City of Nappanee
Downtown Nappanee.
Location in the state of Indiana
Coordinates: 41°26′39″N 85°59′58″W / 41.44417, -85.99944
Country	United States
State	Indiana
Counties	Elkhart, Kosciusko
Government
- Mayor	Larry Thompson (R)
Area
- Total	3.7 sq mi (9.6 km²)
- Land	3.7 sq mi (9.6 km²)
- Water	0 sq mi (0 km²)  0%
Elevation	869 ft (265 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	6,710
- Density	1,818.9/sq mi (702.1/km²)
Time zone	EST (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	46550
Area code(s)	574
FIPS code	18-52020[1]
GNIS feature ID	0439936[2]

Nappanee is a city in Elkhart County, Indiana, United States. The population was 6,710 at the 2000 census. The city is twinned with Napanee, Ontario. The name Nappanee probably means "flour."^[3]

History

Please help improve this article or section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. (October 2007)

Nappanee from above.

A tornado touched down in Nappanee around 10:30 pm on 18 October 2007, injuring at least five people and damaging 200 to 250 buildings, half of them severely. The tornado was classified as an EF3. The damage included three recreational vehicles factories that are among the community's largest employers: Fairmont Homes, Franklin Coach, and Gulf Stream Coach. This tornado also heavily damaged two area restaurants: Taco Bell/KFC and Dairy Queen. Arby's roof and Burger King's sign also took minor damage.^[4]

Geography

Nappanee is located at 41°26′39″N, 85°59′58″W (41.444201, -85.999390)^[5].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.7 square miles (9.6 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 6,710 people, 2,521 households, and 1,792 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,818.9 people per square mile (702.1/km²). There were 2,647 housing units at an average density of 717.5/sq mi (277.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 95.48% White, 0.28% African American, 0.22% Native American, 0.34% Asian, 2.52% from other races, and 1.15% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.98% of the population.

There were 2,521 households out of which 39.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.1% were married couples living together, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.9% were non-families. 23.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.15.

Carved tree stump post office sign.

Amish Acres, a popular tourist attraction in Nappanee.

In the city the population was spread out with 29.7% under the age of 18, 10.6% from 18 to 24, 30.9% from 25 to 44, 17.9% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 99.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.5 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $45,988, and the median income for a family was $53,329. Males had a median income of $36,200 versus $21,733 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,229. About 4.5% of families and 4.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.9% of those under age 18 and 8.4% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Little Paws Playground in Stauffer Park.

Nappanee is a regional center for both the RV manufacturing industry and the Amish craft and tourism industry. Many Amish and Mennonite families live in the area, often farming as well as working in the RV industry or woodworking trade.

Trivia

Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

• Vance George, conductor of the San Francisco Symphony Chorus from 1982 through the 2005-2006 season, is from Nappanee. Under his leadership the group has recorded extensively and received four Grammy Awards, for its recordings of Orff's "Carmina Burana," Brahms' "German Requim," a collection of three Stravinsky scores, and Mahler's Third Symphony. George directed the chorus on two albums, "Christmas by the Bay" and "Voices 1900/2000," on the Delos label. Under his leadership, the group also appeared on soundtracks for the films "Amadeus," "The Unbearable Lightness of Being," and "Godfather II."
• United States Postal Service Commemorative Amish Quilt Stamps First Day of Issue and Dedication Ceremony were held in the Round Barn Theatre at Amish Acres, August 7, 2001. Cancellation commissioned by USPS designed by Jeff Stillson.
• Plain and Fancy, the 1955 Broadway musical about Amish life and love, has been playing at Amish Acres since 1986. Now housed in the Round Barn Theatre, the annual production totals 3,200 performances before 300,000 patrons. The theater's stage is named for and dedicated to Joseph Stein, co-author, who later penned the book for Fiddler on the Roof.
• Lt. Colonel (Ret) Todd Beer, United States Air Force, an Air Force One pilot, is from Nappanee. He graduated from the Air Force Academy where he was recruited to play basketball. He has flown Air Force One for President Bill Clinton and President George W. Bush.
• James L Weygand (1919-2003), a lifelong resident of Nappanee, was a writer and publisher of miniature books and also wrote a definitive town history "They Called It Nappanee: A History 1874-1974. Collections of his miniature books are held at The Lilly Library, Indiana University [1] and at the University of Iowa. The University of Florida has digitized his three books on printers' devices, see: http://web.uflib.ufl.edu/spec/rarebook/devices/weygand.htm
• Though residents often claim Nappanee is the only town in the United States that has two of each of its letters in its name, this is not the case. Hannah, North Dakota, for example, has two of each of its letters as well. However, Nappanee is the city with the longest name having this property in the country.
• TIME Magazine listed Nappanee as one of the Top Ten small towns in America that has reinvented itself to face the future in prosperity.

See also

• Amish Acres Arts & Crafts Festival

References

• They Called It Nappanee: A History 1874-1974 by James L Weygand. (Nappanee, Ind., 1974)

External links

• Nappanee, Indiana is at coordinates 41°26′39″N 85°59′58″W / 41.444201, -85.99939 (Nappanee, Indiana)Coordinates: 41°26′39″N 85°59′58″W / 41.444201, -85.99939 (Nappanee, Indiana)
• Amish Acres Historic Farm and Heritage Resort - Listed in the National Register of Historic Places

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