Series 07-05: The First Census

Episode 5: The First Census

By 1831, South Bend is a real town of about 163 people, and this episode goes door to door to meet them: the innkeeper who built the courthouse, the man whose brick house made him "Frederick the Great," a keelboat captain who kept the town supplied before the railroads came, a young newspaperman who'd go on to run the U.S. Government Printing Office, a self-taught doctor who arrived knowing every soul in town, and eight Methodists who founded a church in the back of a Catholic tavern.

 

Part of Series 7: Early South Bend

A Bend in Time is presented by The History Museum in South Bend, Indiana and hosted by Aaron Helman. 

This series is presented in conjunction with The History Museum's America250 programming and the exhibit First Peoples, First Settlers: Indiana's Interwoven Roots, which explores the beginnings of settlement in the area and the interactions between European settlers and America's Native peoples. First Peoples, First Settlers is on display until January 31, 2026. 

Visit The History Museum's website at historymuseumsb.org