Welcome to Patoka -Patoka, IN
N 38° 24.836 W 087° 35.167
16S E 448830 N 4251905
Welcome to Patoka, Gibson County's Oldest Town. This sign is located on Main Street a few yards south of where it intersects with Highway 41.
Waymark Code: WM9EZP
Location: Indiana, United States
Date Posted: 08/11/2010
Views: 3
Patowka, Indiana is in Gibson county. The history of this town of Patowka predates the formation of the county. First settled in 1789 by John Severns on the south side of the Patoka River, Severn had been a captive of the local Indian tribes as a youth, and knew their language, so when he settled in what grew to be Patoka, he managed to get along with the Indians camped on the north side of the river. Severns agreed with the Indians that they could ride his ferry he's built across the Patoka River. John Smith later settled near Severns with some other he had brought with him. By 1800, six families formed the settlement of Smith, later called Smithville in 1813-14 and then finally Patoka. Patoka is an Indian name meaning "log on the bottom."
In 1813, an outbreak of the Black Plague broke out and killed many of the settlers of Patoka. However, the town survived and prospered, becoming a stage coach stop, then a steam boat landing, and then a railroad terminus. Lumber was big business in Patoka through the middle of the 1800s. The neighboring town of Princeton has grown faster and larger than Patoka but both of these towns are now considered as part of the greater metropolitan area surrounding Evansville.
Type of community: Town
|
Visit Instructions:
More pictures of the sign would be great. Try and take a picture of yourself with it if you can!