Zionsville, Indiana

Zionsville is a town located in the extreme southeast area of Boone County, Indiana. The population was 8,775 at the 2000 census.

Zionsville is most commonly known as an affluent suburb of Indianapolis. It promotes itself as a tourist attraction around its self-consciously village-styled downtown area. This area primarily consists of Main Street, paved entirely in brick. The majority of the town, however, has the look and feel of a typical smaller Indiana municipality. Even though Zionsville is in Boone County, the town tends to be more tied with Marion County and Hamilton County due to being in the extreme southeast corner of Boone County thus making it immediately adjacent to Carmel and Indianapolis. As a result of extreme arrogance, Zionsville residents tend to work in and primarily associate themselves with these other cities.

History

The current town of Zionsville began as a promotion by railway speculator William Zion, who partnered with Boone County landowner Elijah Cross to build a railway station on Cross's land in Eagle Township. The town was chartered in 1852, and the first resident was John Miller, who built and lived in a boarding house. By the 1860 census, the population was counted at 364. In this period, local businesses and houses of worship, specifically the local Methodist and Church of Christ parishes relocated from nearby Eagle Village, which had also been platted on land originally owned by Cross. According to the local Chamber of Commerce Abraham Lincoln made a whistle-stop speech in Zionsville in 1861 when traveling to his inauguration.

For much of the rest of its history, Zionsville has led a quiet existence, relying primarily upon its existence as a stop on passenger rail lines and later as a shopping destination or bedroom community. While white flight and other demographic changes in nearby Indianapolis greatly enlarged Carmel and Fishers, Indiana, especially since the imposition of Unigov in 1970, Zionsville had remained a much smaller locale until growth began to pick up into the mid to late 1990s.

Today, Zionsville is wrestling with the prospect of being a fast-growing community. It had kept strict control on growth since the 1970s, but had since been relaxed. Nevertheless, there is tension between those who would develop the town and residents who opposed the problems attendant upon unlimited urban growth. New developments are arising on the outskirts of town that stretch northwest to Whitestown a mile away. These are not part of Zionsville, proper, but residents still require new facilities. In addition, attempts by developers have been made to secure approval for the construction of multi-story business buildings in the downtown/Main Street tourist area. Likewise, westward expansion from Carmel has begun to "spill over" into Boone County, with attendant controversy.

Zionsville's most recent major encounter with expansion has been the heavy controversy over the building of a Wal-Mart in the town limits. So far most people from Zionsville who have been outspoken on the issue have opposed the construction and it has been delayed.

Geography

Zionsville is located at 39°57′11″N 86°16′10″W (39.953092, -86.269462)Template:GR. It is about 17 minutes northwest of Indianapolis.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 15.2 km² (5.9 mi²). 15.0 km² (5.8 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (1.19%) is water.

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 8,775 people, 3,063 households, and 2,407 families residing in the town. The population density was 584.1/km² (1,512.9/mi²). There were 3,169 housing units at an average density of 211.0/km² (546.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.78% White, 0.33% African American, 0.11% Native American, 1.07% Asian, 0.32% from other races, and 0.39% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.97% of the population.

There were 3,063 households out of which 45.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 70.5% were married couples living together, 6.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.4% were non-families. 19.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.23.

In the town the population was spread out with 31.7% under the age of 18, 4.2% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 10.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 93.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.8 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $81,770, and the median income for a family was $95,359. Males had a median income of $62,334 versus $35,823 for females. The per capita income for the town was $35,049. About 4.0% of families and 4.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.4% of those under age 18 and 9.4% of those age 65 or over.

Schools

Zionsville schools have enjoyed a very good reputation. For the past half decade Zionsville schools have been in the top 5 best schools in the state according to "Indiana Monthly". Zionsville schools have rivalries with the neighbooring communities of Carmel and Lebanon. In particular, the Zionsville and Carmel rivalry is the most heated.

The following Zionsville Schools are covered under the Zionsville Community Schools (ZCS) district, which covers a large area that extends beyond Zionsville Proper.

High Schools

• Zionsville Community High School (formerly Zionsville High School)

1000 Mulberry Street, Zionsville, IN 46077
Principal: Mr. Jim Eggers

Middle Schools

• Zionsville Middle School

900 N. Ford Road, Zionsville, IN 46077
Principal: Mr. Sean Conner

• Zionsville West Middle School

5555 South 650 East Whitestown, IN 46075
Principal: Mr. Tim East

Currently, Zionsville West Middle School only houses grade 5 and grade 6 students who live in the western reaches of the ZCS district.

Elementary Schools

Eagle Elementary School

Pleasant View Upper Elementary School

Pleasant View Lower Elementary School

Stonegate Elementary School

Union Elementary School

Cultural Features

Shops of Zionsville

Several blocks of Main Street in Zionsville have been intentionally groomed to give off a "village" air, specifically to attract shopping from nearby larger communities. In addition, Main Street has been paved entirely in brick and the street lamps and other features (such as a lower speed limit) are maintained to encourage visitors and residents to spend a good deal of time shopping on foot along the length of the street.

Festivals

One of Zionsville's seasonal attractions, the July Fourth fireworks show hosted by the local Lion's Club, brings in people from across Indiana. Unlike many of the Independence Day celebrations in major cities, the Zionsville fireworks show has no music integrated into the performance, although there are concerts before the display. There is also the Fall Festival which has a parade featuring marching bands, sports teams, and organizations from Zionsville and surrounding communities. There is also a small festival at the Lion's Park with attractions like rides, games, and food. It lasts for one weekend in September.

Famous Citizens of Zionsville

• William Zion, Founder of Zionsville and Railway Speculator (never actually lived in Zionsville)
• John-Michael Liles, Colorado Avalanche NHL defenseman.
• Tom Mastny, Cleveland Indians pitcher.
• Rik Smits, Indiana Pacers NBA Center.
• Hunter Smith, NFL Punter.
• David Remley, National Counter Strike: Source Champion

External links

• Official Website of the Town of Zionsville, IN
• Zionsville Community Schools
• Zionsville.com
• Zionsville Times Sentinel
• Zionsville Fire Department
• Zionsville Police Department
• Zionsville Downtown Merchants Association
• History of Zionsville