Broad Ripple Village is a small incorporated town that's part of Indianapolis. The first people began coming to this area in 1821, but it did not really begin to grow until 1836 when the Central Canal was built. It is said the Jacob Coil actually developed this town and then named it because of the ripple in the river, which he believed was the widest and biggest point in Marion County. The town grew more with the addition of the railroad. It could not, however, keep up with the growth of Indianapolis, a town nearby and eventually was almost swallowed by Indianapolis. At one time Broad Ripple Village was a "booming" little community with an amusement park, jail, gristmill, etc., but has been destroyed repeatedly by fires, floods or explosions and has had to keep rebuilding
Broad Ripple is known as bohemian country and continues to try to keep the heritage and cultural importance. They have annual events to promote this historical culture such as Midwest Music Summit, Broad Ripple Art Fair, and Broad Ripple Music Festival. The Indianapolis Art Center has many art classes and exhibits in Broad Ripple. In addition, it has a Artspark and a writer's center for those with literary interests and talent. In 2004, the town started its own newspaper, Broad Ripple Gazette, which writes about current as well as past historical events. The town has a lot of activity for those wanting a nighttime social life including many nightclubs and around 30 bars. In fact it is Indianapolis' residents place for socializing at night. It hosts some unique restaurants catering to Greek, Thai and Indian cuisine. The Broad Ripple High School, which is part of the Indianapolis school district, has alumni such as David Letterman, Stephen Goldsmith and Michael Graves.
