Shelburn, IN

Shelburn had 1,107 residents in 2020, in Curry Township of Sullivan County, Indiana. The town was named for founder Paschal Shelburn, and its post office has operated since 1861. The strongest reminder of the town’s transportation past is the THI&E Interurban Depot and Substation, which served the Terre Haute, Indianapolis & Eastern Traction line between Terre Haute and Sullivan. The depot operated from 1906 to 1931 and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.

After sitting vacant for years, the depot was restored through public grants and local investment, then reopened as a place for a new business. That building gives Shelburn an unusually visible link to the electric rail era, when interurban cars carried passengers and workers through western Indiana. The town also has a branch of the Sullivan County Public Library, a community club, and the small civic services that support the surrounding farm roads. Shelburn’s location keeps it within reach of Terre Haute and Sullivan, but the depot, post office, and town streets tell the more personal story of a place that grew around a line of rail.