Reunion at the White Farm--1937

The White family had been farming the land on the northeast corner of East Tenth and Shadeland Avenue for one hundred years when this photo was snapped in 1937.  All around them, neighbors sold their properties to developers and speculators who saw opportunities near the thriving community of Irvington. The Whites eventually developed part of their farm and called it Irving Ridge.  They planted crops until the 1940s.  This is the last known photo of the farmstead as it would be torn down by the early1950s for development.

Family Gathering 1937:  (left to right) Mary Nichols White, Vivian Azbell, Virginia White, Pearl White, Fanny Settles, Thomas Newton White and "Duke"

Duke the family dog patrols the White home located at East 10th and Shadeland Avenue in 1937

The historic images are courtesy of Barbara Sanders.  

White Family Farm at 10th and Shadeland

George Washington White and his wife Nancy, along with their children, and several of his siblings arrived in Warren Township via covered wagon in 1837.  The White family purchased land on what is today the northeast corner of East Tenth Street and Shadeland Avenue.  The Whites owned many acres and their farm stretched north to 13th Street. They first built a log cabin near present day East 11th Street and Shadeland Avenue. The family eventually built a tall nineteenth-century farmhouse that faced East 10th Street. The farm passed to Salathial Azur White and his wife Mary Nichols White and they continued to dwell on the farm well into the twentieth century.  The 1920 Atlas of Marion County reveals that S.A. White still owned 80 acres of valuable real estate. Speculators and developers had begun buying up the area for new neighborhoods.  The Whites held onto the property until the mid-twentieth century.  They had already sold off parts of the farm for a development along 11th and Shadeland by the 1940s.   The farmhouse was eventually torn down and the entire area was redeveloped.

Theses historic photos captured not only the White family, but also views of the farm. The historic images are courtesy of Barbara Sanders, a descendant of George Washington and Nancy White.

Salathial Azur White, the son of George Washington and Nancy White, posed with his wife Mary Nichols White c1890. The Whites lived in a farmhouse in the 7000 block of East 10th Street.   

Pearl and Thomas Newton White posed with their daughters, Virginia and Vivian, at the White Farmhouse in the 7000 block of East 10th street c1915.  Note the house and barn behind the couple.  T. Newton White was the son of Salahial and Mary White.  

Family Reunion c1910 at the White Farmhouse:  Pictured--top row (left to right) Salathial Azur White, Effie Dell Olvey Seymour, Mary Nichols White, Mary Ellen Spilker White, Otis Welton Seymour; bottom row:Crystal Seymour, Thomas Newtow White, Pearl Seymour White

Home from World War I:  Glen White in uniform with Thomas Newton White at the White Farm in the 7000 block of East 10th Street c1919.  

Proud Uncle:  Glen White holds Virginia and Vivian White at the White Farm in the 7000 block of East 10th Street c1919.

Easter 1922:  Virginia and Vivian White posed for a photo at their grandparent's home in the 7000 block of East 10th Street.  

Bruckmann Farm--1893

Many people in the neighborhood know of the Ellenberger Family, who farmed north of Irvington, but how many know of the Bruckmanns who farmed just to the east of the Ellenbergers at the northwest corner of East 10th and Arlington? Their land stretched all of the way to East 16th Street.

The Bruckmanns traveled from Darmstadt, Germany and lived in both Ohio and Illinois before moving to the 10th and Arlington area in the mid-1860s. They lived in a log cabin and eventually built this fine home for their twelve children. (nine lived to adulthood) The dwelling remained in the family until the 1950s when they sold it to Mr Guidone. The house was demolished and developers put in a commercial area. Some of the farm remains undeveloped in 2011.

This remarkable photo shows the Bruckmann Family in 1893. The younger generation dropped the second "n" from the name. Only three married and had children. Some of those descendants lived in and operated businesses in the Irvington area. Notice the lushness of the front yard. The matriarch of the family, Elizabeth Rush Bruckmann, a Virginian, whose parents immigrated from Prussia, maintained a beautiful garden.

Featured in this photo are: (Standing from left to right) John Buckmann, Jr., Barbara Huber Bruckmann, Phil Bruckmann (also known as Shorty), Leana Bruckmann, Carey Bruckman (sadly, she died three weeks after this photo), Joseph Bruckmann, Kate Bruckmann, William Bruckmann, and Mary Bruckmann

(Seated from left to right) George Washington Bruckman holding Albert Bruckman, Bessie Helen Bruckman, John Daniel Bruckman, John Bruckmann, Sr., Elizabeth Rush Bruckmann

Today, it is difficult to imagine this beautiful Eden as this area along East 10th Street is now filled with concrete block commercial buildings and asphalt, but at one time it must have been one of the loveliest places to ride by on a leisurely outing either in a carriage or Model T. I am indebted to Don Rouse for the stories and this amazing photo.