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.

The Dufour Family Moves to Indianapolis

The Dufour family name is well-known on the east side of Indianapolis because of a lovely cafe that sits on the northwest corner of East Washington Street and Audubon Road.  The family has been an important part of the Irvington community since 1940. Lawrence  and Carmella (Nell) Dufour met in Chicago and married there in 1935.  In 1939, the couple moved to Indianapolis on Guilford Avenue in Broad Ripple. Mr. Dufour was employed as a salesman.  By 1940, the couple had two small children so they rented a bungalow at 4003 Brookville Road. Soon that house had become too small so the Dufours, who now had four children, moved to 738 North Dequincy Street in Emerson Heights in 1942.

By the early 1940s, Mr. Dufour was established as a salesman of kitchen supplies for the Albert Pick Company. He helped firms, schools, hospitals, and non-profits with the designs of their kitchens. He spent much of his week traveling down the highways of Indiana from one city to the next selling stainless steel tables, cabinets, and industrial appliances. When he was home, he often worked at the dining room table creating blueprints, drawings, or plans.  His wife, Nell, would not only keep their growing family out of the dining room while Mr. Dufour worked, but she also typed up the quotes.

The Dequincy Street home would be the first of three houses that the Dufours owned. They paid $30 a month for their mortgage. While living in the house, the family attended Little Flower Catholic Church, but by the mid-1940s they would find their forever church with Our Lady of Lourdes on East Washington Street.  The Dufours would in total have ten children so there was always a great necessity of finding a larger house. Furthermore, Mr. and Mrs. Dufour occasionally took in families or people who needed a home.

With the start of World War II, Mr. Dufour attempted to enlist in the U.S. Army, but officials turned him down due to his blood pressure issues and the number of children he had. Instead, he became a local air raid warden for the Emerson Heights area. His job was to make sure that local neighbors turned off lights or at least shut their curtains so that would-be bombers wouldn't see the city during drills. In 1945, the growing Dufour family moved to 5125 East Michigan Street in the Pleasanton section of Irvington.

Stay tuned as more posts will be coming on this interesting Irvington family.

Lawrence and Carmella Rose Dufour were married in Chicago on May 18, 1935.

Growing Family:  Lawrence and Nell Dufour posed with their four children at that time (Lenore, Daniel, Sussanne, and Richard) on the front steps at 738 North Dequincy Street c1945. 

Proud Papa:  Lawrence Dufour posed with Lenore, Daniel, Richard, and Sussanne Dufour on their front steps at 738 North Dequincy Street c1945.  

738 North Dequincy Street in 2015.

The historic photos and stories are courtesy of the Dufour family.

Little Flower in the 1950s

The Little Flower neighborhood sits north and west of Irvington.  It has been a stable area since the first people started building small bungalows there in the 1910s.  Named after the Catholic Church along North Bosart Avenue, the community has been home to thousands of families over the years who started housekeeping in the modest dwellings.  Many of these families remained in the area for years and in some cases generations.

In the 1950s, the neighborhood was still filled with original families who had built small homes along streets like Wallace Avenue.  In 1927, Leo and Helen Erb's home at 1025 North Wallace Avenue was completed.  The couple raised their children in the house. Next door at 1027 dwelled Solomon Erb, the father of Leo and grandfather to several nearby kids.  The elder Mr. Erb passed away in 1944 so by by the early 1950s, Elmer and Gertrude Harmon owned the bungalow.  Norman and Lucy Wilson lived in 1101 North Wallace Avenue and had since its completion in 1928.  Mr. Wilson was an office manager for the Steckle Steam Specialties Company.  The Wilsons and Erbs would have known each other for nearly thirty years when these photos were snapped in early 1950s. People like the Erbs, Harmons, and Wilsons maintained their modest homes and kept up their small lots.  They planted trees and lovely flowers.  While many residents dashed to the suburbs, these families continued to dwell here well into the 1970s in some cases.

New generations are moving into the Little Flower neighborhood.  They seemed to have the same pride as the founders. They have a neighborhood association and residents still maintain their cottages and small lots.   Although many of the homes have been altered or enlarged over the years, the Erbs, Harmons, and Wilsons would have no trouble recognizing their stomping grounds in 2014.

Helen and Leo Erb standing in the backyard of 1025 North Wallace Avenue in 1952

Betty Jean, Kenneth, and little Ricky Erb in 1951 on the porch at 1025 North Wallace Avenue

Betty Jean, Kenneth, and little Randy Erb standing in front of 1025 North Wallace Avenue 1953.  Behind them, you can see 1027 and 1101 North Wallace Avenue.  Note that tulips are blooming in front of the spirea bushes.  

1025, 1027, and 1101 North Wallace Avenue in 2014

Erb home at 1025 North Wallace Avenue in 2014

The historic images are courtesy of Rick Erb via Ancestry.com.  

Little Flower Catholic School Graduation--1930

Eastside Indianapolis Roman Catholics had few options in the early twentieth century. St. Philip Neri opened its parish doors in 1908 followed by Our Lady of Lourdes in Irvington in 1909.  As more Catholics moved into neighborhoods surrounding Irvington, the need for more churches grew.  In 1926, the Archdioceses of Indianapolis opened the St. Therese Little Flower School and parish. Located at 1401 North Bosart Avenue, the school serviced congregants in the Little Flower and Emerson Heights neighborhoods. Some Warren Township farmers sent their children to the school as well.  Like many Catholic schools, the institution educated children until the eighth grade.  In this photo, taken in 1930, Father Doyle (later Monsignor John J. Doyle) and Father Duffy posed with eight graduates.  Most of the kids lived nearby.  Albert Berlier's family had a rural route address and lived north of 13th Street along Arlington Avenue.  George Marter traveled from Chester Avenue while Fred Ward dwelled nearby on Colorado Avenue.  Ralph Robisch could have easily walked to school from his home at 904 North Emerson Avenue.  Cecelia Wilson's home remains a mystery, but Louise Hansman dwelled at 4608 East 10th Street.  Her family kept this photo and later posted it on Ancestry.com.  Marie Parks lived in a beautiful brick home at 1115 North Leland Avenue.  Helen Hall commuted from Grant Avenue.  Many of the children came from large families whose brothers and sisters attended Little Flower School.

Little Flower 8th Grade Graduates in 1930

 This photo is courtesy of the descendants of the Hansman family via Ancestry.com.  

Nearby Little Flower Home--1936

The Little Flower neighborhood bounded by Sherman, Emerson, East 10th, and 16th Streets is located northwest of Irvington.  Home to hundreds of historic bungalows, the community is anchored by the Little Flower Catholic Church and School and Scecina High School.  Developed in the 1920s through the 1940s, the area remained stable while other nearby east side neighborhoods fell victim to crime and suburban flight.  Tidy small Arts and Crafts era and Tudor Revival homes still stand nearly ninety years later.   The community has a strong neighborhood association in 2012.

The Mulcahy Home at 1221 North DeQuincy Street in 1936

Bernard P. and Johanna Drury (Leland) Mulcahy moved from Terre Haute, Indiana, to Indianapolis along with their three-year-old son, Richard, and infant daughter, Patricia, in 1936.   Mr. Mulcahy was a chemist while Mrs. Mulcahy stayed at home and raised their growing family.  The Mulcahy's abode at 1221 North DeQuincy Street must have been one of the newer homes in Little Flower when they set up housekeeping.  Notice the Tudor Revival elements on the front of the home.  They would only live in the house for one year before moving to a larger place on the northeast side of Indianapolis.  This lovely home still stands in 2012 although the stucco and Tudor elements have been covered with vinyl siding. At some point, residents added a proper front porch something the Mulcahy's did not have in 1936.

This historic image is courtesy of Maureen Mulcahy Reichardt and this post is dedicated to the memory of her father, Richard Anthony Mulcahy.