Irving Circle Park in the 1970s

This small circular park has been part of Irvington since 1870.  Early twentieth century views of the green space showed many trees.  By the 1960s, the fountain and park needed work.  Community members restored the original fountain and planted more trees in the mid-1970s.  In these two images, you can see the original fountain and some of the homes around the park in 1974 and 1979.

The historic images are courtesy of Carol Kappel.

Irving Circle fountain and Johnson Home in 1974

Jerry Kappel pulls Chase Kappel through the snow in the Irving Circle Park in 1979

An Artist Moves Into the Johnson Home--1974

When Carol Kappel moved into the "Castle House," as it was affectionately called by the locals, she and her then husband, Jerry, had their work cut out for them.  The beautiful but drafty home had not been updated in years and time had not been kind to the house. Besides restoring the home, the Kappels would also have to furnish the place.  Ms. Kappel reported that she had moved into the home from a small apartment and would spend the next seventeen years adding period furniture and other antiques, some of which came from a beloved grandmother's home in New Albany, Indiana.

Maintaining and restoring such a home required an income so during the day the talented artist worked for an ad agency.  She noted that most of her best personal art came after she moved out of the house in 1991.  She had little time to create while living in the Johnson Home because she was busy raising a family and restoring the place.

In the summer of 1975, Pegg Kennedy, a journalist for the Indianapolis News, along with photographer Bob Doeppers visited the Kappels for a story.  They took several shots of the young couple.  In the top photo, Carol Kappel sat in the formal parlor surrounded by 1970s-era furniture that had been in her previous apartment.  She would later transfer this room back into a beautiful Victorian gathering place.  In the second photo, Jerry Kappel stands in the formal entryway.  At some point, previous owners added arches, a popular architectural feature from the 1920s through the 1940s.  A future owner, Toni James, removed the arches and replaced them with historic squared bays and transoms.

Carol Kappel (5631 University Avenue) posed for this photo in the summer of 1975 for the Indianapolis News. Photo credit:  Bob Doeppers

Jerry Kappel stood in the entryway of 5631 University Avenue in the summer of 1975, Photo Credit:  Bob Doeppers

5631 University Avenue in the summer of 1975, photo credit:  Bob Doeppers

As for Carol Kappel, she later went on to become an award-winning artist.  She won a Clio and has been featured in various art publications and exhibitions.  Two of her pieces included the Johnson Home.  They can be seen below.  She notes, "I have always seen life as a seamless mural of vibrance and sadness, great beauty and sordid ugliness, tragedy and comedy."

Exit From "Ugly Gables," mixed media by Carol Kappel

Johnson Home by Carol Kappel, 1991

The historic images and art are courtesy of Carol Kappel.  More information for this post came from: Pegg Kennedy, "Johnson House Challenge to Young Married Couple," Indianapolis News, August 13, 1975.

The Kappels Move into the Johnson Home--1974

When Carol and Jerry Kappel (rhymes with apple) saw the for sale sign in front of the Johnson Home at 5631 University Avenue in 1974, it was love at first sight.  Ms. Kappel reports that it was autumn and Irvington's trees were ablaze with color.  The young couple had no idea of what awaited them. They took the plunge and began to negotiate with the Cooney family who were selling the manse for $29, 900.  By December, they had the keys to their new home.  Immediately, the couple discovered problems.  Raw sewage leaking from pipes, water dripping through several ceilings, broken windows in the upper stories, and bird colonies roosting in the the home's storied towers were just the beginning of problematic scenarios for the Kappels.  Ms. Kappel worked as an art director for an ad agency while Mr. Kappel, a local actor, ran a children's theater.  Neither of the duo brought home riches from their jobs so when an engineer warned them that the back tower could collapse without some serious repointing and roof work, the couple likely wondered what they had gotten into.  Ms. Kappel laughed as she told me that they named the home "Ugly Gables" after removing layers of bird dung on the bricks of the upper story.  She quickly noted that the title was one of affection and that even though she has not lived in the home for twenty-four years, she still dreams about the place. The Kappel family dwelled in the home from 1974 to 1990.

In the top three photos, taken in 1974 and 1975, you can see what the home looked like when the family moved in.  A side porch, removed in the 1990s, still existed as well as several trees around the house.  The color photo, taken in 1975, reveals the condition of the back tower.  The bottom photo, taken in 1990, was shot in the last year that Carol and her daughter Chase lived in this very special home.

Carpenter Realtor photo of 5631 University Avenue in 1974...note the former side porch

5631 University Avenue in the winter of 1974

Tower trouble in 1975

Gorgeous shot of Johnson Home in 1990...photo by Carol Kappel

The photos and stories for this post are courtesy of Carol Kappel.