LaOtto, Indiana

LaOtto
Unincorporated community
LaOtto LaOtto
Coordinates: 41°17′25″N 85°11′53″W / 41.29028°N 85.19806°WCoordinates: 41°17′25″N 85°11′53″W / 41.29028°N 85.19806°W
Country	United States
State	Indiana
County	Noble
Township	Swan
Elevation[1]	873 ft (266 m)
ZIP code	46763
FIPS code	18-42138[2]
GNIS feature ID	449681

LaOtto (sometimes also spelled as Laotto) is a small unincorporated community in southeastern Noble County, Indiana. Located west of the current intersection of Indiana State Road 3 and Indiana State Road 205, it is 16 miles north of Fort Wayne and is also in proximity to Kendallville and Auburn. It is therefore considered a bedroom community to these cities.

History

LaOtto was established in the 1830s as settlers headed north out of Fort Wayne, Indiana along the Mongoquinong Trail, which would later become Lima Plank Road. From 1856 to 1861, LaOtto was called Simon's Corners, a name taken from the local U.S. Post Office (and so named by cabinet maker and first Postmaster John Miller). Simon's Corners became Simonsville. From 1872 to 1875 it was called Grand Rapids Crossing, because it was the intersection of the north-south Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad and the east-west Eel River Railroad lines and the railroad did not like the name Simonsville. In 1875, the name LaOtto was proposed and petitioned by Lutheran minister Rev. B.F. Shultz and approved by the Noble County commissioners.^[3][4]

Though LaOtto is a small unincorporated community, it played a role in the fight against slavery. LaOtto Wesleyan Church was a stopping point for slaves on the underground railroad during the 1850s and 1860s. Pastor Aaron Worth was a "conductor" on the underground railroad.^[5]

Originally having State Road 3 go through its town's limits, in 1990 a bypass and upgrade of State Road 3 was complete, and it now has a path just east of the town's limits.

Schools

LaOtto's children attend schools in the East Noble School Corporation. Elementary (Kindergarten-5th grade) students now attend Avilla Elementary School, in Avilla, Indiana, after LaOtto Elementary School closed in 2008.^[6] Middle school (6th-8th grade) students attend East Noble Middle School, in Kendallville, Indiana. High school (9th-12th grade) students attend East Noble High School, also in Kendallville, Indiana.

References

1. "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
2. "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
3. "LaOtto" from Ancestry.com
4. KPC News - Noble County Answer Book 2003
5. KPC News - Reflections of the Century Part 2
6. East Noble Challenge 09.pdf

• Noble County Map
• History of LaOtto, Noble County Answer Book, Kendallville Publishing Company Note: This is a .pdf document, and is on pages 13 & 14 in the 2007 edition.