Brazil

Small Town Breakdown

From beautiful murals and parks to its downtown scene complete with antiques, shops and eateries, Brazil is a small town in west central Indiana worth visiting. 

Fast Facts

📍LOCATION: West Central Indiana

• Brazil is located in the northern third of Clay County.

• U.S. Route 40 was built on top of the National Road and runs east-west, connecting Brazil to Terre Haute and Indianapolis. The National Road was created in 1806 by Congress and served as the first federally funded highway construction project. Route 40 is known as the Main Street of America.

• Indiana State Road 59 runs north-south and intersects with U.S. Route 40 in town.

• 1 hour west of Indianapolis

• 1 hour northwest of Bloomington

• 25 minutes east of Terre Haute

👥 POPULATION & RANKING

• 8,239 residents (as of 2024)

• Ranks as Indiana’s 96th-largest city

• Largest of seven incorporated towns/cities in Clay County ahead of Clay City (884), Knightsville (694), Harmony (673), Staunton (468), Carbon (258) and Center Point (211)

📏 LAND AREA

• 3.05 square miles

📅 FOUNDED

• Clay County was founded in 1825 and formed from parts of Owen, Putnam, Sullivan, and Vigo counties.

• It was named after U.S. statesman Henry Clay.

• In 1838, Massachusetts native William Stewart settled in Clay County and built the first house in the town of Brazil. He suggested the name “Brazil” for the town after reading about the Republic of Brazil, South America in the newspaper.

• The county’s early settlers found the land rich in coal and clay deposits, which helped shape the economy and the region’s identity.

• The town famously earned the nickname “The Clay Metropolis” and at one point had 13 coal mines and 11 clay factories.

• Brazil became incorporated in 1866.

• The first county seat was Bowling Green, but it was eventually moved to the more centrally located Brazil in 1877.

🏥 MAIN INDUSTRIES: Manufacturing, Healthcare

• Since 1975, Brazil has been home to the largest manufacturing plant for Great Dane Trailers, which was founded in 1900. Over the last 50 years, the Brazil plant has built more than 485,000 pieces of equipment, including containers, dry vans, truck bodies and reefers. It’s one of the largest employers in the Wabash Valley with nearly 900 employees. It’s hard to miss when passing by — there’s a giant Great Dane statue named Champ on the grounds.

• Ascension St. Vincent Clay is the major healthcare employer in Brazil.

Route 40 Fest

The Route 40 Fest is Indiana’s largest one-day festival featuring live entertainment, food trucks, craft vendors, kids activities, Signal 10 Wrestling matches and more.

Explore the Parks

Start with a visit to Forest Park, the centerpiece of local recreation. It has 49 acres of woodland, a ¼ mile paved walking/go-kart track, playground, four baseball fields, basketball courts, 13 shelters, a pool, and splash pad that opened in May 2024. It also hosts community events throughout the year. Fun fact: The Chafariz dos Contos Fountain (Fountain of the Tales) in the park was given to the City of Brazil as a symbol of friendship from Brazil, South America, in the 1950s.

Craig Park is another popular park that spans 97 acres and has two lakes for fishing, three miles of trails, softball and soccer fields, and an 18-hole disc golf course. If you want to see some Indiana wildlife, Craig Park is the spot.

Bring Your Clubs

For those looking to play a little golf, Forest Park Golf Course in town is a fun play. It was originally designed as a nine-hole course by William Diddel in 1935 and then redesigned by legendary course designer Pete Dye in 1963, which made it an 18-hole round.

Another family-friendly course to play just three miles east of Brazil is the 18-hole Oak Ridge Golf Course. Kids 18 and under play for free with a paying adult.

Bites in Brazil

Eddie’s Sandwich Shoppe is open Monday through Saturday from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. and serves breakfast all day to go with lunch and dinner. It’s got a retro feel with burgers, fries and hot dogs as favorites for guests, plus affordable prices. They’ve got over 300 Google reviews and 4.5 stars.

Piloni’s Italian Steakhouse has a variety of pastas, pizza, sandwiches and steaks. Guests rave about the food, service and atmosphere, giving Piloni’s 4.6 stars on Google.

Meat. Eat. Repeat. Pappy’s BBQ brings the smoke with brisket, pulled pork, and all the classic sides, including cornbread that is a favorite among visitors. They’ve got awesome weekly specials, too, including Kids Eat Free on Tuesdays, all-you-can-eat wings on Wednesdays, Steak Night on Thursdays, Rib Night on Fridays, and $7 appetizers and $10 buckets of beer on Saturdays. Pro tip: Enjoy your BBQ and drinks on the Pappy’s patio when the weather is nice.

For classic small-town vibes, head to The Freeze “Where good things never change.” Tenderloins, hot dogs, BBQ, chicken chunks and something called the Morris Melt on the main menu, followed by sweet options like shakes, malts, floats, sundaes and a Fundae – funnel cake fries with a sundae on top.

Brazil Bullets

• Don’t miss downtown Brazil, where there’s a classic Hoosier courthouse square surrounded by antique shops, cafes, and murals that showcase the community’s creative side.

• For a history lesson, stop by the Clay County Historical Society Museum to see exhibits about Brazil’s brickyard and local coal mining industries. It also preserves stories from the Civil War era, when Clay County contributed many soldiers to the Union cause.

• Northview High School is home of the Knights. The school has one IHSAA state title in school history thanks to the baseball program in 2016, when the Knights topped Western 2-1 in the 3A championship game.

• The Knights’ marching band is also among some of the best in Indiana, winning Class B titles in 1991, 1993, 1994, 1998, 1999, 2004, 2008, 2009 and 2016.

The next time you’re traveling U.S. Route 40 between Indianapolis and Terre Haute, pay Brazil a visit for some Pappy’s BBQ, a round of golf and downtown exploration.

Check out Nate’s breakdown of Brazil ⬇️