Irvington Intersection Then and Now

     Renowned artist, William Forsyth, and his family used to live on the southeast corner of East Washington Street and Emerson Avenue with an address of 15 South Emerson Avenue. Over the many decades that the family lived there, they created a beautiful oasis with tall trees and gorgeous flower gardens. Mr. Forsyth often painted in his studio at the house. A few months after his death in 1935, Frank Hohenberger, a highly respected photographer, visited Alice Forsyth, the widow of Mr. Forsyth. He or perhaps the family likely wanted to document the place just as the great artist would have known it. He snapped at least twelve images soon after an early summer rain. In the top photo, you can see puddles on the shimmering sun-lit bricks. You can also see the streetcar line. Members of the Forsyth family continued to live on in the rambling house for over 30 years. After Dorothy Forsyth, a retired English teacher died, the two living sisters, Constance and Evelyn, who had made lives elsewhere, held an auction of the remaining paintings and sold the property. In a decision that still shocks, a developer snapped up the property along with the neighboring house at 5115 East Washington and razed both residences to put in a filling station. In 1967, ads appeared in Indianapolis newspapers that a new service station was open on the corner of East Washington Street and Emerson Avenue. A beautiful corner of Irvington was gone. 

Intersection of East Washington Street and South Emerson Avenue showing the Forsyth family property at 15 South Emerson Avenue in 1935. Photo by Frank Hohenberger (courtesy of Susan Selby Sklar)

The Speedway Gas Station located at 5103 East Washington Street on August 17, 2026; This service station replaced the Forsyth home and a nearby house in 1967.

Other Hohenberger Images of the Forsyth Property--1935

Photographer by Frank Hohenberger captured a path leading to the East Washington Street front porch at the Forsyth home on the southeast corner of East Washington Street and South Emerson Avenue, 1935 (courtesy of Susan Selby Sklar)

Lush gardens in the backyard of the Forsyth property as documented by photographer Frank Hohenberger in the early summer of 1935. (courtesy of Susan Selby Sklar)

Studio and house of William Forsyth snapped by Frank Hohenberger in the early summer of 1935 (courtesy of Susan Selby Sklar)

Small porch facing South Emerson Avenue at the William and Alice Forsyth home on the southeast corner of East Washington Street and South Emerson Avenue. Photo by Frank Hohenberger, 1935 (courtesy of Susan Selby Sklar)

Side yard respite complete with an arbor and many flowers at the Forsyth home at 15 South Emerson Avenue, 1935. Photo by Frank Hohenberger (courtesy of Susan Selby Sklar) 

Earlier Images of the Forsyth Home and Studio

The multi-gabled Forsyth family home c1910 at 15 South Emerson Avenue; The girls in the photo are Dorothy, Constance, and Evelyn Forsyth. (courtesy of Susan Selby Sklar)

William Forsyth often painted at home in his studio attached to the house located at 15 South Emerson Avenue. (courtesy of Susan Selby Sklar)

The House Lost Next Door--5115 East Washington Street

The neighboring house at 5115 East Washington Street was also razed by a developer to put in a gas station on the southeast corner of East Washington Street and Emerson Avenue. 

     I wish to thank Susan Selby Sklar, the granddaughter of William and Alice Forsyth, who donated these photos to the Irvington Historical Society. For more information on the great artist be sure to read a biography written by Rachel Berenson Perry called William J. Forsyth: The Life and Work of an Indiana Artist (Indiana University Press, 2014)

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 since 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. 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 Church...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.

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.

Nelson and Mila Shimer Lived Along Emerson Avenue for Many Years

      The Shimer family predates Irvington. Many of the descendants remained in the area for years. Nelson Shimer, who grew up on the family farm along Brookville Road, built a small cottage for his family at 422 South Emerson Avenue in the 1880s. Later, in the early twentieth century, he and his wife, Mila Murphy Shimer, greatly enlarged the residence. They needed a larger place to raise their seven children. Photos from the Chris Shimer family collection show the many changes to the house over the years. 

Nelson and Mila Shimer built a one-story cottage at 422 South Emerson Avenue in the 1880s. They quickly outgrew the residence. Pictured in this photo taken c1900: Thomas, Elizabeth (Lizzie), Mae, Clara Belle, and a cousin named Ralph Shimer. (courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Nelson Shimer stood next to his family home at 422 South Emerson Avenue c1900. (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

The Shimers enlarged their Queen Anne style cottage into a larger American Foursquare popular in the early 1900s. The photo was likely taken c1920. (courtesy of Chris Shimer) 

Mila and Nelson Shimer posed with one of their sons c1905 at 422 South Emerson Avenue. Mr. Shimer worked on the family farm located nearby on Brookville Road and at a brick factory. (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Clara Belle Shimer (later Johnson) posed with two young women in the side yard at 422 South Emerson Avenue c1915. (Photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Alfred Johnson posed with his wife, Clara Belle Shimer Johnson, c1925 at 426 South Emerson Avenue. After their marriage in 1924, they moved into a Sears-kit bungalow next to the Shimer family home. (courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Lillian Shimer posed near the front porch at 422 South Emerson Avenue c1925. (courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Lewis Grover Shimer posed with his son, Lewis V. Shimer, at 422 South Emerson Avenue c1923. (courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Mila Murphy Shimer (1863-1947) worked in her front yard at 422 South Emerson Avenue c1915. (courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Clara Belle Shimer posed with two other stylish women on the front porch of the Shimer home at 422 South Emerson Avenue c1918. Behind the young ladies you can see the house located at 459 South Grand Avenue. (courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Mila Murphy Shimer posed with an unidentified family member, c1940 at 422 South Emerson Avenue (courtesy of Chris Shimer)

422 South Emerson Avenue on July 19, 2024

     I wish to thank Chris Shimer for his photos and stories of the Shimer family. 

Historic Horner House Visible in Shimer Family Photos

      The Horner House located at 410 South Emerson Avenue has intrigued residents for years primarily because of its condition. No one has lived in the Second Empire residence for many decades and it has deteriorated rapidly over time. Built in 1875 as part of the Downey and Brouse Addition to Irvington, Abraham and Emma Horner were the first people to live in the home although they did not stay for long. The land upon which the house was built used to belong to the Shimer family. One Shimer descendant, Nelson and his wife Mila Murphy Shimer, also lived in the Downey and Brouse Addition at 422 South Emerson Avenue. Shimer children and grandchildren grew up next door to the grand old house and it appeared in many of their family photos in the early twentieth century. 

     Steve Barnett, the Director of the Irvington Historical Society, discovered that numerous people owned or leased the house after the Horners including the Shoemakers, Turrills, Thompsons, Risleys, Sloughs, Fleeces, Terrills, McMillans, and Minors. In the mid-twentieth century the residence served as a VFW post and was carved into several apartments. Agnes M'Culloch Hanna wrote about the elegance of the home in a 1932 Indianapolis Star article. She noted the tower and the narrow spiral walnut staircase. 

     While families moved in and out of the beautiful brick home, the Shimers who lived next door, however, remained. In the photos below, various members of their family can be seen with the Horner House in the distance. Most likely, either the Fleece or Terrill family would have lived in the grand old brick house at that time in history.  At some point in the early twentieth century, someone painted over the brick and added a more modern front porch. 

An older woman who might be Mila Murphy Shimer (left) chatted with either Francis Fleece or Mary Terrill. The young girl might be Lula Mae Shimer. The photo was likely taken c1915. Behind the women you can see the Horner House at 410 South Emerson Avenue. (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Elizabeth Shimer c1910; Behind her you can see the Horner House at 410 South Emerson Avenue. (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Thomas Shimer, Sr. of 422 South Emerson Avenue, posed in the family yard c1918. Behind him you can see the Horner House at 410 South Emerson Avenue. An abstract for the Horner property reveals that it was built by New Albany contractors, John F. and Henry M. Cooper. Steve Barnett believes that there is a strong possibility that George Cooper might have been the architect. If you look closely, you can see some ornamental ironwork atop the tower. The Irvington Historical Society located at 5350 University Avenue has some of the iron work on display in a case. (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Elizabeth Shimer of 422 South Emerson Avenue with her bobbed hair posed near the Horner House at 410 South Emerson Avenue c1922 (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Alfred H. Johnson, the husband of Clara Belle Shimer Johnson, parked his vehicle along the Shimer driveway at 422 South Emerson Avenue c1925. Behind him you can see the Horner House at 410 South Emerson Avenue. (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

     From 2011 to 2016, Amanda Browning, who owned the Horner House at the time, wrote an amazing blog on the story of the residence. You can see incredible interior and exterior photos along with historic images on her site. Her mother, Mary Williams, also contributed to the blog. 

Horner House Project

Special thanks to Steve Barnett, Amanda Browning, Anne Hardwick, Ron Huggler, and Chris Shimer

Sources:  Steve Barnett, "410 South Emerson--Horner House," Unpublished history of the home, Irvington Historical Society; Agnes M'Culloch Hanna, "Old Houses With Towers Examples of Dignified Style of Architecture," Indianapolis Star, February 14, 1932; Amanda Browning, "Horner House Project," Blog, 2011-2016; Indianapolis City Directories; Federal Census Records. 

Emerson Avenue Home Then and Now

      Little has changed over the decades of the home located at 246 South Emerson Avenue. Likely built around 1909, the first residents were Willis and Alfretta (Etta) Porter along with their son, Cap Harold and Myrtle.  The 1910 and 1920 Federal Census records indicated that Mr. Porter worked as a pressman for a local printer. The couple also appeared to have rented a room to a married Butler University couple, Elvin and Alice Daniels. The pair had a short commute to classes as Butler was just across the street from the Porter home. At some point, a member of the Shimer family, who lived a couple of houses away, snapped two images of the relatively-new home sometime around 1915. The Porters would easily recognize their former home today. 

246 South Emerson Avenue c1915 (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

246 South Emerson along with the neighboring houses c1915 (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

246 South Emerson Avenue in the winter of 2024. 

Information for this post came from Indianapolis city directories, federal census records. Regarding the Daniels family: Tipton Daily Tribune, February 3, 1914, 6. 

Who Lived Here? The Schoenholtz Family

      John Jacob Schoenholtz and his wife, Alma Glore Schoenholtz, moved into their beautiful Arts-and-Crafts-era home at 240 South Emerson Avenue in 1911 and remained for decades. Mr. Schoenholtz immigrated to the United States from Germany in 1897 along with his family when he was fifteen years old. The talented young man graduated from Purdue University in 1901 with a degree in chemistry. Two years later, he founded the Indiana Chemical Company. In 1906, he married Alma Glore of Rushville, Indiana. 

     The couple's new home on the southwest corner of Emerson and University Avenues was ideally situated across from Butler College (later University). In 1915, they took out a building permit for a garage. It appeared that their lives were going smoothly and then World War I broke out.

      Anti-German feelings swept the nation and was especially strong in Indiana after the Americans joined the side of the British and French. Some schools outlawed the teaching of German and one Indiana town changed its name from East Germantown to Pershing. In 1917, many local newspapers published the names of Germans, who were not citizens. Local Germans were ordered to be photographed and fingerprinted by local police departments as they were all considered as "enemy aliens." 

     John Jacob Schoenholtz, who had come to his country with his parents, was published on one of those lists in the Indianapolis Star. He was so mortified that he purchased an ad in the Indianapolis Star on December 9, 1917, announcing his loyalty to the United States. He at least had the money to purchase an ad as most Germans living in the United States had to live under a cloud of suspicion. 

     At some point while the couple resided in the house, a member of the Shimer family took a couple of photographs of the Schoenholtz house likely before World War I. Mr. Schoenholtz died in 1956 while Mrs. Schoenholtz passed away in 1969. Both lived most of their lives on that particular corner in Irvington. 

John Jacob Schoenholtz graduated from Purdue University in 1901 with a degree in chemistry. 

Alma Glore Schoenholtz grew up in Rushville, Indiana and married John Jacob Schoenholtz in 1906. She was an active Irvington club woman. Her photo appeared in the Indianapolis Star on September 1, 1929.

John Jacob Schoenholtz published his loyalty to the United States in the Indianapolis Star on December 9, 1917. He was one of many German residents of the city who had been placed on an "enemy alien" list. 

Ralph Shimer and his beloved dog posed in front of 240 South Emerson Avenue c1911. John and Alma Schoenholtz resided in the house at the time. (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Members of the Shimer family posed in the side yard of their home at 230 South Emerson Avenue. We believe that the older gentleman seated in a chair on the left might be Charles O. Shimer. We do not know the name of the younger man seated in the chair. The boy seated on the ground was Ralph Shimer. Behind the men, you can see the Schoenholtz home at 240 South Emerson Avenue c1912. (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

240 South Emerson Avenue on January 16, 2024

Sources:  Polk's Indianapolis City Directories; Garage Building Permit--Indianapolis News, September 28, 1915; World War One--"729 Registered Here as Aliens," Indianapolis Star, February 7, 1918, 2; Mr. Schoenholtz obituary--"Chemical Firm Founder is Dead," Indianapolis News, August 4, 1956, 22