A Gathering in Christian Park c1930

Located in southwestern Irvington, Christian Park has been an important recreational site for the neighborhood since 1921. The land belonged to the Christian family for many years. The Christians lived north of the site on Brookville Road in a beautiful nineteenth-century brick residence. Eventually, Wilmer and Edna Christian donated the land to the city for a park.

Sometime either in the summer of 1930 or 1931, the Stewart family gathered in Christian Park at 4200 English Avenue for a photograph. Harry and Margaret Stewart lived across the street at 3939 English Avenue. Mr. Stewart was a veteran of World War One and worked as a railroader. Mrs. Stewart stayed home and raised the couple's three children, Martha, Hazel, and Harry (Bud) Jr.

The Stewart family c1930 in Christian Park: (Left to Right) Margaret, Martha, Hazel, Harry Jr., and Harry Sr. 

Christian Park at sunset on February 21, 2017 (photo: William Gulde)

The Christian family, for whom the park is named, dwelled in this lovely home along Brookville Road for many decades in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. 

The historic photo is courtesy of Kenn Reinhardt.  

IPS #85 Images--1948 and 1951

By the late 1920s, southern Irvington was largely developed.  With the construction of numerous homes, many younger families moved into the neighborhood necessitating the erection of School #85 in the 300 block of South Arlington.  Completed in 1928, the school was named for music teacher and author George B. Loomis.  Mr. Loomis had published music books for school students and his textbooks were widely used around the United States.  He eventually became Superintendent of Music for all of the Indianapolis Public Schools.

School #85 in the 300 block of South Arlington on April 14, 2013

Entrance to School #85 

In the third image, taken in 1948, several boys gathered at the front doors of School #85. Some of the boys have been identified as:  Duane Whipple, Bruce Stewart, Jim Kollicher, Jim Burk, Bob Reed, Jerry Semler, Wayman Acres, John Robertson, and Chuck Vogt.

Several boys from School #85 (South Arlington) gathered for a photo in 1948

The fourth image, taken in 1951, shows the eighth grade class of 1951. Pictured: Front Row--L to R-David Wright, Duane Whipple, Bill Ebert, Jim Koelliker, Jean Ann Edens, John Robertson, Bob Reed. Top Row:  Suzanne Hoffman, Chuck Vogt, Lee Koertge, ?, ?, Jim Burk, Charlene Settles.  If you recognize anyone else from this photo then drop me a note at williamfranklingulde@gmail.com.

Members of the eighth grade class of 1951 from School #85

The contemporary images show the school in 2013.  The building has been readapted for offices and is in remarkable shape.  The historic images are courtesy of Chuck and Joyce Vogt.

School #85 on April 14,  2013

McCleish Dance Studio--1973

This gem of an artifact reveals many names of Irvington children who tapped and danced their way through childhood. Marjorie McCleish ran a dance studio at 5624 East Washington Street. Her students worked very hard and on June 9, 1973, they performed for their parents and the community at Manual High School. Perhaps some of our readers also took lessons from Mrs. McCleish. Feel free to share your memories! This program is courtesy of Amy Stewart Friedly. Mrs. McCleish's studio has seen several incantations. In 2011, it is the home of Homespun, a shop dedicated to selling local arts crafts.

The Talented Women of 314 N. Graham Avenue

For over fifty years, the talented Kern-Hanger and Stewart women dwelled at 314 N. Graham Avenue. As early as 1907, 71-year old Angelina Allegre Kern and her extended family lived in the house. The 1910 census reveals that the 34-year old widow, Lela K. (sometimes spelled Lila) Hanger as the head of the house. She worked as a "pay officer" and clerk for a local business. Her mother, Angelina or "Anna" still lived in the house. Lela's six-year old daughter Mary Elizabeth shared the house with her 39-year old aunt, Katherine Seldombridge and her cousin 16-year old Beatrice Seldomridge. Much of what we know about the early years of the house comes from a published diary by the grown-up Mary Elizabeth (Ramier) titled My Diary 1916-1922, (Triangle Press, Indianapolis, 1991). Mrs. Ramier was 87 years old at the time of the publication. Her diary is available at the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library. Her journal is much of what you would expect from a teenage girl living in Irvington. She laments about her relationship with her grandmother, the boys she liked, and her life at school. She gives some wonderful morsels about life in the neighborhood. On January 1, 1919, she wrote:

So we were walking along Layman Avenue when bells rang, whistles blew, and a cornet blew something. Thus we ushered in 1919.

On September 7, 1911, her mother Lela married Frank J. Richmann. It was a second marriage for both of them and they eventually moved to 26 South Arlington. The elder Angelina Kern lived well into her 90s and recalled her early life in an Indianapolis News (March 13, 1926) article as having grown up in a log cabin fifty miles from Cincinnati. Mary Elizabeth would later go on to Butler, the University of Illinois, and the John Marshall Law School (Chicago).

The next group of women to live in the cottage came when the Stewart ladies arrived in 1912. A brief legal notice on April 12, 1912, in the Indianapolis Star revealed that Alta M. Stewart purchased 314 N. Graham for $2,250. She was a widow and 45 years old at the time of the purchase. The other Stewart women who moved into the home included 23-year old Marie, 16-year old Hester S., and 11-year old Marian P. By 1920, all three girls served as teachers for the Indianapolis Public Schools. Marie, a talented artist, worked at a variety of schools including at Shortridge High School. As a high school student in 1906, she won a competition to design a commemorative plaque honoring Abraham Lincoln. Although it has been moved several times, you can now (2011) see it on display at the Indiana Government Center in downtown Indianapolis. You may read more about the sculpture in Remembrance, Faith, and Fancy by Glory June Greiff. (Indianapolis, 2005)

By 1930, only Alta and Marie remained in the house. In June of 1922, Marian married Edward Huger Carpenter of Charleston, South Carolina. It is unclear at this point as to what became of Hester. Marie remained active in the art world. She was a member of the Sketching Club and she frequently hosted events at her Graham Avenue home. In November of 1913, she and fellow member Roda E. Selleck gave a talk on "Colonial Architecture." At the same meeting, Edith Newbacher presented "The Dutch Farmhouse in New Jersey." The club met off and on at the Stewart cottage throughout the 1910s and 20s. She frequently entered and won art competitions at the Indiana State Fair. The Stewarts would live in the house for 42 years.

The historic photo shows Angelina Allegre Kern standing with her granddaughter Mary Elizabeth Hanger (1903-1994) in front of 314 North Graham Avenue in 1907. The contemporary photo reveals the house in 2011. I am indebted to Jeff Jernigan for the images and research for this story.