Wakarusa is a town in Harrison and Olive townships in Elkhart County, Indiana, United States. The population was 1,758 at the 2010 census. Wakarusa is a small farming and manufacturing community located on Indiana 19 just north of Indiana 119. The town is south of Elkhart, southeast of South Bend, east of Chicago, and north of Indianapolis. The town was in the news on August 5, 2009, following the visit of President Barack Obama to announce that Indiana was to receive US$400 million in federal stimulus funds to help revive the state economy. Geography Wakarusa is located at (41.534490, -86.016223). According to the 2010 census, Wakarusa has a total area of , of which (or 96.62%) is land and (or 3.38%) is water. History In 1836, rural Olive Township was formed in western Elkhart County, and in 1849, as the population grew, a post office named Mt. Olive opened. After more population growth, a new village named Salem was established to prevent people from having to travel to either Goshen or Elkhart to conduct business. Since there is already a town named Salem in Indiana, the name was changed to Wakarusa in 1859. The Mt. Olive Post Office was renamed for Wakarusa a year later. Railroad - In 1891 work began on the Wabash Railroad line through town, with the official opening of the line in the spring of 1893. The line, which connected Chicago with Montpelier, Ohio, became part of the Norfolk & Western Railway in 1964 and lasted until the 1980s. Today, the original Wabash depot along with two Norfolk & Western rail cars are featured along with many other displays at the Wakarusa Historical Museum. The etymology of the name "Wakarusa" is not known. According to tradition, the name Wakarusa is from a Native American language, meaning "knee-deep in mud". A more recent source claims a settler named it after a location in Kansas. Demographics 2010 census As of the census of 2010, there were 1,758 people, 665 households, and 448 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 717 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 96.0% White, 1.0% African American, 0.1% Native American, 1.0% Asian, 0.9% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.4% of the population. There were 665 households, of which