ELKHART

city, Elkhart county, northern Indiana, U.S. It lies at the confluence of the St. Joseph and Elkhart rivers, just west of South Bend. Elkhart was laid out in 1832 at the junction of Indian trails and derives its name from an island at the confluence of the rivers which Indians said was shaped like an elk's heart. The location there of repair shops for the Michigan Southern Railroad stimulated development of the town, which also became a division point for the New York Central Railroad. The manufacture of brass cornets was begun there in 1875 by Charles G. Conn; his company (now one of the world's largest makers of wind instruments), followed by others, has made Elkhart the band instrument centre of the country. The city's pharmaceutical industry (Miles Laboratories, Inc.) was established by Dr. Franklin Miles in 1884. Other manufactures now include mobile homes, furniture, electrical components, and machinery. Elkhart is also an agricultural marketing centre (livestock, dairy products, soybeans, and grains). Inc. 1877. Pop. (1990) city, 43,627; Elkhart-Goshen MSA, 156,198.