Who Lived Here? The Williams Family of Irvington Terrace

Arthur L. and Margaret E. Williams moved into their brand new home at 6014 Lowell Avenue in 1916. It must have been an exciting time for the couple as birth records reveal that the family welcomed their first child, Robert, in May of that year. The modest home sits on a small lot in the Irvington Terrace section of the neighborhood just east of Arlington Avenue and north of Washington Street. Mr. Williams worked at a variety of jobs while living at the house. He managed a hardware store and later sold farm implements for International Harvester. The couple welcomed two more children, Joan and Patricia, while dwelling at this residence. In 1926, Mr. Williams was 38 years old when he sat for this portrait for a promotional book titled Fellow Citizens of Indianapolis. At the time, he was President of the Advance Transfer & Warehouse Company in the Wholesale District just south of downtown Indianapolis. Little is known of Mrs. Williams at this time, but the family moved to Pittsboro, Indiana in 1938 so that Mr. Williams could sell farm implements there. Both Mr. and Mrs. Williams were buried in Washington Park Cemetery in eastern Marion County. Mr. Williams died in 1959 while Mrs. Williams lived until 1985.

6014 Lowell Avenue in 2016: The 1930 Federal Census reveals that the home was worth $6,000 in that year.

Information on the Williams family can be found in the obituary of Arthur L. Williams (Indianapolis Star, August 26, 1959) and in the usual places like census records, city directories, and even on the website "Find a Grave." 

Lowell Avenue Home 1953 and 2014

The large American Four Square at 6134 (formerly 6136) East Lowell Avenue has stood along this street since the early twentieth century.  The Heagy family were one of the first families to dwell in the home and they lived there until 1945.  As World War II was winding down, Lawrence G. Kilwitt, a pharmacist, and his wife Margaret purchased the home from the Heagy family.  The Kilwitts, who anticipated the future housing shortage for the city of Indianapolis, divided the house into two apartments.  The upstairs apartment became known as 6134 and the downstairs apartment became 6136.  The Kilwitts remained in the home until 1950.

George and Loretta McDonnell were the next family to move into the newly converted double. Mr. McDonnell had not been able to work for years because of an earlier bout with tuberculosis.  Mrs. McDonnell, a loyal Democrat, found work at city hall when that party was in power.  Because of the fickleness of politics, the McDonnells counted on a steady income from renting out the downstairs apartment.  The Quicks and Murphys were a few of the folks who leased the bottom abode.

In 1953, the elder McDonnells decided to vacate the upper apartment for a place with no stairs. Their oldest son, Robert, an Indianapolis city firefighter, moved into 6134 with his wife Mary Jane and their daughter, Terry.  While living in the home, the couple welcomed a second child, Tim.

A very young Terry McDonnell had fond memories of the house.  Because they had lived in such small places, she thought that the second story apartment seemed quite grand especially the finished attic where she could play with her friends.  She also loved sitting out on the screened-in front porch. Their backyard stretched all the way to Pleasant Run Parkway in those days.  A local peony farmer rented part of their backyard for his prized peony collection and he sold the fragrant flowers from a stand along Pleasant Run Parkway on Memorial Day weekend.  Local Irvingtonians purchased the flowers and decorated their family's tombstones in places like Memorial Park, Crown Hill, or even Anderson Cemetery.

The McDonnells remained in the double until 1956 before moving to Bancroft Avenue.  In the small historic photograph taken c1953, you can see what the house looked like in the mid-twentieth century.  A contemporary photograph shows the dwelling, now a single family home again, in 2014.

6134-36 East Lowell Avenue in 1953

6134 East Lowell Avenue in 2014

The historic photograph and information on the McDonnell family is courtesy of Terry Wilgus.  

Hoffmans of Irvington Terrace

William C. and Avis Hoffman raised their family on Minerva Street just west of downtown Indianapolis.  In his sixties, just as he had retired from a nearby flour mill, Mr. Hoffman packed up his family and moved into a new house at 317 North Kenmore Road c1915. The beautiful large American Four Square home comfortably housed his adult and unmarried twin daughters, Edith and Ethel, who worked as secretaries downtown.  Their widowed son, Francis, (Frank) moved in with his parents in 1919 after the death of his wife.  He brought his son, Robert along with him so the house on Kenmore was quite full. Other Hoffman family members lived nearby.  City directories reveal that dozens of Hoffmans lived in the area.  As the elderly Hoffmans passed away, the twins continued to dwell in the large home on Kenmore Road until the early 1950s.

In the top photo, twin sisters Edith and Ethel Hoffman, rested behind 320 North Ridgeview Drive along the alley behind their home on Kenmore Road c1935.  It is unclear why they posed here or if they knew the family who dwelled in the bungalow behind them.  The second photo captured the entire Hoffman family with William and Avis serving as bookends.  The third image shows Francis or Frank Hoffman, who moved into the Kenmore home after the death of his wife in 1919.

Edith and Ethel Hoffman posed along the alley behind 320 North Ridgeview Drive c1935.

The Hoffman family moved into 317 North Kenmore Road c1915.  William Hoffman is at the far end while Avis Hoffman is closest to the photographer.  Their large extended family is in the middle.  The photo was taken c1915.

Frank Hoffman moved back with his parents at 317 North Kenmore Road along with son Robert after the death of his wife in 1919.  

The historic images are courtesy of the Hoffman family descendants via Ancestry.com.  

Ridgeview Drive Bungalows Then and Now

Ridgeview Drive is aptly named.  Lowell Avenue slightly inclines east of Arlington until it intersects with this lovely tree-lined street.  North of Lowell Avenue, contractors busily constructed numerous bungalows in the 1910s and 1920s all along the drive.  Rollen and Georgia Leonard moved into their home at 339 North Ridgeview Drive in the mid-1920s. Their daughter, Glenna, became the subject of numerous photographs including this one snapped in the spring of 1933.  Little Glenna certainly looked dashing with her hat as she posed on that warm day.  Behind her, you can see three bungalows across the street at 328, 322, and 320 North Ridgeview Drive.

In the lovely bungalow closest to Glenna, dwelled the Smith family at 328 North Ridgeview Drive.  Thirty-three-year-old Charles N. worked as a superintendent for a telephone company while his thirty-four-old wife, Emily, worked as a substitute teacher. She might have been tipped off about the job from her neighbor, William R. Krickenberger, who taught math for the Indianapolis Public Schools.  You will note that this bungalow today is one of the most impressively restored of its style in the entire neighborhood. This home was valued at $7,000 in 1930 and was owned by the Smiths.

Forty-seven-year-old William Roy and forty-four-year-old Katherine Krickenberger owned the brick bungalow at 322 North Ridgeview Drive.  Their home was valued at $9,000 in 1930 and was one of the most expensive on the block.  Mr. Krickenberger, a local math teacher, had already authored two mathematics books by 1933.  In 1927, he wrote Algebra, published the Bobbs-Merrill Company, a textbook used in high schools all over the United States.  When Glenna Leonard posed for this photograph in 1933, Mr. Krickenberger had just published another work titled, Plane Geometry (Ginn & Company). The Krickenbergers had one son, Craig, who was six years old in 1933.

The most distant home in the photo, belonged to Lawrence and Blanche Schremer, at 320 North Ridgeview Drive.  The unusual bungalow still retains its interesting shape in 2013. Mr. Schremer owned a "beverage and cigar house."  His business was definitely not in keeping with the accepted morals of the dry neighborhood.  The young couple had no children as of 1933.  Their home was valued at $7,500 in 1930.

This historic image is courtesy of Jim Brandenburg.

Glenna Leonard in 1933:  Behind her you can see 328, 322, and 320 North Ridgeview Drive.

328, 322, and 320 North Ridgeview Drive in the autumn of 2013

William R. Krickenberger, of 322 North Ridgeview Drive, co-authored this book in 1927

Scenes Along Ridgeview Drive in the 1920s

Herbert Hoover was President of the United States when the Leonard family snapped the top two historic images of beautiful little Glenna Leonard in 1928.  Rollen Glen and Georgia Leonard moved into a bungalow at 339 North Ridgeview Drive in the mid-1920s and remained into the mid-1940s.  In the top image, Glenna posed in the front yard of the family home in the summer of 1928.  Behind her you can see the two-story home at 332 North Ridgeview Drive and the side of the smaller bungalow at 328 North Ridgeview Drive. Forty-four-year -old Cecil Earle and thirty-seven-year-old Elizabeth Lee Smith lived in the larger home with their children Harmon and Virginia, and with fifty-eight-year-old Lilly Lee, the mother of Mrs. Smith.  The Smiths dwelled along Lowell Avenue before moving into their spacious new home in the 1920s.  Mr. Smith was a manager of a local publishing company.  Next door, at 328 North Ridgeview Drive lived Charles N. and Emily W. Smith. Both in their late twenties, Mr. Smith worked as a supervisor for a local telephone company while Mrs. Smith served as a substitute teacher for local high schools.  The contemporary image of the same view today reveals that the larger home has been altered over the years with the removal of the roof overhang along with the knee braces. You will also note that the front porch has been enclosed  that the dining room bay has been removed on the north side of the house.  The smaller bungalow at 328 North Ridgeview has been beautifully restored to its original appearance.

Glenna Leonard in her front yard in 1928.  Behind her, you can see 332 and 328 N. Ridgeview Drive.

332 and 328 North Ridgeview Drive in 2013.

In the second historic image, taken in the winter of 1928, Glenna Leonard posed in front of her home at 339 North Ridgeview Drive.  Behind her, you can see the charming bungalows at 329 and 323 North Ridgeview Drive.  Charles F. and Clara Woodstock rented the bungalow at 329 North Ridgeview for $50 a month.  Mr. Woodstock was a foreman at a local tire company.  The couple had two adult children still living at home at the time this photo was taken.  Their son Norman worked as an operator at an oil business while their daughter Dorothy cut, bobbed, coifed, and washed hair in a nearby beauty salon.  Next door, at 327 North Ridgeivew Drive, Edward A. and Edna M. Kelly lived along with Frederick Guy, a nephew to Mr. Kelly.  Mr. Kelly served as a manager for a furniture company and he employed his fifteen-year old nephew as well.  The contemporary photo, taken in 2013, reveals that the little has changed with these bungalows in the eighty-five years since the photo was first snapped.

Glenna Leonard stands in front of her home in 1928. Behind her you can see 339, 329, and 323 North Ridgeview Drive.

329 and 323 North Ridgeview Drive in 2013

Rollen G. and Georgia Leonard dwelled at 339 North Ridgeview Drive.  These photos show the couple before they were married and before they moved into the Irvington Terrace neighborhood.  Their lovely home still stands although significantly altered.  (see previous post)

Rollen Glen Leonard

Georgia Leonard

The Leonard family home at 339 North Ridgeview Drive in 1933

Many thanks to Jim Brandenburg for these wonderful historic images.

Irvington Terrace Bungalow Then and Now

Ridgeview Drive cuts through the heart of Irvington Terrace, a neighborhood in the far eastern section of Irvington.  The first folks to settle here likely came in the late nineteenth century, but this area did not really take off until the construction of Pleasant Run Parkway in 1909.  Speculators and dreamers alike built many beautiful Arts and Crafts, Dutch Colonial, and American Four Square styled homes in a burst of activity from 1910 through 1940.  One of those many structures erected during that time period was that of the Leonard Home at 339 North Ridgeview Drive.  This beautiful bungalow sat and still sits atop a small hill.  Rollen Glen Leonard worked as a draftsman.  He was employed for the Link Belt Company and designed floor-cleaning machines.  His wife, Georgia, was a piano teacher and instructed her students on a beautiful grand piano.  In this wonderful photograph, taken in 1933, Georgia Leonard posed with her daughter Glenna on a summer day.  If you look closely, you can see the young girl's tricycle parked nearby.  Because the house faced west, the Leonards added an awning to help with the summer heat.  A contemporary photograph, taken in 2013, reveals that the charming bungalow has been significantly altered, however, you can see remnants of the former home behind the newer facade.

Georgia and Glenna Leonard posed in front of 339 North Ridgeview Drive in 1933.

339 North Ridgeview Drive in 2013.  

This historic image and information on the Leonard family is courtesy of Jim Brandenburg.