Banks Settlement

When the Banks Settlement was first established, it was home to the Banks and Medford families. On April 15th of 1839, Adam Medford, a Black man from New Jersey, purchased the first known plot of land for the Banks Settlement for $250. This land, a total of 20 acres on the shores of Horseshoe Lake, would be home to the Banks Settlement for over 30 years. At the height of Banks Settlement’s success in 1860, it saw a total of 38 African-American residents across three households, three of whom owned properties in the settlement. Throughout the 1860s, however, the settlement lost over 50% of its population. The 1870 census recorded only sixteen individuals living in the settlement.

Adam Medford, his wife, Ann, and their children purchased land in Centre Township in spring of 1839. Not long after, in the 1840 census, the Medfords were reported to live near the Banks household. Because there are no records of John Banks having bought the land at this time, it is thought that the Banks may have lived on the land recently purchased by the Medfords. Medford's property was estimated to be worth $1,000, including the property they initially purchased when arriving in the area and later expansions to land north of their first purchase. Nearby, Barry Banks and his family owned property valued at $50.

Due to the proximity between La Porte and the Banks Settlement, community members had some engagement with one another. Barry Banks was elected as a trustee to the La Porte African Methodist Protestant meeting house, which is believed to be a predecessor to the La Porte African Methodist Episcopal Church established in the 1870s.