Dennison-Davidson Home in the Early 20th Century

      The Hackleman children, who lived at 5438 Lowell Avenue, had plenty of playmates in the neighborhood. They must have been particularly excited when the Davidson family moved into 5428 Lowell Avenue because the children in that house were of similar ages. Photos from the Hackleman family collection reveal that the children frequently played next door.  

     We are still learning about the earliest history of the two-story Dutch Colonial Revival home, but we do know that Arthur E. Dennison purchased the lot for his future home at 5428 Lowell Avenue in September of 1903. By 1904, Dennison had moved into the house. City directories indicate that he was a landscape architect and the president of the Kant-Swag Gate Company. An ad in the Indianapolis Star in 1906 boasted that Mr. Dennison's farm gates were "bull strong" and would "last a lifetime and never sag." We do not know much about Mr. Dennison or his family yet, but he moved out in 1908 paving the way for Robert and Mary Galvin Davidson to buy the property in either 1908 or 1909. They remained for the next two decades. 

      Mr. Davidson was an attorney with an office in downtown Indianapolis. Mrs. Davidson stayed home and raised their children, Margaret, Katherine, Mary, and little Robert, who died at age two . The three older girls played with the three Hackleman girls. Photos revealed that they staged elaborate costume parties or perhaps plays. To learn more about the Davidson family, click on the link below the post. 

Neighborhood children enjoyed swinging in the front yard at 5438 Lowell Avenue c1911. Behind the girls, you can see the Dennison-Davidson home at 5428 Lowell Avenue. (photo courtesy of Anne Gribble Spurgeon) 

Neighborhood children observed a calf at 5438 Lowell Avenue. Behind the girls, you can see the Dennison-Davidson home at 5428 Lowell Avenue. The photo is remarkable because if you look closely you can see the side of the large house at 5408 Lowell Avenue. That home has been gone for decades. (photo c1910 courtesy of Anne Gribble Spurgeon) 

Neighborhood children posed with a pet calf and dog c1910 in the backyard at 5438 Lowell Avenue. Behind the girls, you can see the Dennison-Davidson home at 5428 Lowell Avenue. (photo courtesy of Anne Gribble Spurgeon) 

Mary Galvin Davidson posed with her three daughters, Margaret, Katherine, and Mary c1910. The Davidsons lived at 5428 Lowell Avenue for many years. (photo courtesy of the descendants of the Davidson family via Ancestry.com) 

Members of the Davidson and Hackleman families and perhaps other neighborhood children gathered on the lawn for a costume party at 5428 Lowell Avenue c1914. (photo courtesy of Anne Gribble Spurgeon)

Children in costumes posed on the lawn of 5428 Lowell Avenue c1914. (photo courtesy of Anne Gribble Spurgeon)

A girl in a costume posed on the porch of the Dennison-Davidson home at 5428 Lowell Avenue c1914. (photo courtesy of Anne Gribble Spurgeon) 

Children acted out a scene from "Princess Winsome" at the Dennison-Davidson home at 5428 Lowell Avenue on July 26, 1911. The Indianapolis News on page seven of that date identified the girl on the porch as Eunice Bickel.  (photo courtesy of Anne Gribble Spurgeon) 

     I would like to thank Anne Gribble Spurgeon for the generous use of her family archival collection. I would also like to thank Paula Schmidt and Steve Barnett at the Irvington Historical Society. 

Irvington Historical Society

Sources: Dennison era--Ad, Indianapolis Star, June 15, 1906, 2; Polk's Indianapolis City Directories, 1904-1908. 5408 Lowell Avenue--Larry Muncie, Irvington Album, Indianapolis, 1994, 50. Mr. Muncie published a 1912 photo of the house in his book. For information on the Davidson family, click on the link below.