The Marsh supermarket in Van Wert, Ohio, opened in 1981 and closed in 2017. The store was purchased out of bankruptcy and became a Chief Supermarket.
Continue reading “Abandoned Marsh: Van Wert, Ohio”
My mom and I had eyes on the old Long Line tower near LaGrange when we noticed an old schoolhouse in unusually-tidy repair. I tend to be single-minded on research trips, but Mom insisted I take a photo. I did, and here’s all I’ve been able to uncover about Bloomfield Township’s Oak Grove Schoolhouse in LaGrange County.
Continue reading “LaGrange County’s Oak Grove schoolhouse sits in the shadow of a Long Line tower”
Center Township’s $28,000 James Whitcomb Riley School opened on Center Pike in 1914. The original structure displaced the District 2 schoolhouse, known as Conn, at the southwest corner of West McGalliard Road and North Walnut Street1. Muncie annexed the area surrounding the it after the 1928-29 school year, which left Eugene Field as Center Township’s only school.
Continue reading “Center Township’s old Riley school in Delaware County”
I was elected to the Delaware County Historical Society board back in October. We call ourselves a working board, and I’ve taken that responsibility seriously by editing our newsletter, The Society Quarterly. I’m also participating in a new discussion series called Lost and Found. My first presentation was last Thursday.
Continue reading “Lost and Found: Center Township”
The Marsh supermarket on 25th Street in Columbus, Indiana, opened in 1983. It closed in 2017. The store was purchased out of bankruptcy to become a Needler’s Fresh Market, but it didn’t last long. Today, It’s home to Big Lots.
Continue reading “Abandoned Marsh: Clover Center in Columbus”
Indiana’s earliest county governments frequently relocated, but officials in Martin County set the record. Between 1820 and 2004, the community changed county seats an astounding eleven times! Aside from the modern courthouse in Shoals, the 1877 Martin County Courthouse across the river is nearly all that remains of those early maneuverings. It’s a real landmark!
Continue reading “The Martin County, Indiana Courthouse (1877-2002)”
Delaware County’s Center Township maintained a school system outside of Muncie for more than a hundred years. Unfortunately, the city’s annexation of the Riley and Forest Park schools after the 1928-29 term left Eugene Field as the township’s only school. With overcrowded classrooms, officials sent many students to schools outside district limits1.
Continue reading “Center Township’s Claypool school in Delaware County”
If a courthouse is a building that houses courts, then Delaware County, Indiana, burned through three of them in thirty years. Changes like that were typical of the pioneer days, but the oldest, the Delaware County Building, was built in 1969! The next one, the Delaware County Justice Center, opened in 1992. The newest, the Delaware County Justice and Rehabilitation Center, came online in 2021. This is crazy!
Continue reading “The Delaware County, Indiana Courthouse (2021-)”
The Marsh supermarket on West Thrd Street in Bloomington opened in 1977. It closed in 2016. Today, Fresh Thyme Market calls the building home.
Continue reading “Abandoned Marsh: West Third Street in Bloomington”
A schoolhouse has sat at the corner of County Road 700-North and Fortville Pike in Hancock County for more than a hundred and fifty years1. In 1852, Alfred Denney was among several people who organized German Baptist services in the first log structure. A frame replacement was destroyed by fire in 1884, and the extant brick schoolhouse was erected the following year2.
Continue reading “Vernon Township’s Denney schoolhouse in Hancock County”