Pendleton is a town in Fall Creek Township, Madison County, Indiana, United States. The population was 4,253 at the 2010 census. History Pendleton was platted in 1830, and incorporated as a town in 1854. It was named for town founder Thomas Pendleton. Frederick Douglass wrote of being attacked by a mob as he promoted the Abolition cause in 1843. His party had erected a platform in nearby woods. A crowd of "rough characters", largely from "Andersonville", tried to silence them, then severely beat them. He defended himself with a stick, but was knocked unconscious. He was nursed back to health over days by the Quaker Neal Hardy and his wife. Douglass never regained full use of his injured hand. 2019 tornado Pendleton was struck by a strong tornado during the evening of May 27, 2019, during a major tornado outbreak. Moderate damage was reported to the town, with search and rescue efforts beginning that night. The tornado received a rating of high-end EF-2, with winds of 130 mph. Geography Pendleton is located at (40.002841, -85.746576). According to the 2010 census, Pendleton has a total area of , of which (or 99.38%) is land and (or 0.62%) is water. Demographics Pendleton is part of the Anderson, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area. 2010 census As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 4,253 people, 1,754 households, and 1,154 families in the town. The population density was . There were 1,893 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 96.6% White, 1.0% African American, 0.3% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.3% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.0% of the population. There were 1,754 households, of which 34.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.4% were married couples living together, 13.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 34.2% were non-families. 30.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.94. The median age in the town was 37.6 years. 26.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 27.4% were from 25