New Castle, Indiana facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
City of New Castle
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New Castle from the air, looking east.
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Location of New Castle in Henry County, Indiana.
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| Country | United States |
| State | Indiana |
| County | Henry |
| Settled | 1822 |
| Area | |
| • Total | 7.34 sq mi (19.02 km2) |
| • Land | 7.32 sq mi (18.97 km2) |
| • Water | 0.02 sq mi (0.05 km2) 0.27% |
| Elevation | 1,070 ft (326 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 17,396 |
| • Density | 2,375.20/sq mi (917.03/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (EST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP code |
47362
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| Area code(s) | 765 |
| FIPS code | 18-52740 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0440031 |
| Website | www.cityofnewcastle.net/ |
New Castle is a city in Henry County, Indiana, 44 miles (71 km) east-northeast of Indianapolis, on the Big Blue River. The city is the county seat of Henry County. New Castle is home to New Castle Fieldhouse, the largest high school gymnasium in the world. The city is surrounded by agricultural land. In the past, it was a manufacturing center for the production of sheet iron and steel, automobiles, caskets, clothing, scales, bridges, pianos, furniture, handles, shovels, lathes, bricks, and flour. Starting in the early 20th century, it was known as the Rose City, at one point having 100 florists and numerous growers.
According to the 2010 census, the population was 18,114.
New Castle Correctional Facility, with a capacity of over 3,500 inmates, is located just north of the city.
Contents
History
New Castle was platted in 1823, and named after New Castle, Kentucky. A post office was established at New Castle in 1823. The Maxwell Automobile Factory, later owned and operated by Chrysler Motor Corp. was, at the time of construction in the first part of the 20th century, the largest automotive manufacturing plant in the world.
The Chrysler Enclosure, Gen. William Grose House, Henry County Courthouse, and New Castle Commercial Historic District are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Geography
New Castle is located at 39°55′25″N 85°21′54″W / 39.923733°N 85.365045°W.
According to the 2010 census, New Castle has a total area of 7.311 square miles (18.94 km2), of which 7.29 square miles (18.88 km2) (or 99.71%) is land and 0.021 square miles (0.05 km2) (or 0.29%) is water.
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1850 | 666 | — | |
| 1860 | 417 | −37.4% | |
| 1870 | 1,556 | 273.1% | |
| 1880 | 2,299 | 47.8% | |
| 1890 | 2,697 | 17.3% | |
| 1900 | 3,406 | 26.3% | |
| 1910 | 9,446 | 177.3% | |
| 1920 | 14,458 | 53.1% | |
| 1930 | 14,027 | −3.0% | |
| 1940 | 16,620 | 18.5% | |
| 1950 | 18,271 | 9.9% | |
| 1960 | 20,349 | 11.4% | |
| 1970 | 21,215 | 4.3% | |
| 1980 | 20,056 | −5.5% | |
| 1990 | 17,753 | −11.5% | |
| 2000 | 17,780 | 0.2% | |
| 2010 | 18,114 | 1.9% | |
| 2020 | 17,396 | −4.0% | |
| Source: US Census Bureau | |||
2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 18,114 people, 7,769 households, and 4,660 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,481.4 inhabitants per square mile (958.1/km2). There were 9,002 housing units at an average density of 1,233.2 per square mile (476.1/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 95.1% White, 1.9% African American, 0.2% Native American, 0.4% Asian, 0.6% from other races, and 1.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.7% of the population.
There were 7,769 households, of which 30.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.0% were married couples living together, 16.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.9% had a male householder with no wife present, and 40.0% were non-families. 34.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.93.
The median age in the city was 39.5 years. 23.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.7% were from 25 to 44; 26.4% were from 45 to 64; and 16.7% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 46.7% male and 53.3% female.
Other attractions
- Nine of the eleven largest high school gyms in the United States are in Indiana. The largest of these is the New Castle Fieldhouse at New Castle High School. The fieldhouse has a capacity of 9,325.The fieldhouse is notable for a 1961 State Sectional Game between New Castle and Lewisville (now part of South Henry School Corporation) in which the fans attending the game were snowed in.The next morning food was delivered to the Fieldhouse by a local bakery and a church service was piped into the gym. The gym has also played host to the 2006 Indiana Class 3A Basketball Champs and the 2007 Class 4A Volleyball Champions
- New Castle is home to the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame located near New Castle Chrysler High School.
- Next to New Castle High School is a Native American mound dated to approximately 2000 BP. This mound contains depressions which align to sunrise/sunset during the equinoxes as well as aligning with depressions in similar mounds tens of miles away.
Climate
Climate is designated as Humid continental, and this region typically has large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters. The Köppen Climate Classification subtype for this climate is "Dfa". (Hot Summer Continental Climate).
| Climate data for New Castle, Indiana | |||||||||||||
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| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °F (°C) | 38 (3.3) |
41 (5) |
47 (8.3) |
62 (16.7) |
73 (22.8) |
82 (27.8) |
87 (30.6) |
85 (29.4) |
79 (26.1) |
68 (20) |
50 (10) |
38 (3.3) |
62.5 (16.94) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 20 (-6.7) |
23 (-5) |
27 (-2.8) |
39 (3.9) |
49 (9.4) |
59 (15) |
62 (16.7) |
59 (15) |
50 (10) |
40 (4.4) |
28 (-2.2) |
20 (-6.7) |
39.7 (4.26) |
| Precipitation inches (mm) | 3.3 (84) |
2.8 (71) |
3.0 (76) |
4.3 (109) |
4.3 (109) |
4.9 (124) |
3.6 (91) |
2.9 (74) |
2.6 (66) |
2.3 (58) |
2.9 (74) |
2.5 (64) |
39.4 (1,001) |
| Avg. precipitation days | 6.6 | 5.9 | 6.1 | 6.9 | 6.9 | 7.7 | 6.3 | 5.5 | 4.4 | 4.0 | 4.9 | 5.5 | 70.7 |
| Source: Weatherbase | |||||||||||||
News and media
Education
- New Castle Community School Corporation
The city has a public library, the New Castle-Henry County Public Library.
Notable people
- Steve Alford, NCAA basketball player and coach
- Tom Allen, NCAA head football coach
- Dakoda Armstrong, automobile racing
- Trey Ball, baseball player
- Kent Benson, NBA basketball player
- Major General Omar Bundy, United States Army officer who fought in the Indian Wars, the Spanish–American War, and World War I, where he commanded the 2nd Division in 1918
- Trevor Chowning, pop artist and former Hollywood talent agent/producer
- Richard Crane, actor
- William Grose, American Civil War general
- Tracy Hines, NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and United States Auto Club driver
- Vern Huffman, basketball and football player for Indiana University
- Robert Indiana, artist
- Fred Luddy businessman
- Peter Malnati, golfer
- David Lee Roth, singer
- Robert McMurrer, author, filmmaker and actor retired to New Castle
 | Toni Morrison |
 | Barack Obama |
 | Martin Luther King Jr. |
 | Ralph Bunche |
