Argos, Indiana

Geography

Argos is located at 41°14′16″N 86°14′46″W (41.237732, -86.245976).

According to the 2010 census, Argos has a total area of 1.17 square miles (3.03 km²), of which 1.16 square miles (3.00 km²) (or 99.15%) is land and 0.01 square miles (0.03 km²) (or 0.85%) is water.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 1,691 people, 642 households, and 443 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,457.8 inhabitants per square mile (562.9/km²). There were 724 housing units at an average density of 624.1 per square mile (241.0/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 94.9% White, 0.3% African American, 0.5% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 2.0% from other races, and 2.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.6% of the population.

There were 642 households of which 37.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.4% were married couples living together, 17.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 31.0% were non-families. 25.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.08.

The median age in the town was 33.1 years. 28.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 26.6% were from 25 to 44; 23.6% were from 45 to 64; and 12% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 50.2% male and 49.8% female.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 1,613 people, 615 households, and 432 families residing in the town. The population density was 1378.6 people per square mile. There were 669 housing units at an average density of 576.7 per square mile . The racial makeup of the town was 98.57% White, 0.19% African American, 0.06% Native American, 0.12% Asian, 0.43% from other races, and 0.62% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.30% of the population.

There were 615 households out of which 40.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.9% were married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.6% were non-families. 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.18.

In the town, the population was spread out with 30.8% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 30.4% from 25 to 44, 19.2% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 98.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.0 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $35,000, and the median income for a family was $41,190. Males had a median income of $34,286 versus $21,250 for females. The per capita income for the town was $15,643. About 8.6% of families and 11.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.3% of those under age 18 and 18.8% of those age 65 or over.

History

In 1833, Sidney Williams arrived in the area which is now Marshall County and purchased 600 acres (2.4 km²) of land on the present day site of Argos. Mr. Williams built a tavern, an inn, and helped build a section of Michigan Road. Mr. Williams sold his land to Clark Bliven, the man who built the courthouse on the Williams’s land. This local place of rest wasn’t considered a town until some time later. On January 8, 1851 John Pleak and Marquis L. Smith, laid out the town of Sidney, which is the predecessor to Argos. The town of Sidney was named in honor of Sidney Williams. On November 6, 1856 the town of Fremont, adjoining Sidney, was laid out by Joseph H. Rhodes. Fremont was named after Col. John C. Fremont, who on November 6, 1856 won the Republican candidate for president. On May 21, 1859, a meeting was held for anyone who was interested in the formation of a new township was held in the school house. The purpose of the meeting was to select a name for the township and appointing a suitable person to be the trustee. The names that were offered up for vote were Argos, Noble, and Richland. Noble was withdrawn. The vote total was Argos 12, Richland 8. For a reason unknown the commissioners ordered the Township to be called Walnut Township due to the abundance of walnut trees in the area. John A. Rhodes and Charles Brown were proposed for trustee. Rhodes won by a vote of 18 to 4.

In 1854, the post office was removed from Sidney through political manipulations. Schuyler Colfax, the congressman in the district was asked to name the post office. He had a great interest in Greek history which led him to name the post office Argos, after the ancient Greek city made famous in the Iliad of Homer. Argos was the name that was kept when Sidney and Fremont were consolidated in 1859. The town of Argos was incorporated in the state law in December 1869.

The Argos Downtown Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.

Sports

The Argos High School boys soccer team has won the IHSAA State Soccer Championship three different times, in 1973,1976, & 1978. Also, under the leadership of Mr. Phil Weybright the Argos Boys Basketball team from 1972 till 1981 hade a record of 171 wins and 43 losses. One of the most amazing parts of his career was rewriting the state history book for 76 straight regular season wins, called "Spirit of '76."

Notable people