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Bedford Area Chamber of Commerce
1116 16th Street
Bedford, IN 47421
Telephone (812) 275-4493
Email: bedford@bedfordchamber.com
Our Mission: To promote trade, industry, tourism, and quality
of life in Bedford - Lawrence County, and create an environment to advance
business and civic interests.
Founded
in 1825 as the relocated and second county seat of Lawrence County, Indiana,
Bedford was incorporated as a city in 1889 with a population of 2,541. Today,
population looms at around 14,000 with 46,097 residents in the county.
The
stone industry was the city's largest employer of men and by the turn of the
19th century, 25 cut stone mills operated. By the beginning of the first World
War there were 4,000 men employed in the stone industry, thus named the Stone
City and was nearly a one-industry town. Some of the most famous buildings
constructed with Indiana limestone are the Empire State Building in New York,
Tribune Tower in Chicago, and the Pentagon and National Cathedral in Washington
DC. Thirty-five of the state capitol buildings are made of Indiana limestone as
are a varied number of other famous buildings throughout the country.
Today
Bedford is home to over 55 manufacturers with GM Powertrain and Visteon
Systems, LLC employing over 2,300, and is known as the Limestone Capital of the
World.
The
civic-minded citizens have succeeded in diversifying Bedford's industrial base;
growth has been healthy and continuous and the city remains one of Southern
Indiana's best communities.
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