04/16/2026
Indiana small town breakdown: St John, Indiana, located just 45 minutes from downtown Chicago, is consistently ranked as one of the wealthiest and safest cities in Indiana, year after year. Known for being the home of the popular tourist attraction, The Shrine, thousands of people every year head to St John to walk in the path of Jesus, being guided by talking statues that tell His story. St John has had tremendous growth over the past two decades and is one of the fastest growing towns in Indiana, with a population now exploding to nearly 25,000, up from only 8,300 in 2000.