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.

Sigma Chi Fraternity Images 1913-1915

The Sigma Chi Rho Chapter has been a part of Butler University's three campuses since 1865. When the college moved to Irvington in 1875, the fraternity followed. By 1913, the club had eleven active members and several pledges. They lived in a variety of houses throughout Irvington. Howard Caldwell, Sr, for instance, resided at his family's home at 30 North Bosart Avenue. The club leased  a room at Moore's Hall, formerly located at 130 South Audubon Road, for their chapter meetings. Both the Butler Collegian and Indianapolis News reported in 1913 that the men of Sigma Chi had the highest GPA of any of the fraternities on campus with an average of 73.04%. Of course, the campus average was 75.5% and the Delta Pi Omega Sorority had an average of 82%.

Each year the club sponsored a dance. In 1913, a Sigma Chi alum managed to secure the Columbia Club in downtown Indianapolis for the event. In 1914, they held the dance at the Propylaeum on North Delaware Street. A formal photo from 1913 shows the men in standard pose while other photos reveal the more candid and playful side of the group.

Sigma Chi Rho Chapter Butler University 1913, front row: Joseph Ostrander, Robert Buck, Murray Matthews, Dan Trone, Robert J. Masters; second row: Howard C. Caldwell, Sr., Carlos Bonham, Halsey R. Keeling,  Bruce Robison, Carbs Harrison,  Kenneth Barr (photo courtesy of Ginny Hingst)

Members of the Sigma Chi fraternity at gathered at the north end of Butler's campus in1913 near the Pennsylvania Railroad. Behind the men you, can see the residence at 143 South Butler and the double at 137-39 South Butler Avenue. We only know the names of a few of the young men. Seated in front: ?; Second row: ?, ?; Third Row:  ?,?, Robert J. Masters; Fourth row: ?, Dan Trone, Howard C. Caldwell, Sr,; Top row: ?, Halsey Keeling, ? (photo courtesy of Ginny Hingst)

The members of Sigma Chi gathered for this photo most likely in 1913. The building next to the young men was possibly the Butler Observatory located at the northern end of the campus near the Pennsylvania Railroad. Howard C. Caldwell, Sr. is standing next to the building. Looking up to him is Halsey Keeling. We do not know the names of the other in the men in the photo yet. (photo courtesy of Ginny Hingst) 

Howard Caldwell, Sr. lived at 30 North Bosart Avenue with his parents although tragedy struck the family when his father, Benjamin Caldwell, died in 1913 at the 47. (photo courtesy of Ginny Hingst)

Howard Caldwell, Sr. graduated from Butler University in 1915. He was a writer and would later run his own advertising agency. (photo courtesy of Ginny Hingst)

Sources:  "Sigma Chi Plan Luncheon," Indianapolis Star, November 28, 1913, 13; "Ella Weaver Heads Honors List at Butler," Indianapolis News, April 17, 1913, 4

I am indebted to Ginny Hingst, the granddaughter Howard C. Caldwell, Sr., for these images.

Growing Up Along Downey Avenue

Anton and Ruth Fulton Sohn, who resided at 378 South Downey Avenue, had four children named  Annalouise, Anton Paul, William (Bill) Peter, and Robert Fulton Sohn. The family's modest bungalow became a gathering site for many of the neighboring children; however, the entire area served as their playground in the late 1930s and throughout the 1940s.

Kelly's Fish Pond c1940: Located behind 364 South Ritter Avenue, remnants of the fish pond still remain in 2019. Pictured in the photo (left to right): Bill Sohn, Joan Williams, Rita ?, Anton Sohn, Annalouise Sohn (photo courtesy of Bill Sohn)

Bill Sohn drove his first "car" in 1941 next to his home at 378 South Downey Avenue. He would later save up enough  money while working at the local Standard Grocery at the southwest corner of Washington and Audubon to buy his first real car while still in high school. Standing next to him donning a great hat is Anton Sohn.  (Photo courtesy Bill Sohn)

Children gathered in the back lot of 378 South Downey Avenue for this photo likely taken in 1939. Pictured (top row, left to right): Lyle Hanna, Dick Wickliff, unidentified adult, Ralph Williams, Leo Scheibelhut; (Front Fow, left to right): Joan Williams, Annalouise Sohn, Anton Sohn, Bill Sohn  (photo courtesy Bill Sohn)

Perfect for climbing, hanging down, or gymnastics, Anton and Ruth Fulton placed this playground piece into their backyard at 378 South Downey Avenue around 1940. If you look at the photo closely, you will see numerous kids on it! (photo courtesy of Bill Sohn)

As the children grew older, they were allowed to wander farther from their home. The Sohn brothers, Anton and Bill, loved to visit two nearby "woods." The first plot of nature was actually across the street from their home on the north west corner of Ritter and Downey Avenues. The forested lot belonged to the Stultz family at the time who lived next to the woods at 340 South Ritter Avenue. The second natural area stood east of Ritter Avenue, south of Burgess Avenue, and north of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. Later this area would be developed into a small subdivision. The wooded plots served as the perfect place to explore nature. Both boys later joined the Boy Scouts.

Annalouise, Anton, and Bill Sohn posed for this photograph in 1941. Behind them, you can see the small woods that used to be across from their home at 378 South Downey Avenue. Next to the trees, you can see the side of the bungalow at 373 South Downey Avenue. 

Although forbidden, the grounds of the former Butler University also proved to be an enticing to visit. By the late 1930s, the campus had been abandoned and some of the empty structures proved to be perfect places to explore and have egg fights with other neighborhood boys. Dr. Anton Sohn described the abandoned college in his family memoir titled, The Straight and Narrow (1992):

     In the 40s the campus was in ruins: there were two buildings, twenty-five acres of hills and rouble, and a caved-in well. In one of the three story classroom buildings was a small apartment--the rest of the structure was in shambles--where a caretaker and his family lived. They shared the building with hundreds of pigeons. 

 The nearby Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and many of the local businesses associated with that line also proved intriguing for the neighborhood kids. During World War II, the children would run to the tracks to wave to troops who were passing through Irvington on their way to or from the war. A nearby apple orchard along Burgess Avenue also provided some delicious and healthy snacks.

In 1950, Mr. Sohn allowed the construction of a new basketball court towards the rear of their lot. The entire endeavor seemed to be a community event as even a nearby neighbor, George Harris, who resided at 364 South Downey Avenue and worked for the telephone company, provided the goal post. The court became so popular among the neighboring boys that occasionally the Sohns had to wait in line to get court time. Later, Bill wired up a light so that they could also play at night. Both the concrete pad and the telephone post still remain in 2019.

The Sohn brothers along with their cousin William Fulton were very active with the local Boy Scouts. (photo and names courtesy of Anton Sohn) 

Anton and Bill Sohn had a few basketball courts on their property at 378 South Downey Avenue. The early courts were gravel and could be painful for those who took a fall. Later, the family built a proper court towards the rear of the property. (photo courtesy of Anton Sohn)

In 1950, the Sohns added a brand new concrete basketball court. Anton worked as an intern for  the Glenroy Construction Company while he was in high school so the company provided the labor and Ready Mix Concrete donated the concrete for the pad. Behind the court, you can see the rear of several homes in the 300 block of South Ritter Avenue.

Their neighbors, the Wickliffs, Kirkhoffs, the Harrises, and the Masters and others are all gone now, but their memories recently came back to life as Bill Sohn and I strolled along Downey Avenue on a beautiful June morning in 2019. We stood in front of the former Sohn home and Bill told me of the giant willow, walnut, oak, silver maple, and catalpa trees that used to be on the lot. A medical facility now stands across the street where the small grove of trees used to be. The alley next to their home is still gravel just as it was over seventy years ago. We chuckled as we spoke of one former neighbor who had no patience for children as she constantly shooed them away from her yard. On this morning, Downey Avenue was quiet with the only noticeable sounds coming from the cardinals and robins who, like us, were out enjoying the morning.

Bill Sohn plays with his pet bunny in the spring of 1941. Unfortunately, the rabbit bit Mr. Sohn and later became dinner for the family.  (photo courtesy of Bill Sohn) 

I am indebted to Bill and Anton Sohn, who opened both their photo collections and memories to me.