The Palmers Move to Irvington

Dr. Walter Palmer (1884-1974) grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio under modest circumstances, but managed to put himself through veterinarian school. In 1916, he married Mary Fee (1889-1976) of Clarksburg, Indiana. They had two sons although their first son, John, died in 1920 at the age of three. Their second son, Thomas Richard, was born in 1921.

Dr. Palmer worked for the U.S. Department of Agriculture in the Federal Building in downtown Indianapolis although he spent most of his time at the Kingan & Company Meat Packing Plant. The couple made the decision to move to Irvington and they first rented houses at 210 South Ritter Avenue (1916-1918),  527 North Emerson Avenue (1918-1919), and then at 5712 East Michigan Street (1919-1921) before building a bungalow at 333 North Audubon Road in 1921.

In the photos below, you can see Mary Fee Palmer standing in front of her Emerson Avenue home after a major snowstorm in 1918. The homes most visible in the image were those of her neighbors at 549 and 601 North Emerson Avenue. The McKibben and Lazenby families dwelled in those homes.

Stay tuned for more stunning photographs and stories of Irvington from this interesting family.

Mary Fee Palmer stood along the sidewalk in front of her home at 527 North Emerson Avenue after a snowstorm in 1918.

On wintery day in 1918, Mary Fee Palmer posed for her husband, Dr. Walter Palmer, on the sidewalk leading up to their home at 527 North Emerson Avenue. The home most visible in the image belonged to the McKibben family at 549 North Emerson Avenue. This home was later altered and the front door was moved to face North Street. 

527, 549, and 601 North Emerson Avenue in 2016

The historic images and stories are courtesy of Janet Chapman and Dick Palmer.