Brookville Village Opened in 1949

      Four years after the end of World War II, the city of Indianapolis faced a housing shortage. Prices for existing homes remained out of reach for many residents. War-time shortages in certain sectors had hindered development, but that soon would change as developers purchased vacant land on the outskirts of the city. By the late 1940s, most of the land around Irvington had been developed, but there were still opportunities. Many acres east of South Audubon Road, west of Arlington Avenue, north of Brookville Road, and south of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad sat vacant on what was formerly the Shimer and Hartman family farms. 

     Developers Louis and Mildred Markun purchased the land and came up with a novel idea. They saw an opportunity that could benefit the city and would-be home buyers. The Markuns planned to build dozens of prefabricated homes and sell the properties for modest prices. For $400 dollars as a downpayment and $40 a month, local residents could own a piece of the American dream.  The houses ranged in cost from $6000 to $6400. An Indianapolis News article praised the couple for helping to ease the housing shortage in the city. Mildred Markun took the lead on the project. She had already made a name for herself as leader. Mayor John Kern had appointed her as only the third woman on the Park Board in 1935. Governor Henry Schricker appointed her to several other boards.  When a reporter questioned her about leading such an endeavor she responded that she "would rather be in business than just keeping house." 

     The Markuns hired Detroit architect Richard Pollman to design the homes. They employed Emanuel Farley & Son to construct the modest two and three bedroom dwellings.  The first house open to the public was at 515 South Audubon Road. The residence, painted white with green shutters, served as the model for the neighborhood. An Indianapolis Star article featured the house on March 20, 1949. The two-bedroom home, erected on a slab, had hardwood floors throughout and asphalt tile in the kitchen and bathroom. Mr. Pollman designed a large picture window in the living room along with a dinette and a utility room. Contractor Farley insulated the home. The house came with a forced-air Silent Sioux oil heating system and a waterheater. The kitchen was described as "streamlined" with an American 64" sink and steel kitchen cabinets. Mrs. Markun worked with Wm. H. Block Department Store to furnish the spec house. 

     Hundreds of people toured the house and the development during the open house. Many of those who walked through the residence worked across the street at the International Harvester plant. To say that the venture was a success might be an understatement.  In one week, the Markuns sold 153 houses to families and individuals. Their million-dollar investment proved to be a sound one. They later built other subdivisions north of Irvington. The small homes have served the community for nearly 80 years. Most of them have been altered or enlarged over time. 

Aerial shot of the intersection of Shimer and South Graham Avenues, 1949 (courtesy of Bass Co. Photo Collection, Indiana Historical Society)

Aerial photograph of Brookville Village located north of the International Harvester factory, 1949; The wide street is Brookville Road. In the distance, you can see the homes along South Arlington Avenue and those located north of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. (courtesy of Bass Photo Co. Photo Collection, Indiana Historical Society)

Two historical homes are visible in this aerial shot of Brookville Village in 1949. In the foreground you can see the home belonging to the Sutter family at 5718 Brookville Road. It is no longer standing. In the distance you can see the former Hartman farmhouse at 5802 Brookville Road. It is still standing in 2026. The Meyer family lived there in 1949. New homes along Shimer Avenue, South Graham Avenue, and Greenfield Avenue awaited their new homeowners. (courtesy of the Bass Co. Photo Collection, Indiana Historical Society)

Aerial photograph of new homes along Shimer, Greenfield, and Arlington Avenues in 1949; (courtesy of Bass Photo Co., Indiana Historical Society)

Aerial photograph of Brookville Village located in southern Irvington, 1949 (photo courtesy of Bass Photo Co., Indiana Historical Society)

Ad for Brookville Village spec home at 515 South Audubon Road (Indianapolis Star, March 20, 1949, p. 72)

515 South Audubon Road served as the model home for the Brookville Village subdivision. (Google Streetview, August, 2022)

Mildred Markun served as the lead developer on the Brookville Village subdivision. (Indianapolis Star, October 31, 1943, p. 59)

Sources:  Brookville Village--Roger Budrow, "Million-Dollar Subdivision Due With 170 Homes," Indianapolis News, January 7, 1949, p. 1; "Brookville Village," Indianapolis News, January 10, 1949, p. 10; "Brookville Village Housing Project To Be Open Sunday," Indianapolis Star, March 18, 1949, p. 43; "154 Homes Sold in Housing Project," Indianapolis Star, March 27, 1949, p. 27; "$6,400 Homes Are 'Sold Out'," Indianapolis News, March 22, 1949, p. 1; Mildred Markun--Lotys Benning Stewart, "They Achieve," Indianapolis Star, October 31, 1943, p. 54; Louis Markun--"Louis Markun Dies; Apartment Builder," Indianapolis Star, November 1, 1973, p. 61. 

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. 

Many Changes to Emerson Avenue Home Over the Years

      In the spring of 1903, Charles O. and Jessie Pearl Shimer sold several lots on Auvergne Avenue in southwestern Irvington for $5000. Mr. Shimer grew up on land nearby along Brookville Road. The couple then purchased lots 3 and 4 on the northwest corner of South Emerson and University Avenues from Dr. Richard Stone for $1,210. It is unclear if the Queen Anne cottage was already on the lot or if the Shimers had it built. Dr. Stone, whose address was on Alabama Street, operated out of an office at 222 South Emerson Avenue. The Shimers had a fantastic view of the Butler campus across the street. Mr. Shimer worked as a postal clerk for the Railway Mail Service. An article in the Indianapolis News in 1905 noted that he received a pay raise and earned $1000 a year. 

     The Shimers had two children, Edna Rae and William Ralph. It appears that both kids went by their middle name like their mother. The city of Indianapolis had already annexed Irvington by 1903 so the Shimers were likely hoping for improvements along Emerson Avenue. In the summer of 1906, the city awarded a contract to brick Emerson Avenue. Street workers began the process, but something happened and for over one year no one could get up or down the street. Frustrated residents who could not get their fuel or groceries delivered met at the Shimer home on July 5, 1907, to plan a course of action. The city eventually got its act together and finished the street. 

    Both Charles and his son, Ralph, witnessed two separate tragedies while living in the cottage. On the night of October 3, 1913, Charles Shimer noticed a light on at Dr. Richard F. Stone's office next door at 222 South Emerson Avenue. The Shimers had purchased the land for their home from Dr. Stone. Charles looked into the window and could see Dr. Stone's lifeless body on the floor. He summoned another neighbor, Joseph Ostrander, who lived at 216 South Emerson Avenue, to help pry open a window. The men were overcome by gas fumes and nearly passed out. Authorities who arrived on the scene could not save the elderly physician. A debate then ensued in the local press. Some thought that because the doctor had received some bad health and financial news that he deliberately turned on the gas to commit suicide, but his family maintained that he likely left the gas on as he was cooking his dinner. The doctor's office had four rooms and he sometimes spent the night there instead of at his Alabama Street home. We shall never know the truth. 

     Two years later, seventeen-year-old Ralph Shimer along with his cousin Thomas Shimer, and their friend Richard Rubush were hanging out along a fence row near the intersection of the Pennsylvania Railroad and Downey Avenue. While they were there, a slow moving freight train passed along one of the tracks. Ralph happened to notice Butler University student, Harold Howe Higbee, pacing along the train. Then, much to his surprise, he saw Higbee deliberately dive under the fourth car. The young man instantly died. Ralph testified to what he saw to authorities. Once again a debate emerged. Did Harold Higbee commit suicide? The general consensus from most people at the time was that he was trying to cross under the slow-moving train and made a costly error. 

     During the decades that the Shimers resided in the home, they did make some changes. In the autumn of 1915, the Shimers took out a building permit for a garage and they would need it as they purchased a Hudson Super-Six one year later. An ad in the Indianapolis News that year listed several people who purchased the same car in the city including the well-known author, Booth Tarkington. In the summer of 1921, the Shimers took out a building permit for an addition to the home. They may have also added the wrap-around porch at this time as well. 

     Mrs. Shimer died in 1934. Mr. Shimer lived another nine years before passing away in 1943. Their children sold the house to Lee Roy and Velma Smith. The Smiths dramatically altered the residence as Mr. Smith worked for the Stonekote Company. He placed ads in the local newspapers touting the veneer product and he completely sheathed the older home with the product. The house reflects the Smith era, but the photographs below show what the home used to look like prior to the remodeling. 

Edna Rae and William Ralph Shimer along with a family dog posed on the front porch of 230 South Emerson Avenue c1915 after a significant snowstorm. Both children went by their middle names. (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

The Shimer home at 230 South Emerson Avenue, c1915, sat across the street from Butler University. The empty lot next door was not developed until the spring of 1925 when Frederick Mertz built the double at 224-226 South Emerson Avenue. (Indianapolis Times, April 21, 1925, 11) The small structure in the photograph served as a doctor's office for Richard Stone at 222 South Emerson Avenue. You can also see the two-story home at 218 South Emerson Avenue. 

Ralph Shimer c1910 standing in the backyard of 230 South Emerson Avenue (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer) 

Edna Rae Shimer posed with two other young women c1915 at 230 South Emerson Avenue. (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Edna Rae, William Ralph, and Jessie Pearl Shimer c1910 at 230 South Emerson Avenue. (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

On April 12, 1940, a member of the Shimer family snapped an image of 230 South Emerson Avenue after a spring snowstorm. You can see that the porch had been changed and that the double at 224-226 South Emerson Avenue had been constructed on the formerly empty lot. The Shimers witnessed many changes along the street including the closing of Butler University and the redevelopment of the site. 

Lee Roy Smith worked for the Stonekote Corporation out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He clad 230 South Emerson Avenue in the veneer "stone" material. (Indianapolis Star, April 3, 1949)

Google Streetview of 230 South Emerson Avenue with the veneer "stone-like" material on the home. (August, 2019) 

     I wish to thank Chris Shimer and Anne Hardwick for their help with this post. 

Sources:  Land sales and purchases--Indiana Tribune, May 22, 1903, 4 and May 28, 1904, 4; Obituary for Jessie Pearl Shimer--Indianapolis Star, May 31, 1934, 3; Obituary for Charles O. Shimer--Indianapolis News, September 25, 1943, 9; Charles Shimer pay raise--Indianapolis News, July 24, 1905, 7; Emerson Avenue problems--Emerson Avenue Meeting," Indianapolis News, July 3, 1907, 5; Dr. Richard Stone death--"Doctor Dies in Gas-Filled Room," Indianapolis Star, October 4, 1913, 3; Building permits--Indianapolis Star, September 25, 1915 and Indianapolis Star, July 3, 1921, 26; Harold Howe Higbee Death--"Ralph Shimer Tells How Higbee Met Death," Indianapolis News, October 28, 1915, 3.