The Falls

When first discovered, the falls were a natural wonder, where a pristine creek flowed through dense forest and cascaded over terraces of stone. According to legend, Native Americans believed the area around the falls offered sanctuary from violent storms, and that no tornado or windstorm could strike in the valley, perhaps because of the contour of the Fall Creek valley and the stream’s peculiar course along the west edge of what is now Pendleton. The falls gave the area its identity, and the early settlement was called The Falls. Their waterpower drew pioneers, powering mills that ground grain for bread, sawed wood for cabins, and made cloth for clothing. John Rogers, the community’s first settler, arrived on Dec. 29, 1818, choosing land a half mile east of the falls. Seven more families from Springfield, Ohio, arrived in 1820. The location combined a waterfall that provided power and water with a ford that gave access to tradesmen and other travelers moving between Conner Prairie and points south and Fort Wayne and points north. The importance of waterpower gradually declined after natural gas was discovered in east central Indiana in 1886, and Pendleton’s industrial center moved from the falls to the top of the hill for railroad access. In 1920, the falls and the adjacent stone quarry became a park and a lake, and their natural beauty once again drew residents and visitors from miles around.

Pendleton, Indiana · United States