Aerial Photograph of Irvington--Winter of 1908

A small crowd gathered on Butler College's (now University) Irwin Field in the winter of 1908. Were they watching a football scrimmage?  A game? A practice? One lone automobile--a rarity in those days--parked near the tall fence. The unknown photographer snapped this image for the 1909 Butler Drift. 

The photographer faced east so the most visible street in the picture is that of Ohmer Avenue as it snakes its way towards Downey Avenue. The dwelling closest to the photographer with intersecting gables and a long front porch still stands at 307 Ohmer Avenue. The barn or outbuilding associated with the property is long gone. Note that there are no other homes along the north side of Ohmer Avenue. On the south side of Ohmer Avenue, the most visible home is that of 5338 Ohmer Avenue. (Near the fence by the athletic fields)  If you look closely, you can see the rear of the Benton House at 312 Downey Avenue along with other nearby homes.  The smaller residences at the far right of the photo face Burgess Avenue.  The football field and green space would later be developed in the 1940s into housing.

Ohmer, Downey, and Burgess Avenues near the the Butler University football field in 1908