Columbia City, Indiana
Columbia City, Indiana
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Columbia City, Indiana

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2286412

Columbia City, Indiana

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Columbia City, Indiana

Columbia City is a city in Columbia Township, Whitley County, Indiana, United States. The population was 9,892 at the 2020 Census, up from 8,750 at the 2010 Census, estimated to be 10,064 in 2023. The city is the county seat of Whitley County, and is the largest community therein. It is part of the Fort Wayne MSA.

The first European ancestry settlers arrived in 1837 as a result of the end of the Black Hawk War and the Erie Canal. They were from New England - "Yankee" Settlers, descendants of the English Puritans who settled New England in the colonial era. They were primarily members of the Congregational Church though due to the Second Great Awakening many of them had converted to Methodism and some had become Baptists before coming to what is now Columbia City.

Columbia City was founded in 1839, originally just being called "Columbia". The name was later changed in 1854 since there was already a city named Columbia in the state. Many public debates were held to discuss different names for the city, but it was later only reduced to two: "Beaver" and "Columbia City." Eventually, the name Columbia City was selected.

The completion of the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne, & Chicago Railway in 1856 brought rapid growth to the small town, and from 1865 to 1875 the population would have tripled. Columbia City was incorporated in the state of Indiana in 1888.

The city's historic jailhouse was built in 1875 with an old second empire-style. It is known to be haunted. A new county jail was inaugurated in 2024.

The Whitley County Courthouse was designed (1888–1891) by Brentwood S. Tolan, of Fort Wayne, Indiana. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. The Thomas R. Marshall House was added to the register in 1983 and the Columbia City Historic District was added in 1987.

According to the 2010 census, Columbia City has a total area of 5.601 square miles (14.51 km2), of which 5.58 square miles (14.45 km2) (or 99.63%) is land and 0.021 square miles (0.05 km2) (or 0.37%) is water.

According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Columbia City has a hot-summer humid continental climate, abbreviated "Dfa" on climate maps. The hottest temperature recorded in Columbia City was 103 °F (39.4 °C) on June 26, 1988, while the coldest temperature recorded was −24 °F (−31.1 °C) on January 19–21, 1994.

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