The Beech Grove schoolhouse in Delaware County’s Harrison Township is a standout structure for anyone speeding up I-69, especially when the leaves are gone and the building’s fully visible. Located just east of the interstate a mile north of State Road 28, the landmark is hard to miss! Recently, a friend shared an old photo of the school in its prime, and it’s a stark contrast to the abandoned building still standing today. What a difference time has made!
Beech Grove’s story began in 1876 when William Carpenter donated a piece of his land to the trustees of Harrison Township for the construction of a schoolhouse1. Five years later, J.C. Muncey served as the institution’s first teacher2. In 1894, a frame United Brethren church was built to the southwest of the school, across from a jog in West County Road 700 North3.
The Beech Grove school began as a subscription schoolhouse, meaning patrons paid for their children to attend classes there. That may explain why it’s larger and more ornate than most of Delaware County’s other schoolhouses. Ahead of its time, the building featured a thoughtful design- an entrance hall welcoming students, a spacious cloakroom, two smaller cloakrooms for extra storage, and large windows flooding the classroom with natural light from two sides4. At one point, it also had an open, wooden belfry5.
Like most area schoolhouses, Beech Grove closed at the end of the 1923-24 term so its students could attend classes at the new Harrison Township consolidated school6. Three years later, the schoolhouse was sold to Beech Grove Methodist Church across the road. While the congregation initially thrived in its new space7, right-of-way for I-69 carved through the property and reduced the church’s lot to just three-fifths of an acre.8. Eventually, the land and building were deeded to Epworth Methodist Church in Madison County after the congregations merged9.
Former congregants Howard and Genevieve Morgan purchased the structure after its closure, but sold it to developer Paul Keller in 1975. Keller collaborated with a Ball State residential interiors class to draw blueprints for the building’s reuse10, but nothing came of the effort. The former schoolhouse and church fell into disrepair.
Today, the old Beech Grove schoolhouse is safeguarded by an out-of-state owner who has worked to protect it from vandalism. Although it’s easily spotted from I-69, capturing a close-up view of the Beech Grove school is nearly impossible without crossing into private property. I’m glad that Jeff Koenker shared his remarkable photo of the school in its prime! It’s a rare window into its past that preserves the legacy of a landmark.
Sources Cited
1 Delaware County, Indiana. (1876 August 19). Deed Book 41. p. 410.
2 Helm, T. B. (1881). Mount Pleasant Township. In History of Delaware County, Indiana: With Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers. book, Kingman Brothers.
3 Delaware County Map, 1900 (2018, October 1). Map Collection, Indiana Division, Indiana State Library.
4 Black, E. (1917, June 8). Sketch and Views of Delaware County Schools. The Muncie Press. p. 6.
5 Farrell, J. (1955, June 25). Delaware County, in 1905, Supported 98 Public Schools. The Muncie Evening Press. p. 1-C.
6 Delaware County Public Schools. (1923). School directory, Delaware County public schools, Delaware County, Indiana 1923-1924. Muncie, IN.
7 McBride, M. (2007, May 30). I-69 doomed rural church. The Muncie Star Press. p. 6B.
8 (See footnote 7).
9 Winters, R. (1975, April 27). Old Church and School Waits for a Homeowner. The Muncie Star. p. 1
10 (See footnote 9).
