History
Noblesville has a rich history dating back to 1818 when the land that
is now Hamilton County was purchased by the government from the Indians.
William Conner, the only white man living in the area at the time and
his wife, a Delaware Indian, established the first trading post in central
Indiana in 1802 and lived in the first log cabin in the area. The Conner
Farm is the site where on May 28, 1820, a group of commissioners met and
selected Indianapolis as the site of the state capitol. Conner's home
is now one of a village of historic buildings making up Conner Prairie
Pioneer Settlement, a living history museum just south of downtown Noblesville.
William Conner and Josiah Polk laid out the town of Noblesville in 1823.
It was designated as the Hamilton County seat in 1824 and incorporated
in 1851.
The downtown business and historic district has recently been added to
the National Register of Historic Places, as have Potter’s Bridge
and a number of private homes. Fifty-three buildings in the downtown district
have been named to the National Register of Historic Places. The most
prominent buildings located in the historic district are the County Courthouse
and the Sheriff’s Residence and Jail. The courthouse, a French Renaissance
structure, served as the county courthouse from 1878 to 1992 and now serves
as home to certain administrative offices of the local government. The
Sheriff’s Residence and Jail, originally built in 1875 of red brick
and limestone, now houses the Hamilton County Museum of History and maintains
archival collections and public meeting rooms. During its years as a jail,
famous prisoners included Charles Manson and D.C. Stephenson, Grand Dragon
of the Ku-Klux Klan.
Residents and visitors alike find Noblesville, Indiana to be a whole life
community: a place where people can grow up, pursue careers, purchase
homes, raise a family and retire, all within the same community. Noblesville
remains a community that preserves and protects its rich historical roots.
This is evident in the upkeep of the downtown buildings and the preservation
of brick streets in the neighborhoods around downtown. In the heart of
Noblesville's downtown there are Victorian homes, tree-lined streets,
a restored 1879 French Renaissance courthouse and the Hamilton County
Judicial Center. Noblesville's downtown is also home to plenty of interesting
and unique shops and restaurants, as well as the public safety building,
reconstructed from a historic post office facility.
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