The railroad came first
Corunna's story begins in 1858, the year its post office was established and the same year the new east‑west railroad line through DeKalb County was completed, with its two segments joined at nearby Butler. That line ran straight through Corunna, alongside Butler and Waterloo, and gave the young town its reason to grow. The town takes its name from Corunna, Michigan, which was itself named for A Coruña, the historic port city in Spain.
The railroad later became part of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railway, and eventually the famous New York Central system. Trains still roll through Corunna today, right past the mural that celebrates them.
Schools, mills, a bank, and a hotel
By 1914, Corunna supported three schools, a bank, two mills, and a hotel. The 1917 fire insurance map shown here captures that busy little town: homes and businesses lined up along the tracks that connected Corunna to Chicago in one direction and the East Coast in the other.
Families came for the railroad work, the mills, and the farmland of Richland Township, and many of their descendants call Corunna home today.
Small on the census, big on community
Corunna has never been a big town, and that has always been part of its charm. Generations come and go, and the community stays close.
Places that tell the story
Volunteer Fire Department
Corunna's volunteer firefighters dedicated their current station at 1111 U.S. Route 6 on October 28, 2006. The fire station doubles as the town's gathering place, hosting everything from safety training to the Halloween party and Santa's visit.
Richland Township, DeKalb County
Corunna covers 0.18 square miles in northwest DeKalb County, minutes from Kendallville, Waterloo, and Auburn along the historic east‑west rail corridor. The town council meets the second Wednesday of every month, streams its meetings online, and keeps this little railroad town running.
Meet the Town CouncilHave old photos of Corunna?
We would love to grow this page. If your family has photographs of Corunna's early days, the depot, the mills, or the schools, please reach out to the Clerk‑Treasurer.
Share a Photo or StorySources & image credits
Town history compiled from public records, the U.S. Census, and DeKalb County historical accounts. Mural photograph: Town of Corunna. Town Hall photograph: public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. Wiltrout Polygonal Barn photograph: Menchimoto, licensed CC BY‑SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. 1917 map: Sanborn Map Company, public domain, Library of Congress collection.