Berne, Indiana facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Berne, Indiana
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Muensterberg Plaza & Clock Tower
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| Nickname(s):
Furniture Capital of Indiana
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Location of Berne in Adams County, Indiana.
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| Country | United States | ||
| State | Indiana | ||
| County | Adams | ||
| Township | Monroe, Wabash | ||
| Founded | 1852 | ||
| Village plat recorded | 1872 | ||
| Incorporated (city) | 1887 | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 2.33 sq mi (6.03 km2) | ||
| • Land | 2.31 sq mi (5.99 km2) | ||
| • Water | 0.01 sq mi (0.04 km2) | ||
| Elevation | 856 ft (261 m) | ||
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 4,173 | ||
| • Density | 1,804.15/sq mi (696.69/km2) | ||
| Time zone | UTC-5 (EST) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) | ||
| ZIP codes |
46711, 46769
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| Area code | 260 | ||
| FIPS code | 18-04888 | ||
| GNIS ID | 2394149 | ||
Berne is a city in Adams County, Indiana, United States. It is located about 35 miles (56 km) south of Fort Wayne. In 2020, about 4,173 people lived there.
Berne is famous for its strong Swiss heritage and culture. It is also known as the "Furniture Capital of Indiana." The area around Berne has a large Amish population, which is the fifth largest in the USA. They speak a special Swiss German language called Bernese German.
Contents
History of Berne
Berne was founded in 1852 by Mennonite immigrants. They came directly from a place called Münsterberg in the Jura Mountains of Switzerland. They named their new home after Bern, the capital city of Switzerland.
The town grew around a train station built on the Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad lines. The first train arrived on Christmas Day in 1871. A post office opened in Berne in 1872. By 1887, the town had more than 2,500 people. So, the residents decided to make it a city. By 1895, Berne was the second-largest city in Adams County.
The General Conference of the Mennonite Church has held its big meetings in Berne four times. The First Mennonite Church in Berne is the largest of its kind in North America. It used to have the biggest group of members.
Geography of Berne
Berne is located in the northeastern part of Indiana. The city covers about 2.08 square miles (5.39 square kilometers) of land.
Ancient Teays River
Long ago, before the Ice Age, a huge river called the Teays River flowed through this area. It was as big as the Ohio River today. This ancient river passed just east of Berne. Even though the river no longer flows on the surface, its old valley underground still holds a lot of water. This makes Berne and nearby Geneva areas rich in water. Wells east of Berne even help supply water to the larger city of Decatur. Many wetland areas today, like Limberlost Swamp Nature Preserve, are located over this old river valley.
Population and People
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1890 | 544 | — | |
| 1900 | 1,037 | 90.6% | |
| 1910 | 1,316 | 26.9% | |
| 1920 | 1,537 | 16.8% | |
| 1930 | 1,883 | 22.5% | |
| 1940 | 2,075 | 10.2% | |
| 1950 | 2,277 | 9.7% | |
| 1960 | 2,644 | 16.1% | |
| 1970 | 2,988 | 13.0% | |
| 1980 | 3,300 | 10.4% | |
| 1990 | 3,559 | 7.8% | |
| 2000 | 4,150 | 16.6% | |
| 2010 | 3,999 | −3.6% | |
| 2020 | 4,173 | 4.4% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
In 2010, there were 3,999 people living in Berne. There were 1,620 households, which are groups of people living together. Most of the people (96.5%) were White. About 4% of the population was Hispanic or Latino.
About 29.3% of households had children under 18. Many households (53.4%) were married couples living together. The average age in the city was 42 years old.
Economy and Jobs
Berne is known as the "furniture capital of Indiana." Many furniture companies have been in Berne over the years. Some of these include:
- Smith Brothers of Berne, Inc. (since 1926)
- Yager Furniture, Inc. (since 1910)
- Habegger Furniture, Inc. (since 1938)
- Clauser Furniture, Inc. (since 1949)
- Bernhaus Furniture, Inc. (since 2003)
Education in Berne
Public Schools
Students in Berne attend South Adams Jr./Sr. High School. This school building also houses the Elementary and Middle Schools. The school teams are called the Starfires.
Four local schools joined together to form "South Adams" in 1966. These schools were the Berne Bears, Geneva Cardinals, Hartford Gorillas, and Jefferson Warriors. Even though the new school was in Berne, they chose a new name and mascot. This was to make sure everyone felt included.
Public Library
The Berne Public Library opened in 1935. It is now located in the old city auditorium. The library offers over 60,000 items, including books, digital materials, and audio. It also has a special "Heritage Room" with local history and family information.
Culture and Fun
Swiss Days Celebration
Every year, Berne holds its "Swiss Days Celebration." It happens on the last Friday and Saturday in July. Thousands of people visit to celebrate the city's Swiss and American culture.
City Parks
Muensterberg Plaza and Clock Tower
The idea for the clock tower and plaza came up in 2001. The city wanted to celebrate its Swiss heritage. They decided to make the clock tower look like the medieval Zytglogge in Bern, Switzerland. That clock tower was built around 1220.
The Berne clock tower and plaza are named Muensterberg. This name comes from the small Mennonite community in Switzerland where Berne's first settlers came from. The clock tower was built in 2010. It stands 160 feet (49 meters) tall and is 32 feet (9.8 meters) wide. It has special bells made by the Verdin Company.
The Muensterberg Plaza around the clock tower has other cool features. There's The Settler's Statue, which honors the first people who settled here. There's also the only Canton Tree in the United States. The flowerbeds are designed to look like quilting patterns.
Lehman Park
Lehman Park is a wooded park that is 11.5 acres (4.7 hectares) in size. It is located where US 27 and Park Avenue meet. Isaac and Caroline Lehman gave the land for the park to the city in 1928.
Media
Berne has a newspaper called The Berne Witness. It comes out three times a week. Berne and Adams County also have a radio station, WZBD.
Notable People
Many interesting people have come from Berne, including:
- Mary Butcher - a baseball player in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
- The Dilley sextuplets - the first sextuplets (six babies born at once) in the USA to survive.
- Bob Dro - a basketball and baseball player for Indiana University.
- Arthur L. Gilliom - who served as the 25th Indiana Attorney General.
- Les Habegger - a former General Manager for the NBA's Seattle SuperSonics.
- Richard R. Schrock - who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2005 for his work in chemistry.
See also
In Spanish: Berne (Indiana) para niños
