Graham Avenue in the 1920s

The first folks who moved along the 700 block of Graham Avenue must have felt like they moved into the country. Farm land still existed all around them as developers took advantage of the "roaring" economy to build homes in the area. Sometime in 1923 or 1924, Walter Jenney stood atop a hill on his property at 5702 Pleasant Run Parkway and took a photograph facing eastward. Not one home had yet been built in the 700 block of North Audubon Road. Four houses can been seen on Graham Avenue and one on Pleasant Run Parkway. At the far left in the photo, you can see the rear stuccoed bungalow at 750 North Audubon Road. Across the the street, you can see the lovely residence at 747 North Audubon Road. In the middle of the photo, you can see the front of 731 North Audubon Road and the rear of 734 North Audubon Road. At the far right, the rear of 5744 East Pleasant Run Parkway is visible. By the end of the decade, the entire area would be developed with only a few lots open for later construction. Some of the earliest families to dwell along Graham Avenue in the 1920s included the Wrights, Steinbuchs, the Flowers, and the Carsons. To see aerial photos of this part of the neighborhood click on the "aerial" tab below.

Few houses had yet been built in the 700 block of North Graham Avenue in 1923 or 1924 when this photo was snapped by Walter Jenney. In  the photo, you can see 750.747, 734, and 731 North Graham Avenue as well as the rear of 5744 East Pleasant Run Parkway. Audubon Road was a mere path behind the fence line in the middle of the photo and near a clump of trees.  (Photo courtesy of Ann Schmidt Brown)

750 North Graham Avenue in 2018: You can see the rear of this home in the historic photograph.

747 North Graham Avenue (photo taken in 2014)

734 North Graham Avenue: You can see the rear of this home in the historic photograph. (Image taken in 2014)

731 North Graham Avenue (Image taken in 2014)

5744 East Pleasant Run Parkway (Image taken in 2014)

Editor's Note: Narrowing down a date for the historic photo has been tricky. Since none of the houses along Audubon would be constructed until 1925, Mr. Jenney likely took the photo either in 1923 or 1924. The city directories offer some confusing options as some of the addresses do not match. Clearly more research will be needed to be more precise. I am particularly indebted to Todd Cloud, Ann Schmidt Brown, and Chris and Felicia Sears.

Aerial Photograph of Irvington--Winter of 1908

A small crowd gathered on Butler College's (now University) Irwin Field in the winter of 1908. Were they watching a football scrimmage?  A game? A practice? One lone automobile--a rarity in those days--parked near the tall fence. The unknown photographer snapped this image for the 1909 Butler Drift. 

The photographer faced east so the most visible street in the picture is that of Ohmer Avenue as it snakes its way towards Downey Avenue. The dwelling closest to the photographer with intersecting gables and a long front porch still stands at 307 Ohmer Avenue. The barn or outbuilding associated with the property is long gone. Note that there are no other homes along the north side of Ohmer Avenue. On the south side of Ohmer Avenue, the most visible home is that of 5338 Ohmer Avenue. (Near the fence by the athletic fields)  If you look closely, you can see the rear of the Benton House at 312 Downey Avenue along with other nearby homes.  The smaller residences at the far right of the photo face Burgess Avenue.  The football field and green space would later be developed in the 1940s into housing.

Ohmer, Downey, and Burgess Avenues near the the Butler University football field in 1908

North Irvington Garden District Roared With the 1920s

By the time this aerial photographer flew over northern Irvington in 1925, the neighborhood was already 55 years old. Calvin Coolidge was President of the United States and Butler University still operated in western Irvington.  The community was no longer a remote suburb.  The city of Indianapolis boomed throughout the early twentieth century and eventually caught up to the formerly independent town.  Street car lines traversed the formerly quiet enclave and nearly every lot in the original development had been built upon. However, north of Pleasant Run Parkway, speculators saw gold.  Vast open meadow and farmland still awaited and the need for land was great.

After World War I ended, developers began to clear and improve land east of Ritter Avenue, west of Arlington Avenue, south of Tenth Street, and north of Pleasant Run Parkway.  They put in the first streets by extending Campbell, Bolton, Graham, Audubon, and others.  They discarded the curvy streets popularized in the late nineteenth century in the southern part of the neighborhood for more conventional avenues on a grid.  They built modern houses complete with electricity, updated plumbing, and detached garages. Tudor and Dutch-Revival dwellings were the rage in the United States in the 1920s although many still preferred bungalows and American Four Square homes. Stucco became a popular building material.

Aerial photography became popular in the 1920s just as drone photography has become the rage in the 2010s. Three views of this large photograph reveals the first homes to be built in the North Irvington Garden District. You will be able to get your bearings once you understand that the large avenue cutting through the middle of the photograph is Pleasant Run Parkway. It dead ended into Arlington Avenue. (and still does) You will notice that the Pleasant Run Golf Course was not quite finished yet.  In the upper left corner of the photograph, you can see the Anderson Cemetery along East 10th Street.  Note that Warren Park had not been developed yet!  The streets visible in this part of the photograph include Arlington Avenue (note no houses--just small trees), Campbell Avenue, Bolton Avenue, and Graham Avenue.  The developer had extended both Campbell and Bolton up to East 10th Street, but only a small part of St. Clair Street had been completed.  On the far right of the photo, you can see the older and more established part of the neighborhood.  You will get a better view of that section in the other two views of this photograph.

North Irvington Garden District of Irvington in 1925

The other two views of the same photograph show a more western and southern view of the area.  The large manses are located along the 400 block of North Audubon Road and in the 5700 block of East Michigan Street.  You will note that there was a bridge over Pleasant Run at Bolton Avenue. You will also note that there were no houses yet on the north side of Michigan Street from Bolton to Arlington Avenue.  You will see far more trees in the more established part of the neighborhood, but today the Garden District lives up to its lush name.

Northern Irvington in 1925

Northern Irvington in 1925

So, who were these "pioneers" who moved into the North Irvington Garden District?  Most of them were young and rising in their careers.  As the economy boomed, so did the fortunes of younger Americans.  You could also now buy so many things on credit including stocks! (Cue the ominous music!) Some of these Irvingtonians had actually....divorced!  Many of them spent the rest of their lives in these homes while others, for many reasons, stayed only a few years.  Undoubtedly, the Stock Market Crash of 1929 and subsequent Great Depression ended the dreams of many.  However, others continued to build throughout the worst economic downturn in American history. Let's take a tour of the homes featured in the above photo.

Campbell Avenue--North Irvington Garden District in 1925

Harry and Ruth Wofle dwelled in this lovely Tudor-Revival home at 726 North Campbell Avenue with their son Harry.  Mr. Wolfe was a sales manager for a bed spring manufacturing company.  

Delbert and Helen Giffin, both in their thirties, lived in 733 North Campbell Avenue with their daughter Betty. They later moved to Kenmore Road.  Mr. Giffin served as a personnel director for the P.R. Mallory Company.

Leroy and Florence Langdon, both in their twenties, resided at 739 North Campbell Avenue in 1925.  Mr. Langdon ran a hardware store and a drug store located in the 3800 block of East Washington Street.  He was also a pharmacist.

This small bungalow at 762 North Campbell has been altered and enlarged over the years.  A young couple, Frank and Eleanor Benson dwelled here in 1925, but they were gone by 1926.  Mr. Benson was a sales manager for the Long-Bell Lumber Company.  

Bolton Avenue--North Irvington Garden District in 1925

Room to play:  Kenneth and Francis Badger were the first to dwell along Bolton Avenue in the Garden District. They lived in this stuccoed bungalow at 729 North Bolton with their two daughters, Barbara and Judith. The girls had plenty of open space to use as a playground in 1925.

Graham Avenue--North Irvington Garden District in 1925

Halford and Edna Howland dwelled in this stuccoed bungalow at 719 North Graham Avenue in 1925. They actually built the house in 1919 making it one of the oldest homes in the district.  In 1930, their home was valued at $8,500.  

Charles O Fouts, a salesman, lived in this Dutch Colonial Revival at 723 North Graham Avenue in 1925.  More research is needed on this family.

Stephen and Audrey Steinbuch, a young couple, resided in this house at 731 North Graham Avenue in 1925. They had four children.  Mr. Steinbuch earned a comfortable living as a draftsman.  

Charles and Hazel Flowers, both in their forties, lived in this stuccoed beauty at 734 North Graham Avenue. The couple had four children. Mr. Flowers sold life insurance.  

Harvey and Lena Carson, both quite young, dwelled in this Craftsman stunner at 747 North Graham Avenue.  The couple had two small children and Mr. Carson's mother, Bertha Carson, also resided in the house.  

The Long family resided at 757 North Graham Avenue in 1925.  They were gone by 1926.  More research is needed on this family.  

Pleasant Run Parkway--North Irvington Garden District in 1925

Jesse and Elizabeth Pritchett dwelled in this beautiful stuccoed home at 5744 Pleasant Run Parkway (formerly numbered at 5720) in 1925.  The Pritchetts had one son, Jesse, Jr.  Mr. Pritchett worked as a manager for the I.J. Cooper Company, but eventually the family moved away to another neighborhood to open a bowling alley.  

Shock!  Most locals would have dated this house at 5774 Pleasant Run Parkway (formerly numbered 5764) from the 1950s, but believe it or not, you can see it in the aerial photograph from 1925. This stunningly modern home for the time also has a complicated history that will eventually need to be sorted out. Paul and Ethel Klieber built the home. Mr. Klieber ran the Klieber-Dawson Machine Company at 1620 East New York Street. The Kliebers divorced in the 1920s and he remarried. Mrs. Klieber continued to dwell in the house, but she listed herself as a widow in the 1930 Census despite the fact that Mr. Klieber was very much alive. If only those walls could speak!  

Throughout the late 1920s, dreamers built dozens of other beautiful homes throughout the North Irvington Garden District.  The area would be fully developed within twenty years. Today the sycamores and maples planted by those early folks tower over the neighborhood.  Google satellite imagery reveals that it actually looks more like a forest today than it did in 1925 when the area was wide open and ready for development.

The historic image is courtesy of the Warrenburg family.  

Aerial Photo Reveals Structures in Western Irvington-c1923

This stunning aerial photo, taken in the skies over Irvington around 1923, shows vast parts of the neighborhood.  The pilot from Weaver's Air Service must have used Downey Avenue Christian Church as his focus.  You will see that building towards the bottom of the photo.  This church predates the current structure on the site.  The Sunday School building south of the church is no longer standing.  Across the street, you can see the Scot Butler mansion at 124 Downey Avenue.  It was replaced in 1958 by a circular mid-century office building for the Disciples of Christ.  Most of the remaining structures in the photo still stand in 2013.  Our Lady of Lourdes Church, located in the center and left of the photo, is an earlier church structure.  Streets visible in this photo include:  Hibben Avenue, Julian Avenue, Downey Avenue, East Washington Street, North and South Irvington Avenue, Whittier Place, North Hawthorne Lane, Pleasant Run Parkway South Drive, Lowell Avenue, and Hill Street.   Many of the homes along Pleasant Run Parkway had not yet been built.

Aerial shot of western Irvington c1924 (click to make it larger)

Ninety Years Earlier...A Visit

We paused before a house that seemed

A swelling of the ground;

The roof was scarcely visible.

The cornice but a mound.

Emily Dickinson

Weaver's Air Service flew over Irvington in the winter of 1923 and snapped at least two aerial photos of the neighborhood.  This incredible image displayed today revealed homes along South Audubon Road, University Avenue, Oak Avenue, Dewey Avenue, and Beechwood Avenue.   While I did not have time to call upon every house in the picture, I asked Mr. Weaver to drop down so I could pay a visit to a few places.  How often does one get transported back in time?  I could not pass up this opportunity.    

Aerial Shot of southern Irvington in 1923 (click to make the photo larger)

I began my tour by trekking down the brick street of Audubon Road just south of the Irving Circle  (upper left of the photo) to pay my respects to the Thomas K. Canfield family at 269 South Audubon Road.  Mr. Canfield managed his own company and rented this lovely American-Four Square.  Adelaide Conte, a well-known music teacher, had just vacated the home. Many children in the neighborhood took vocal and instrumental lessons inside the cobblestoned dwelling.  The Canfields had just moved in so I decided not to dwell long, but I couldn't help but notice the solid stone fireplace in the living room and the beautiful oak woodwork.  

269 South Audubon Road in 1920

269 South Audubon in 2011

Next door, at 275 South Audubon Road, I noted that the Pi Beta Phi sorority girls were very welcoming.  Some young women were playing the piano while others were singing. They had only a short walk to classes at Butler University from this wonderful abode. The chapter president, Margaret Kellenbach, who welcomed me, had bobbed hair like most fashionable young women of the Roaring 20s.  The place was festooned in the colors of wine and silver blue.  Above the fireplace, hung the sorority motto, For Every Girl, A Man or Two.  Although it was difficult to leave this lively place, I decided to move on to my next stop.  

Pi Beta Phi House in 1923 at 275 South Audubon Road

Interior shot of Pi Beta Phi House at 275 South Audubon Road in 1923

Two doors down at 307 South Audubon Road, I was greeted by the Nichols.  William Nichol, the manager of the White Haine Optical Company, and his family were one of the many to call this high-class rental "home."  In fact, the place seemed to be a revolving door as at least nine other families had lived there since 1907.  It looked like the Nichols would not be staying long.  I saw that Mrs. Nichol was already packing some boxes. Another family, the Griffiths, had leased it for 1924.

307 South Audubon Road c1923

307 South Audubon Road in 2013

The tall Queen Anne home at 315 South Audubon Road had intrigued me for years.  I was surprised to learn that only three people lived here in 1923.  Forty-three-year-old Waller Filson and his thirty-two-year-old wife, Sarah, answered the door.  The couple told me that they had met back home in Pennsylvania, and that Waller's brother, Adna, who was 38, also lived here.  Both the Filson brothers worked for a local telegraph company.  Mr. Filson owned the home and of course, I knew that he and his wife would continue to dwell there for another twenty-five years.

315 South Audubon Road in 2013

I crossed the intersection of Oak Avenue and looked down the block.  I could see that the towering oaks provided a beautiful canopy for the street in 1923 just as they did in 2013.   At the southeast corner, I spotted the large Italianate at 325 South Audubon Road. Everyone in the neighborhood still called it the Howe home in 1923, although a new family, the Eberts, had just moved in.  The Howes were storied people and one of their descendants, Thomas Carr Howe, had served as the President of Butler University from 1908 to 1920.  The Eberts were very different from the Howes.  Otto and Lena both spoke German fluently.  Mr. Ebert worked as an engineer for the Irvington Ice and Coal Company on South Ritter Avenue. They raised most of their five children on Burgess Avenue, but Otto Jr. spent the majority of his teen years in this fine old home.  I bade them goodbye and was stunned when I walked out the door and headed south.

325 South Audubon Road in 2013

Where were the houses?  A huge empty lot sat south of the Howe-Ebert home.  The five bungalows that now occupy the site were not present in 1923.  In fact, there was a path that locals created to cut over to Beechwood Avenue on the vast green space.  Across the street, I saw more empty space.  Incredible! 

I crossed the intersection and paid my respects to the widow, Laura Weaver, who owned a Dutch-Colonial Revival duplex at 353-55 South Audubon Road.  Ms. Weaver had just turned 53 and had been alone for a while as her son had just moved out to start his adult life.  To make ends meet, she rented rooms on her side and leased out the other side to the Asbury family.  Joseph Asbury worked as a clerk for the rail lines.  He was 43 while his wife, Martha was 37.  Three young children certainly added a lot of life for the corner. Ms. Weaver would have been surprised had I informed her that by 2013, her home was no longer a double!  I decided that to keep that secret to myself.

353 South Audubon Road in 2013 (formerly 353-55)

My final stop for the day would be across the street.  The Hartig family dwelled at 358 South Audubon Road on the southwest corner of Audubon and Beechwood.  The tall home had been on the corner since the late nineteenth-century.  The Hartigs had been in the dwelling for at least ten years and they knew the Howes from the next the block.  Joel Hartig had a variety of jobs, but his most recent as a salesman of livestock, provided the most stability.  His son, Gravis, worked with him.  Martha, his wife, stayed home and helped to raise Marguerite, Alice, and Susanna.  I looked out a southern window in the parlor and I could see a beautiful bungalow that had just recently been built on a lot next to the Hartigs.  If Mrs. Hartig had opinion on the contrast of homes with hers towering and the new one hugging the ground, she didn't comment.  I longed to go upstairs and tour the entire place, but as I was not that familiar with the family, I did not think it pertinent to ask.

358 South Audubon Road in 2013

With so little time, I had to scurry back to Weaver's airplane.  I was disappointed that I could not jog down some of the other streets.  Off in the distance, I noted the chimney stack of the Children's Guardian Home.  I had been told that over fifty "inmates," as they were called in 1923, had refuge there.  I wished I could warn Mr. and Mrs. Oberholzter, who lived across the street from the Guardian Home on University Avenue, about the dangers that awaited their daughter Madge.  If only I could tell them that in two years the lovely State House secretary would meet a horrible fate at the hands of the brutal Ku Klux Klan leader D. C. Stephenson.  Madge, do not go to his house! Perhaps on another visit? Mr. Weaver had grown impatient with me as it was time to return to the "present."  Our plane banked right and I looked down one more time at 1923.....  

One Year and Still Going Strong! Aerial Photo of Irvington in 1970

Vintage Irvington reached a milestone this week. One year ago I jumped into the idea of creating a blog dedicated to documenting Irvington's historic and near recent past. I was not sure if I would have enough material, but thanks to all of you the photos, letters, journals, and pieces of ephemeral keep coming. Send me scanned photos of your family's home! I would love to profile and celebrate your Irvington heritage. You may reach me at sleeth28@rock.com.

In honor of the one year anniversary, I hope you enjoy this aerial photo taken of Irvington in 1970. The pilot hovered just above the tower of Our Lady of Lourdes Church so that the photographer could take a south and slightly southeastern shot of the neighborhood. Some of the structures seen in the photo are no longer standing and folks in that part of Irvington will also notice trees that have come and gone since 1970. This photo first appeared in Gertrude Hecker Winder's book, A Glimpse of Irvington Then and Now, 1870-1970.