The History of Gibson County and Princeton, Indiana
Gibson County was established in 1813 and named for John Gibson, an officer in the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War. He was secretary of the Indiana Territory and twice served as acting governor.
Princeton is located near the center of Gibson County. It was settled in 1814 and named after Irish immigrant William Prince, who was a Gibson County Commissioner.
As of the 2024 census, Princeton’s population is 8,481, making it the largest incorporated town/city in Gibson County. It is the 95th-largest city in Indiana.
Things to Do In or Near Princeton, Indiana
The heart of Princeton is its historic courthouse square and the Gibson County Courthouse, built in 1886 and exemplifying the Romanesque Revival architecture of the nineteenth century. The surrounding streets are perfect for walking and local shopping at places like OTM Boutique & Bow Co., Sassy Sunflower Boutique, and Bealls Outlet.
The Gibson County Fair is one of Indiana’s oldest continuously operating county fairs (it’s been going for 170 years!) and features carnival rides, livestock shows, concerts, and all the classic fair food you can handle in early July.
History lovers have no shortage of landmarks to check out.
The historic Severns Bridge was built in 1908 and is named for John Severns, Sr., who was the first white settler in Gibson County. He, his wife and five children settled along the south bank of the Patoka River, 2.5 miles north of Princeton where he ran a ferry boat.
Lyles Station Historic Schoolhouse & Museum stands as one of the last remaining African American settlements in Indiana. It was settled in the early 1800s and has a Heritage Classroom that provides students the opportunity to experience a day in the life of school children in the early 1900s.
Catch a ballgame at the historic Gil Hodges Field, included in the Heartland Historic Baseball Trail and located near Lafayette Park.
The field was named for Princeton native and former Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Gil Hodges who was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2022 after receiving 12 of 16 votes by the Golden Days Era Committee. Hodges was on the Dodgers’ World Series-winning teams in 1955 and 1959, was an eight-time National League All-Star (1949-55, ‘57), won three Gold Gloves (1957-59), and managed the New York “Miracle” Mets to a 1969 World Series title.
Places to Eat and Drink in Princeton, Indiana
Donut Bank is a breakfast staple in southwest Indiana with 11 locations, including eight in Evansville, one in Newburgh, one in Princeton, and one across the state line in Henderson, Ky. You can’t go wrong with any of their pastries to go with a coffee or espresso, and they’re open seven days a week.
Port Side Coffee Company is a woman-owned coffee roastery, shop and bakery in downtown Princeton. Stop for coffee, pastries, and a relaxed atmosphere.
American Table Family Dining has locations in Princeton, Washington, and Vincennes. They’re known for homestyle cooking, low prices, and hearty portions. Guests rave about their breakfast, tenderloin sandwiches, and country fried steak.
Dick Clark’s Family Restaurant has been around since 1946, when Richard “Dick” Clark opened an ice cream and short orders shop next to his uncle’s grocery store, Sutton’s Grocery. The restaurant evolved to feature steaks, spaghetti, homemade pizza, sandwiches, beer, wine, and of course, ice cream. Here’s a deeper dive on Dick Clark’s by Get Indiana’s own Taylor Huff.
Princeton Community High School
Princeton Community High School is known as the Tigers, and they have won two IHSAA state championships in school history.
Boys basketball secured the school’s first state title in 2009, defeating Rochester 81-79 in double overtime to win the 3A championship and complete a perfect 29-0 season, just the 11th perfect season by a championship team in IHSAA history. It was also just the fifth of six boys basketball state championship games all time that went to two or more overtimes. The Tigers boys basketball program also made state appearances in 1934 and ‘35, losing in the first round to Hartford City and Rushville, and lost in the semifinals in 1965 and 1983 to Indianapolis Washington and Connersville.
Princeton’s girls basketball team won the school’s most recent IHSAA championship, topping Tippecanoe Valley 72-44 in the 2015 3A final at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Jackie Young made 15 field goals and scored 36 points in the win, both the most ever in an IHSAA girls basketball state championship game. Young was the state’s leading scorer that season with a 32.4 average and surpassed the 1,000 mark with 1,003 points to become the first girl to reach that milestone and the fifth player in Indiana high school basketball history to accomplish the feat.
The girls basketball team also reached the semifinals in 1996, falling 50-38 to Valparaiso.
The Basketball Star: Jackie Young
In addition to guiding Princeton Community to the IHSAA 3A girls basketball state title in 2015, Young is Indiana’s top all-time scorer (boys and girls) with 3,268 career points.
She went on to play three seasons at the University of Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish won the 2018 national championship over Mississippi State during her sophomore season, and they lost 82-81 to Baylor in the national championship the following year.
She was then drafted No. 1 overall by the Las Vegas Aces in the 2019 WNBA Draft. She was named to the 2019 All-Rookie team, has been a WNBA All-Star each of the last four seasons (2022-25), won the 2022 Most Improved Player Award, was an All-WNBA Second Team member in 2023 and 2025, and helped lead the Aces to WNBA titles in 2022, 2023 and 2025.
That’s it for small town breakdown No. 49. Where should we head next?
