Carthage, Indiana

Town in Rush County · population 918 (2020 Census)

Median home: $89,800
Household income: $51,731
Jan low / Jul high: 19° / 84°
Snow a year: 29 in
Tornadoes ≤10 mi since 1950: 27
Median age: 39.2

Carthage is a town of 918 people in Rush County, Indiana. The median home is worth $89,800, below the typical Indiana town ($150,400). It ranks easier by car than 91% of Indiana towns, better for families than 74% of Indiana towns.

How Carthage ranks

Percentile among Indiana towns with at least 500 people on The Town Files lifestyle rankings. 50 is typical for the state; 90 means better than 90% of Indiana towns.

The Town Files lifestyle rankings, built from federal demographic, school, crime and housing data (2025).

Homes and cost of living

The median home in Carthage is worth $89,800, below the typical Indiana town ($150,400). Homes cost about 1.7 times the median household income of $51,731, which is more affordable than 90% of Indiana towns. Median rent is $848 a month. 67.3% of households own their home.

Census ACS 5-year estimates, 2020–2024. "Typical town" = median of Indiana towns with 500+ people.

Housing	Carthage	Typical Indiana town
Median home value	$89,800	$150,400
Median rent	$848	$888
Median household income	$51,731	$61,953
Home value ÷ income	1.7×	2.5×
Homeownership	67.3%	73.4%
Median year built	1944	1966
Seasonal / vacation homes	0.0%	—

Who lives in Carthage

People	Carthage	Typical Indiana town
Median age	39.2	38.9
Age 65 and over	16.3%	17.1%
Under 18	22.7%	—
Bachelor's degree or higher	5.4%	17.4%
Below the poverty line	20.1%	11.6%
Veterans	4.4%	—
Born outside the U.S.	0.0%	—
Work from home	8.6%	6.2%
Average commute	37.1 min	24.7 min
Homes with broadband	82.7%	89.2%

Weather in Carthage

July highs average 84.3°F and January lows 18.5°F. About 47.8 inches of rain and melted snow fall a year, with 28.6 inches of snow (typical Indiana town: 21.1 in). Expect about 16 days a year at 90°F or hotter and 119 nights at or below freezing.

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals: average daily high and low by month; precipitation and snowfall in inches. Temperatures from the Greenfield station (10.6 mi away); snow from Knightstown 2Ene (6.6 mi).

Tornadoes, storms and disasters

27 tornadoes have passed within 10 miles of Carthage since 1950, compared with 23 for the typical Indiana town. 18 rated (E)F2 or stronger. The strongest, an F4, struck on July 9, 1980 about 9.4 miles from the town center and killed 2. Tornadoes within 10 miles have caused 4 deaths and 73 injuries since 1950. The most recent was on June 8, 2022.

NOAA Storm Events Database, tornado tracks (start to end point) passing within 10 miles of the town center, 1950–2026.

Hail of 1 inch or larger has been reported within 10 miles 36 times; the largest was 3.00 inches on April 3, 1974.

Severe weather in Rush County since 1996

NOAA Storm Events Database, Rush County, 1996–2026 (all event types recorded since 1996). 2 deaths recorded.

Rush County has been included in 17 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1953, most often for flood, tornado, hurricane.

Declared	Incident	Declaration
August 25, 2026	Flood	DR-4933: Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding
August 15, 2026	Flood	EM-3651: Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding
January 24, 2026	Winter Storm	EM-3641: Severe Winter Storm
April 3, 2020	Biological	DR-4515: Covid-19 Pandemic
March 13, 2020	Biological	EM-3456: Covid-19

Jobs and pay in Rush County

Rush County had 4,901 jobs in 2024, paying an average of $49,977 a year. Unemployment was 2.7% in 2023; in Carthage itself the ACS puts it at 7.6%.

BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024, private-sector jobs and average annual pay.

Annual average unemployment rate (BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics via USDA ERS).

Towns near Carthage

Knightstown, IN
4.6 mi · 2,140 people · home $130,000
Morristown, IN
9.0 mi · 1,205 people · home $162,000
Rushville, IN
10.6 mi · 6,208 people · home $127,300
Spiceland, IN
10.6 mi · 958 people · home $118,300
Shirley, IN
10.6 mi · 819 people · home $113,100
Greenfield, IN
11.4 mi · 23,488 people · home $216,400
New Castle, IN
16.5 mi · 17,396 people · home $98,000
Shelbyville, IN
17.1 mi · 20,067 people · home $174,700

Carthage questions

Is Carthage, Indiana a good place to retire?

On The Town Files lifestyle rankings, Carthage scores better for retirees than 48% of Indiana towns and quieter than 59%. 16.3% of residents are 65 or older (median age 39.2).

How much does a house cost in Carthage?

The median owner-occupied home in Carthage is valued at $89,800 (Census ACS 2020–2024), against a median household income of $51,731, so homes cost about 1.7 times income. Median rent is $848 a month.

What is the weather like in Carthage?

July highs average 84.3°F and January lows 18.5°F (NOAA 1991–2020 normals). It gets about 47.8 inches of precipitation a year and 28.6 inches of snow.

Does Carthage get tornadoes?

27 tornadoes have passed within 10 miles of Carthage since 1950 (NOAA Storm Events); the strongest was a F4 on July 9, 1980. The typical Indiana town has had 23.

How this page is made. Every number comes from public data, matched to Carthage's Census boundary (GEOID 1810612). Comparisons use the median of Indiana towns with at least 500 people. Weather comes from the nearest NOAA normals station; storm counts use NOAA tornado tracks within 10 miles of the town center.

U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2020–2024)
U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Census and 2025 Gazetteer (2020 / 2025)
NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals (1991–2020)
NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (1950–2026)
FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations (this product uses the FEMA OpenFEMA API but is not endorsed by FEMA) (1953–2026)
NCES Common Core of Data (2023–24)
BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages; USDA ERS county unemployment (BLS LAUS) (2000–2024)
The Town Files lifestyle rankings, built from federal demographic, school, crime and housing data (2025)

Data snapshot 2026-11-13.