Greencastle, Indiana, USA
Greencastle, the county seat of Putnam County, is a college community of over 10,300 people in west central Indiana. As the home of DePauw University and Ivy Tech Community College, the community enjoys a wide range of cultural and educational opportunities as one of the best college towns in the Midwest.
The community and surrounding area retain their small town rural atmosphere while being only 35 minutes from the Indianapolis International Airport and 50 minutes from downtown Indianapolis. The community’s strategic location also allows it to take advantage of the resources of Purdue University, Indiana University, Rose Hulman Institute of Technology, and Indiana University – Purdue University at Indianapolis (IUPUI) and many other educational institutions that are within a hour’s drive time.
In 1991, the National Civic League designated Greencastle an “All-American City.” More recently, Greencastle has been ranked as one of one-hundred best small towns in America. In fact, the author of The 100 Best Small Towns in America, Norm Crampton, is a former resident of the community. Greencastle ranks as one of the 100 best because of its increase in young adult population, low crime rate (2nd best of the 100 towns), growth, and other factors.
Greencastle became one of the most “wired” communities in the nation in early 2006. Metronet powered up a high speed, high bandwidth fiber-to-the-home, fiber-to-the-business telecommunications system. Feature rich voice, video, and data are now available throughout the community over this state of the art system.
For five years, 2008 to 2012, the Indiana Association of Cities and Towns named Greencastle as its “Green Community of the Year” in recognition of the community’s environmental efforts. In 2009, the Mayor established a community wide sustainability commission.
On March 10, 2011, Greencastle was selected as one of the first two Stellar Communities by the State of Indiana. In partnership with DePauw University and a wide range of local organizations, local efforts and state support will focus on developing linkages between campus and community and revitalizing the Courthouse Square Business District. Many of the $19 million worth of projects have started construction.
Recently, Greencastle also received mention in two publications, Boomtown USA and Life 2.0 for its success in community development.
With its attractive rural location, easy access to Indianapolis, and DePauw University, Greencastle has enjoyed growth over the last several years. Population has increased from 8,984 to over 10,300 in 2012. The community also continues to invest in itself to support its citizens and businesses and to prepare for the future.
More details:
Greencastle Community School Corporation
The Greencastle Community School District serves the community of Greencastle and Greencastle and Madison Townships in central Putnam County.
Updated: 06/2014
