History

Churubusco, IN is a small, rural community of about 1800 people. Churubusco is located about 15 miles northwest of Fort Wayne on US 33,in the northeast corner of Whitley County, in Smith Township.David Craig and William Walker first settled Churubusco in the frontier days. The history of Churubusco actually began in 1847. Prior to this time, the town was divided by the railroad track, with the north side of the tracks being Franklin and the south side Union. Since there was already an existing town by the name of Franklin, a new name had to be selected for an application for a post Office. The Americans had just won an important victory at Churubusco, Mexico, on August 20, 1847, in the War with Mexico. A Mrs. Jackson had a relative in this battle and suggested that it would be patriotic to name the town Churubusco, and so it became. An application was made for a post office and was granted in November 1847.

Much, much earlier, before the White man came, the Miami Indian tribe, headed by the great chieftain Little Turtle inhabited the area. Churubusco and Whitley County residents take great pride in the tradition of this chieftain who had the distinction of meeting with three U.S. presidents (George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson).

Today, Churubusco is a vibrant, growing community, boasting of a fine education system (Smith-Green Community Schools), one of the finest local parks in a community of any size, numerous local retail businesses, several light industrial operations, and that good old down-home neighborly atmosphere.