Google Streetview Reveals Lost Structures of Greater Irvington Area, Part I

      Since 2007 someone has been driving around in a little Google car with a camera on top photographing streets and alleys around Indianapolis and beyond. Thankfully, Google archives these images and keeps them on their website. During a particularly rainy period, I got on Streetview and "drove" around from within the confines of my little home office. What I found saddened me as dozens of structures have vanished in the nineteen years that Google first arrived. When you see some of the photographs, you will shake your head and wonder how they even survived another day. Others were lost to development or parking lots. A few tragically burned upending the lives of the families inside. While the core of Irvington is protected by the Indianapolis Preservation Commission, that still does not guarantee that a house or commercial building will survive into the next decade; however, most of the structures below had no protections and no chance to survive. Let's take a journey and see a sample of what is missing.

135 South Arlington Avenue

     The cute cottage located at 135 South Arlington had been on the same lot since the 1890s. A white couple named James and Jennie Milton resided here for decades. After her death in 1916, numerous long-time Black families resided in the home. Thomas and Carrie Handley lived here during the late 1910s and early 1920s. Mr. Handley was a jack of all trades and remodeled the house. They hailed from Kentucky. The Dobsons, Blythes, and Pitts lived here during the 1930s, 40s, and 50s. Harland and Rita Nuckols purchased the property in 1959 and their family remained for decades. Mr. Nuckols worked for International Harvester for many years. Their children attended Howe High School. The Google car captured the image below in 2009. In my mind, I see flowers growing out of that pretty flower box and curtains in those upper dormer windows. Today the site is an empty lot. 

135 South Arlington, Google Streetview, 2009

The Nuckols family was a fixture at 135 South Arlington Avenue for many years. In this montage you can even see Mrs. Nuckols standing on her stoop speaking to some kind of salesman. (images courtesy of Kisa Cunningham via Ancestry.com) 

569 South Arlington Avenue

     Some houses have been flattened for development. That is what happened to the nearly century-old bungalow located at 569 South Arlington Avenue. It had the misfortune of being in the way of a proposed convenience store and gas station. In the early years many tenants rented the property. In 1932 it cost $18 a month to live in the two-bedroom residence. It was never a grand place, but dozens of people built their lives here. 

569 South Arlington Avenue, Google Streetview, 2016

The cute little dog was the subject of this photograph in 1941, but behind the pooch you can see 569 South Arlington Avenue. (courtesy of Helen Hunt) 

5902 Beechwood Avenue

     William Wuest opened his grocery store at 5902 Beechwood Avenue in 1922. Over the years the structure served as a beauty shop and as apartments. By 2010 it was in rough shape. I kept thinking that the building could be saved. Perhaps an antique dealer or chocolatier or a rare book dealer would buy it and turn the fortunes of fate around, but all of that was lost when a teenage-arsonist destroyed the property in the spring of 2010. 

     

5902 Beechwood, Google Streetview, 2009

The grocery store formerly located on the northeast corner of Good and Beechwood Avenues can be seen in this photograph snapped in 1953. Pictured (left to right) Linda Bevis, Debbie St. John, Claudia St. John, Donna Bevis, and Jean Ferling. (photo courtesy of Bill Ferling) 

40-42 South Butler Avenue

     Although this beautiful double sat in the preservation district, it did not survive a disastrous fire. Built in the early 1920s, dozens of families resided in the duplex. (I thought it was older!) From 1948 until 1968 John and Mary Flanagan owned and lived in the property. They rented out the other half to family members. This stylish double had both hipped and gabled rooflines. 

40 South Butler Avenue, Google Streetview, 2009

John Flanagan posed with his daughter, Theresa on the day of her First Communion at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in 1960. Behind them you can see the double formerly located at 40-42 South Butler Avenue. (photo courtesy of the Flanagan family and Paula Schmidt)

501-03 North Emerson Avenue

     The substantial brick commercial building had been on the northeast corner of Emerson Avenue and Michigan Street since at least 1910. Frank Wright and others operated a grocery store at 501 North Emerson for decades. In the 1920s, it was known as Forsyth Pharmacy. Most long-time residents will remember the corner as McShane's Parkway Tavern. Apparently, the St. Patrick Day celebrations here were legendary. After the parties stopped, owners struggled to find a use for the building. It was torn down sometime after 2007. The only saving grace for the loss of this structure is that at least in 2026 it is now the site of beautiful flower and vegetable gardens. 

501-03 North Emerson Avenue, Google Streetview, 2007

McShane's Tavern at 501 North Emerson Avenue in 1962 (photo courtesy of Frank Widner)

5507 Greenfield Avenue

     For years I used to drive by the sweet house with the fieldstone front porch on Greenfield Avenue.  You can imagine how surprised I was to learn that it had been torn down! Built in the late 1890s, the dwelling was home to William M. and Harriett C. Baker, two of the earliest Black residents of Irvington. Mr. Baker worked as a teamster while Mrs. Baker served as a laundress. Her old-fashioned Christmas fruitcake recipe made the Indianapolis Times in 1926. The Bakers lived there until the 1940s. Another long-time Black family, James and Opal Drake, resided here for many years. Mr. Drake served as the Chef for the Holloway House Cafeteria for decades. The couple were very involved at St. Bridget's Catholic...also gone! Had their home been three blocks north it would have been protected from demolition. 

5507 Greenfield Avenue, Google Streetview, 2019

James and Opal Drake celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary at the house on December 21, 1974 (Indianapolis Star, December 22, 1974, p. 98) 

5139 East Michigan Street

     The beautiful American foursquare located in the Pleasanton subdivision of Irvington had been on the site since 1924. The immaculate home sadly burned and was demolished in 2017. An ad in 1925 described the property as a "four-bedroom house, close to Pleasant Run Blvd. and Ellenberger Park. One of the best locations east." The price at $10,000 made it one of the more expensive residences in the neighborhood. The Gisler family lived in the house through much of the mid-twentieth century. Various Democratic mayors of Indianapolis appointed Albert H. Gisler to various boards. Today the site is an empty lot.

5139 East Michigan Street, Google Streetview, 2009

In 1947 Mayor Finney appointed Albert Gisler to the Board of Safety for the police and fire departments. His photo appeared in the Indianapolis News on December 3, 1947.

Up Next:  Google Streetview Reveals Lost Structures of Greater Irvington, Part II

Sources:  135 S. Arlington--Polk's Indianapolis City Directories, 1897-1959; Federal Census Records, 1910, 1920, 1930, 1940, 1950; Obit for Thomas Handley--Indianapolis Recorder, June 6, 1936, p. 14; Obit for Harland Nuckols--Indianapolis News, September 20, 1961, p. 7; 569 S. Arlington--Ad for rent--Indianapolis News, February 29, 1932, p. 23; 40-42 S. Butler--Interviews with Flanagan family by Paula Schmidt; 501-03 North Emerson--Ads from News, Star, and Times 1910-1962; 5507 Greenfield Avenue--Federal Census Records 1900-1940; 5139 E. Michigan--Ad--Indianapolis News,  June 12, 1925, p. 40.