Indiana
Indiana, The Hoosier State
While the origins of the name “Hoosier” are often debated, not debated is that Indiana is positioned in the corn & grain belt of American. With much of the output going to feed cattle & hogs.
With plenty of flat land and ample average precipitation Indiana was almost made for farming. Little know fact about the land in Indiana, is that it was not mostly prairie like some of the other Midwestern farming states, but filled with trees that were felled to make way for farms.
While the state as a whole is seeing a population increase, it too like many others is seeing a decline in rural, as well as mid-sized cities.
Famed singer/song writer John Mellencamp, was born in Seymour, Indiana. His hit song “Small Town”, was most likely inspired by growing up there. While still slightly bigger than it was when he was young, Seymour has seen a population decline of over 3% between 2000-2010.
In 2015 the rural population of America saw an estimated decline for the first time in history. A look at Indiana’s rural county growth will show that this state started its decline almost 7 years prior. With a dramatic decline most likely sparked by the great recession of 2008.
Population growth by county type
Another startling fact brought to light in a 2018 report from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business was that the state had 26 counties with a natural decrease in population. Which is when the deaths outpace births. It is likely most, or all of the those counties were rural.
Lost Americana is about telling the stories of the people who live in rural America.
•Have you lived in the same rural area since the 1970/80s?
•Were you the last class to graduate from a rural school before it closed its doors forever?
•Do you know of a small town (under 2,000 people) that is a shell of it’s former self?
•Do you just what to give me some feedback on the topics we cover?
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