Richmond's Industrial Heritage

From rolling hills to flat stretches, Wayne County is home to a diverse topography. It contains Indiana’s highest point above sea level at the northern edge of the county which sits 1,257 feet above sea level.

It also offers, just thirty miles south at the southern border of the county, the hamlet of Abington which is only 800 feet above sea level.

The variety of topography situates Wayne County as an exciting location for industry, business, and leisure.


The earliest white settlers, who arrived after 1806, made full use of the water power by building mills throughout the county alongside rivers where the power could be harnessed.

More than 400 feet of fall over 30 miles created an enormous amount of potential water power for use in agricultural mills. At its most active, Wayne County had more than 250 mills. Many of these gradually converted over into factories with water providing electricity for production. Richmond, the largest city in the county, grew as an industrial center until well after World War II. Water and the topography of the land created opportunity for economic success and ultimately reshaped the county.


In this tour, you'll get a glimpse of Wayne County and its industrial history.

Whitewater Gorge and the National Road

White colonizers traveled to what would become Wayne County, Indiana after being enticed by the US government with promises of land to settle and abundant natural resources. They encountered fertile farmland, easily available building material - both…

Richmond Corn Mill & Hoosier High Point

Located near the northern edge of Wayne County, enthusiasts who call themselves Highpointers (highpointers.org) can drive directly to the highest point in Indiana, 1,257 feet above sea level and only steps away from a county road. From there,…

The Starr Piano Company

By the 1870s, more business flowed toward Richmond, Indiana. In 1872, George Trayser, a renowned piano maker from Germany who had previously maintained factories in Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio, and had been awarded several U.S. patents for his…

Gennett Records

By 1915, the Starr Piano Company decided to start recording the discs to be played on those phonographs: records. Records were first issued under the Starr name until a separate division, Gennett Records, managed by Henry Gennett’s sons Harry,…

Richmond Baking & Gaar, Scott Co

Gaar, Scott & Co. 1836-1911 Most of the mills in Wayne County were powered by streams, but some took advantage of the many springs available locally. Gaar, Scott & Co. was Richmond’s first major manufacturer with a national reach. It began…

Union Depot & Pennsylvania Depot

Richmond, Indiana became a railroad hub in the Pennsylvania Railroad system with major arteries leading toward Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Chicago, Dayton, and Cincinnati. This meant that companies could use the railroads to easily ship goods produced…

Miller Brothers Wholesale Hardware

Manufacturing was not the only type of business that took advantage of Richmond’s rail facilities. Wholesale houses sprang up in the vicinity of the Union Depot, and the largest ones even had their own rail spurs to offload material into their…

F & N Lawn Mower

After farm equipment and pianos, one of the other industries that has defined Richmond is the production of the lawn mower. Around the turn of the twentieth century, Richmond was unofficially known as the “Lawn Mower Capital of the World,” because of…
This tour was created in partnership with the Morrisson-Reeves Library and made possible by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.