Near Thorntown in Boone County, Indiana — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Sugar Creek Community
Photographed by Trevor L Whited, May 30, 2021
1. Sugar Creek Community Marker
Black southerners established a thriving, free community around Thorntown in Sugar Creek Township by the early 1850s. Most became farmers and some owned property, despite Indiana's constitutional prohibition of black settlement. By 1870, this community of over 170 residents established an African Methodist Episcopal church, school, cemetery, and Masonic lodge.
With the passage of the 15th Amendment, male residents engaged in politics through voting, public speaking, and organizing a Republican club. While the community dispersed in the 1890's, the church and affiliated women's group remained active into the 1900's. Only the cemetery, where at least one Civil War veteran of the U.S. Colored Troops was buried, has been preserved.
Erected 2019 by Indiana Historical Bureau.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Settlements & Settlers.
Location. 40° 8.301′ N, 86° 37.436′ W. Marker is near Thorntown, Indiana, in Boone County. It is on N 825 W, on the left when traveling north. Located
this page online
Regionally, this marker is in Central Indiana and specifically in Greater Indianapolis. It is also in the American Midwest and in the Corn Belt. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture and also the Northwest Territory.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 10 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Thorntown Public Library (approx. 1.1 miles away); Indian Cemetery (approx. 1.7 miles away); Boone County REMC (approx. 4.7 miles away); Don and Mel Kenyon (approx. 9.8 miles away); Ulen Country Club (approx. 9.8 miles away); Henry C. Ulen (approx. 9.9 miles away); Boone County Veterans Memorial (approx. 9.9 miles away); Ulen Country Club and The Town of Ulen, Indiana (approx. 10 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Thorntown.
Another marker is no longer nearby. Darlington Covered Bridge
Photographed by Trevor L Whited, May 30, 2021
2. Sugar Creek Community Marker
Photographed by Trevor L Whited, May 30, 2021
3. Sugar Creek Community Marker
Photographed by Trevor L Whited, May 30, 2021
4. Sugar Creek Community Marker
Photographed by Trevor L Whited, May 30, 2021
5. Sugar Creek Community Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on June 2, 2021. It was originally submitted on May 30, 2021, by Trevor L Whited of Kokomo, Indiana. This page has been viewed 583 times since then and 38 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on May 30, 2021, by Trevor L Whited of Kokomo, Indiana. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
