Emerson Avenue Home For Sale--1946

       The Little Flower neighborhood sits to the north and west of Irvington. Many of the homes in the area date to the 1920s including the Cape Cod at 1314 North Emerson Avenue. Built in 1925, Adam and Anna Schaaf were the first couple to reside in the house. Mr. Schaaf, a native of Germany, worked as a tailor and later for J.D. Eastman Sunshine Cleaners. The couple also took in lodgers to cover the bills. They sold the property in 1937 to Oliver and Etta Nesbit. He worked as an electrician for the city fire department. Mrs. Nesbit served as a saleswoman for the L.S. Ayres Department Store.The 1940 Federal Census indicates that the Nesbits also took in lodgers. Abe and Ruth Martin leased two second-story rooms from the Nesbits. Then in 1942, Mr. Nesbit died at the age 55. Mrs. Nesbitt continued to live on in the house and she still leased rooms, but by 1946 she decided to sell. 

     In the late autumn of 1946, Etta Nesbit, switched real estate agents and placed her home at 1314 North Emerson Avenue back on the market. According to newspaper ads, the widow had tried to sell the house earlier in the summer. The sign in front of the picket fence in the photo advertised Jack C. Carr, realtor. He ran ads about the house in November of 1946 and that matches the leafless trees in the photograph. His various ads touted the beautiful landscaping, an imported Czechoslovakian chandelier in the dining room, a "sparkling" glass tile fireplace complete with a mirror above it in the living room, a recreation room, and a light and "airy" basement. 

     A photographer with the last name of Lacey snapped the photo for Carr Realty. The image was recently unearthed on EBAY. The century-old home still stands today. 

1314 North Emerson Avenue in 1946

Sources:  1940 Federal Census; Polk's Indianapolis City Directories, 1925-1947; Obituary for Adam Schaaf--Indianapolis News, June 25, 1942, p. 22; Obituary for Anna Schaaf--Indianapolis Star, May 21, 1956, p. 14; Obituary for Oliver Nesbitt--Indianapolis Star, June 1, 1942; Obituary for Etta Nesbitt--Indianapolis News, October 20, 1961, p. 24.

A Beautiful Wedding in a Time of War

Preparing to depart for the Great Lakes Naval Base in 1918, Howard Caldwell came home to see his fiancee, Elsie Felt, at her home at 64 North Irvington Avenue. The couple had first met at Butler University (then called Butler College). Howard graduated from the school in 1915 and Elsie in 1917. For a brief stint, Howard worked in Kokomo, Indiana for the Haynes Auto Company. When the United States entered World War I, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy. He wanted to be an officer but his eyesight was poor so he memorized the eye chart and managed to get into officer's training school at the Great Lakes Training Station.

Happy Couple: Howard Caldwell and a beaming Elsie Felt posed on her porch at 64 North Irvington Avenue. The couple married on March 23 of that year. 

Elsie Felt was the daughter of Judge Edward and Martha Felt. Her father served as a justice on the Indiana Court of Appeals. The family had previously lived in Greenfield, but moved to Irvington 1910 so that Judge Felt could be nearer to his office in downtown Indianapolis and so that the Felt children could attend Butler University. The Felts lived in a large home on Irvington Avenue and the residence would serve as perfect place for a marriage.

The Felt family lived in Greenfield, Indiana for many years before moving to 64 North Irvington Avenue in 1910. Mr. Felt served as a judge on the Indiana Court of Appeals. Their oldest son, Edward, Jr., died in 1909. 

Elsie Felt dressed for cooler weather in 1918. In this photo, she stood in her backyard at 64 North Avenue. 

Dashing Howard Caldwell smiles for the photographer in 1918 in the front yard of the Felt home at 64 North Irvington Avenue. 

Howard and Elsie selected March 23, 1918, as their wedding date. It was a cool day with a high temperature of only 43 degrees, but at least there was no rain. Headlines in the Indianapolis News likely worried the family as the slaughter of the Great War continued in Europe. Truman Felt, the brother of Elsie, was stationed in France and could not be home for the big event.

Howard Caldwell married Elsie Felt on March 23, 1918 at the Felt home at 64 North Irvington Avenue. In this incredible photograph, the happy couple posed in the front yard of the Felt home. Behind them, you can see several houses along North Irvington Avenue. 

The Felts filled the residence with fragrant flowers. Sweet peas and pink tapers greeted the guests as they walked into the home.  The wedding was held in the early evening so the house was lit by candle light. A harpist strummed as people found their seats in the living and music rooms. Mable Felt, the sister of Elsie served as her maid of honor. Howard, an only child, chose a fraternity brother, Robert Masters, as his best man. The Reverend W.B. Farmer of the Irvington Methodist Church performed the ceremony as the Felts were very active participants in the Methodist church. In fact, Judge Felt led an adult Sunday school course at the church for many years. Several of the guests were Butler University graduates.

The ceremony began when three children walked down the aisle while Mrs. Mansur Oaks sang three songs, including "A Birthday," "At Dawning," and "Adoration." The little maid of honor, Elizabeth Carr, held a french basket filled with roses. The Felts had placed an altar in the music room where the ceremony was to be conducted. They rented an electric fountain and surrounded it with pink and white lilies. The groom and his best man waited while Mable Felt, the maid of honor, walked down the aisle wearing a pale green chiffon dress and holding a bouquet of sweet peas. At the appropriate moment, Elsie Felt appeared and walked down the aisle flanked by a garland of smilax vines. Her beautiful white gown was in the georgette fashion, from France. She wore a tulle over her hair fastened with a silver head band.

Elsie Felt Caldwell on her wedding day on March 23, 1918

After the ceremony, the guests gathered in the dining room for a reception although they likely could not all fit in that room. Judge Felt was a strict believer in temperance so it is unlikely that alcohol of any kind would have been allowed at the reception. Howard and Elsie went off on their honeymoon and then moved to Kokomo although Elsie moved back in with her parents while Howard was away for officer training. Fortunately, the war ended before he could be shipped overseas. Truman Felt survived the war but was injured. Mable Felt, an active member of the YWCA, traveled to Europe in 1919 to assist with the French chapter.

Mable Felt, the daughter of Edward and Martha Felt, traveled to Europe just as World War I ended to assist with YWCA activities. 

64 North Irvington Avenue is still just as beautiful in 2019 as when the Felts dwelled there. 

Howard and Elsie would not live in Kokomo for very long and soon they welcomed their first child, Martha Virginia in 1919. They took up residence with his mother, Martha Caldwell, at 30 North Bosart Avenue.

   To listen to a rendition of the song "At Dawning" performed at the wedding, click on the link below:

"At Dawning"

Sources:  Wedding:  "Caldwell-Felt," Indianapolis News, March 25, 1918, 7; "Marriage of Former Greenfield Girl," Hancock Democrat, March 28, 1918, 1; Truman and Mable Felt: "Boys in France Enjoy Thrills, Indianapolis Star, August 28, 1918, 16; "Truman Felt, Son of Judge, Injured," The Times (Munster, Indiana), December 27, 1918; "Indianapolis Girl Returns After 19 Months Overseas," Indianapolis Star, November 12, 1920, 11.

I am indebted to Ginny Hingst, the granddaughter of Howard and Elsie Felt Caldwell, for her stories and photographs.

A Buried Path to the Past

Editor's Note:  Guest history sleuth and writer, Paula Schmidt, noticed the start of a sidewalk that seemed to go nowhere along South Butler Avenue.  Or did the path at one time go to a building long gone? Her investigations led to the unraveling of an interesting tale!  

A Buried Path to the Past

By Paula Schmidt

Do you remember reading the Shel Silverstein book, Where the Sidewalk Ends?  I know where it ends. It ends at my neighbor's house near a lovely four square double on the corner of South Butler and Julian Avenues.  Along Butler Avenue, my neighbor’s sidewalk used to be edged with tilted bricks similar to how my grandmother used to line her flowerbeds.  The mysterious walkway followed the sidewalk and then gracefully curved into what should be steps leading up to a house, but there are no steps!  What's the deal?

Look for the gaps in the bricks along the main sidewalk and you will see the start of a path that used to lead to a previous home at 105 or 107 South Butler Avenue.

It appears that an earlier home was here.  At the moment, I cannot locate a picture, but I do know the shape of this early structure thanks to the Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps.  In the 1898 map, the house is shown as a smaller single family dwelling on Lot # 58 with Lot# 57 vacant. By 1915, the map indicates that there is a larger multi-family dwelling that straddles both lots. Another mystery is that the records at the Assessor's Office indicate that the brick four square was erected in 1919.  Even without a picture of the original house, I hope you enjoy this tale.  It is full of irony, drama, love and tragedy.

In 1910, a single home sat on these two lots and faced Butler Avenue.  The address was either 107 or 105 South Butler Avenue.  Based on the book Irvington in 1910, a family by the name of Newby lived there: James M., his wife Elizabeth, and their child.  It appears that they lived at this residence for two years.

The 1898 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map shows the previous home on the southeast corner of South Butler Avenue and Julian Avenue. Paula Schmidt has superimposed the current home over the previous dwelling. (look for blue thumbtack.)

Mr. Newby was in real estate. The 1907 city directory shows he was in business with George E. Wallace (Wallace & Newby).  In 1908, he partnered with Perry F. Carr  (Newby & Carr).  Both businesses had offices at the Baldwin Building in downtown Indianapolis.  In 1910, it appears that the bottom dropped out for the Newbys.  Mr. Newby purchased a piano in 1907 from a dealer by the name of Currens as a Christmas present for his child and he provided a deed as collateral.  The owner of the piano shop discovered that the deed was bogus and sued.  There was a jury trial and James M. Newby was convicted of theft on April 27, 1910.  His wife was frantic and actively sought the release of her husband…even after the judgment was affirmed (175 Ind. 515).  By 1913, James M. Newby was out of the Michigan City Prison and back in Indianapolis working in real estate.  Again he was involved in, or at least accused of, a shady real estate deal ("Men Accused of Real Estate Swindle", Indianapolis Star, March 4, 1913, 7).  His trial was delayed because his child was ill (March 13, 1913).  By September 9, 1913, the Indianapolis Star stated that the victims admitted that there was no swindle. ("Land Fraud Cases Dropped by State," Indianapolis Star, September 9, 1913,18)  I know you are getting weary of all this drama, but alas, there is more.  On August 1, 1914, a train struck a car carrying Mr. Newby at a railroad crossing on East Market Street killing him. ("Coroner Will Fix Blame for Fatal Crossing Crash," Indianapolis Star, August 1, 1913, pg 16).   A lawsuit in 1915 filed by his widow, Elizabeth resulted in a verdict against Lake Erie & Western RR and the flagman.  Elizabeth was awarded $5,000 ("City News," Indianapolis Star, January 29, 1915, 9). Elizabeth died in 1939.

The Newby family is long gone from the neighborhood as is their home, but if you look closely as you walk along South Butler Avenue you might imagine the start of a sidewalk that used to lead somewhere.  I wonder how many more interesting tales of Irvington are yet to be uncovered and how many have disappeared?   

They Gathered at Winona Lake

Members of a youth group from the Irvington Presbyterian Church made the long drive up to Winona Lake, Indiana in the summer of 1925.  The camp site had long been home to various Christian groups including the Presbyterians, who operated a site along the lake beginning in 1913.  Although not every name is known in this photo, we do have some of them.  They read like a "whose who" of Irvington families.  Most of the youth in the photo range in age from 16 to 20.  S.B. McQuown has been identified as the photographer.

The Young Women (left to right)

Janet Carr--Miss Carr dwelled at 76 North Whittier Place. Her was father was a prominent dentist and her uncle was a well-known architect.  She would later marry Egbert Smith Hildreth and live her entire life in Irvington.  An active club woman, Mrs. Hildreth helped to save the Benton House in the 1960s.

We do not know the names of the next two young women.

The fourth girl in the photo was Mary Dove.  Little is known of her at this time although she might have been part of the Dove family who dwelled near East 10th Street and Arlington Avenue.

Next was Ethel Loomis, who dwelled at 341 North Bolton Avenue.  Mrs. Loomis helped to organize the trip and also served as a chaperone.

Mary Alice Epler, of 133 North Drexel Avenue is the sixth girl.  Her sister sat nearby.

We do not know the name of the next young woman.

Jeanette Epler, also of 133 North Drexel Avenue sat near her sister and just below the love her life, John McPheeters.  The two of them would eventually marry.  Tragically, Mr. McPheeters perished during World War II leaving a young widow back in their apartment at 46 South Ritter Avenue.  The famous photographer, Alfred  Eisenstaedt for Life magazine visited her in the fall of 1944 and photographed her for a story on the victims left behind from the war.  Her face in that photo, filled with anguish and sadness, looked far different than the gay young woman on an Indiana summer day in 1925.

We do not know the name of the next young woman.

Helen Brown (later Weigman) of 333 North Irvington was the eighth girl from the left.

Next to her sat, Elizabeth Mullin, who lived in a cottage at 203 South Ritter Avenue. Her father, Elmer Mullin, ran a business along Bonna Avenue.

At the end of the row, rested Mildred Campbell, who would later become a teacher at Shortridge High School.  She inspired thousands of city residents and her reputation as an outstanding educator still lives on in 2013.  A thorough person, she once helped to document the species of every tree in Ellenberger Park.  As a girl, she dwelled at 29 North Hawthorne Lane.

The Young Men (left to right)

Paul Lambert, at the far left, dwelled at 46 North Sheridan Avenue.

Next to him, stood Howard Dirks of 24 North Ritter Avenue.  The Dirks family ran one of the most popular grocery stores in the neighborhood.

Unfortunately, we do not know the names of the next two young men.

John McPheeters, an Eagle Scout and future war hero, stood above his future wife, Jeanette Epler.  After his untimely death in battle, the military named some barracks for him at Fort Knox, Kentucky. He was beloved by his troops.  As a youth, he lived at 52 North Audubon Road.

Dr. George William Allison, of 254 South Ritter Avenue, served as the minister for the Irvington Presbyterian Church from 1919 to 1930.  He would be responsible for overseeing the construction of the grand edifice that today sits at 55 Johnson Avenue.

The last young man at the far right was that of George Newton, who dwelled at 323 North Audubon Road.

This photograph is courtesy of Bill Ferling and the Irvington Presbyterian Church.

Two Irvington Icons from the 20th Century

Family physician, Dr. Walter Kelly (on the left) and local dentist, Dr. Silas Carr, Jr. (on the right) sat on the steps of the Kelly home at 6845 East Pleasant Run Parkway South Drive north of Irvington sometime in the early 1950s.  The two men had been best friends for years and both were well-respected pillars in the community.  Dr. Kelly operated out of several offices in the area including in a previous home at 237-39 South Audubon Road. On November 13, 1912, the physician would be one of the first medics to the scene of a terrible train crash on South Arlington Avenue and the Baltimore & Ohio railroad. Dr. Kelly worked through the night to try to save as many of the injured as he could although several died that cold night.  Flurries had just started to fall.  Dr. Carr operated a prosperous dentistry office along East Washington Street.  He also had a knack for business and he built a large two-story commercial building in the 5400 block of East Washington Street to house an auto showroom and offices.  Dr. Carr dwelled at 76 N. Whittier Place in a home designed by his brother, Marrett Carr, and later in an even grander home at 520 North Audubon Road.  It would be without question that nearly every Irvington resident from 1910 to 1960 would know one or both of these men.  Both were admired and both men practiced well past retirement age.  What might they have been talking about on that beautiful day when this photo was taken?  Dr. Carr is pointing at something?  A beautiful bird?  An airplane?  A tree?  Had they been reminiscing about their careers?  Certainly, Dr. Kelly might have been noting all of the babies he brought into this world while Dr. Carr could point out the number of folks who could smile because of him.  Their names continuously emerge in the oral histories of the people who have called this neighborhood "home."

Drs. Walter Kelly and Dr. Silas Carr c1950

The historic image and information for this post was courtesy of Laura Hildreth and Lydia Talbot.

Wonderful Frederick Polley Sketch Shows Doomed East Washington Street Block in 1933

When Irvington artist and illustrator, Frederick Polley (371 South Emerson Avenue), sketched this scene eighty years ago, he probably never envisioned that in time every structure in this drawing would be demolished.  Clearly, the most unique structure on the north side of the 5400 block of East Washington Street was the Irvington Fire House. Notice the the wood shake on the second story and the steep gable.   Carr's Hall, the long building in the center of the print, belonged to Dr. Silas Carr, a local dentist and entrepreneur.  The structured served as an auto showroom on the first floor with offices and meeting spaces on the second story. The building was designed by Marrett L. Carr, the brother to Silas.  Many local artists also displayed their exhibitions in the structure.  Mr. Polley sketched numerous people in front of the building. Perhaps they were there to attend a gallery opening.   Mr. Polley added the very modern touch of an airplane flying overhead.

In the decades following the creation of this print, Irvingtonians and others tore down each one of these buildings, including Carr's Hall as recently as 1999.  I often view the period of time between 1970 and 2000 as the "time of troubles" for the neighborhood.  As people continued to flee for the suburbs, the commercial area along Washington Street struggled. In the early 1990s, citizens allowed the destruction of several buildings for the erection of a Walgreens Drug Store complete with a large parking lot along the street.  In the early millennia, the community added another suburban building housing a grocery store and a dental office.  Developers in both cases added unsympathetic structures that paid no heed to the architectural fabric of the neighborhood.

Mr. Polley's drawing ultimately found its way into the Carr-Hildreth collections. Both families generously supported local artists including Mr. Polley.  I am very grateful to Laura Hildreth, the granddaughter of Dr. Silas Carr, for this loaning me this print.  She also managed to save one of the parapets from Carr's Hall after it was leveled.

Lost Irvington--5657 E. Washington St.

The Carr Home, constructed in 1900, stood for 45 years before crews demolished it for commercial buildings along East Washington Street. To see a photo of the home before its demise, see my previous post. Numerous prominent people lived here besides the Carrs, including: Calvin Kendall, the superintendent of the Indianapolis Public Schools; the Shank sisters, the cousins to Mayor Samuel L. Shank; and Adelaide Conte, a local music teacher, who operated a school here and previously at 269 South Audubon Road. Joel Marmon, contractor, built the original house. This article came from the Indianapolis Star and is dated October 28, 1945.

Lost Irvington

This beautiful home used to stand at 5657 E. Washington Street. The Carr family lived here in the early twentieth century. By 1924 it was the home to the Butler University sorority Kappa Kappa Gamma. Adelaide Conte also rented the home for her school named the Irvington School of Music.  You may learn more about her by clicking on the link below.