marked on maps at the intersection of County Road West 200N and N 750 W. On the southwest corner of this location is the Judson Baptist Church founded in 1859 and thus the namesake of the community and the Judson Road that passes this location (see entry 1859-present). The Judson church became the moniker for the road and the community that grew up in the neighborhood.

There is yet a third Judson, Indiana, that was established September 24, 1860, but named for railroad magnate, William D. Judson. The descriptor “North” was added to eliminate confusion with the downstate Judson, Indiana, platted by Alexander Buchanan and named for Adoniram Judson. The town of North Judson proper is in Starke County, Indiana, and was laid out in 1866 and incorporated in 1888.[2]

+++++++++++++++

[1]  History of Parke and Vermillion Counties, Indiana. B.F. Bowen & Cos. 1913. p. 225.

[2] Baker, Ronald L.; Marvin Carmony (1995). Indiana Place Names. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. p. 119. ISBN 0-253-28340-X.

---