History of Hartford City, Indiana
| Hartford City, Indiana | |
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| City | |
Hartford City courthouse square in 1908
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 Location in the state of Indiana |
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| Coordinates: 40°27′09″N 85°22′10″W / 40.45250°N 85.36944°WCoordinates: 40°27′09″N 85°22′10″W / 40.45250°N 85.36944°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Indiana |
| County | Blackford |
| Officially named | 1839 |
| Incorporated (town) | 1857 |
| Incorporated (city) | 1894 |
| Website | (Historical Society) http://www.bchs-in.org/ |
Hartford City, Indiana, began in the late 1830s as a few log cabins clustered near a creek. The community became the county seat of Blackford County. Located in the north east-central portion of the state, the small farming community experienced a 15-year "boom" beginning in the late 1880s caused by the discovery of natural gas. The Indiana Gas Boom caused the community to transition from an agricultural economy to one that also included manufacturing. During the 1890s, Hartford City was the home of the nation's largest window glass company (Hartford City Glass Company)and the nation's largest producer of lantern globes (Sneath Glass Company).
The phenomenal growth ended after the boom, but the city was able to retain much of its workforce, as some of the glass factories and paper mills continued operations within the city. Jobs relating to the new automobile industry also became available in nearby cities. In the first half of the 20th century, Hartford City was able to attract several new manufacturers that became cornerstones for employment within the town, including Overhead Door and 3M. However, as the fortunes of the auto industry have declined in recent decades, so have the fortunes of Hartford City.
As a reminder of the Gas Boom, the National Park Service of the United States Department of the Interior added the Hartford City Courthouse Square Historic District to the National Register of Historic Places on June 21, 2006—meaning the buildings and objects that contribute to the continuity of the district are worthy of preservation because of their historical and architectural significance. Individual buildings in Hartford City also recognized by the National Register of Historic Places include the Blackford County Courthouse and the First Presbyterian Church.
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