By Town Vines Staff
Long before Tell City became the county seat, the small riverside town of Troy served as Perry County’s first administrative center. Troy is recognized as the second oldest town in Indiana, established in 1804 by settlers from Virginia, Kentucky, and Maryland at the confluence of Anderson Creek and the Ohio River.
The town was laid out in 1815 and quickly became an important shipping point along the Ohio River in the early nineteenth century. A post office has been in operation at Troy since 1818. Troy’s strategic location made it a vital river port, where seagoing vessels found good landing places and supplies.
Troy also holds a special place in American history: future president Abraham Lincoln worked the ferry across the Ohio River at Troy with his father during his youth. The county seat later moved from Troy to Rome, then to Cannelton, and finally to Tell City in 1994. Today, Troy remains a peaceful small town of 347 residents, preserving its heritage along the Ohio River shoreline.