This Place We Call Home: A History of Clark County, Indiana

by Carl E. Kramer

Clark County, Indiana, has grown from a handful of small settlements and scattered farms at the Falls of the Ohio into a sprawling metropolitan region. Yet, as Carl E. Kramer describes in this wonderful new history, significant continuities help define the county. Middle-class business owners and farmers still serve as its leaders. Jeffersonian democracy, emphasizing localism and frugality, remains a central political value. Interlocking kinship, friendship, and associational networks, fostered by decades of demographic stability, remain a potent social and political force. The Ohio River maintains its powerful economic and cultural influence, and the paths of pioneer roads shape local development. These forces and shared experiences have created a close-knit community with a strong sense of place.

664 pages, Hardcover

First published December 30, 2007

Reviews

[Steve Bottorff · Rating 5 out of 5]

History is not really my bag, but when it comes to Clark Co IN you are talking family. Bottorffs have been a prominent family in S IN for 2 centuries. Many others mentioned are related by marriage. And since this covers up to 2010, I was witness to 70 years of the modern history, including the construction and later decommissioning of the Indiana Arsenal, which totally changed the nature of Charlestown IN, my hometown. This history is personal for me - all three schools I attended are pictured, I swam in the Tunnel Mill pond and camped along Fourteen Mile Creek that fed it, I have driven the road and seen the sights. It is home.

Like the previous reviewer, I first used the index to find the names and places I knew, but now have started to read from the beginning. It is well written and illustrated and not at all the plod I remember history books being.

[Peggy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a necessary review for anyone interested in Southern Indiana history. It is really long, but I don't think the author missed much about the history of Clark County. I ended up looking in the index to find topics I was interested in since the book is over 1000 pages long. I enjoyed looking at the pictures and reminiscing over the ones I was familiar with. You probably would not want to read this but use it as a reference to find out something about a particular item. I recommended it to someone today who was researching businesses in the local area circa 1800's and he said he has already used this book and found it to be an excellent source.