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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2010 12:50:23 GMT -5
David,
That video of the Interurbans sounds really interesting, it would be great if you could burn some copies of it. I do have a book, Electric Railroads of Indiana, it has a lot of real good photos and you are welcome to it any time.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2010 13:07:45 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Apr 6, 2010 17:07:52 GMT -5
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jabaker
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Post by jabaker on Jun 15, 2010 15:25:16 GMT -5
The interurban ran very close to the area I grew up in. I lived in SandCreek township, just north of Mineral Springs. George posted a picture of the interurban "electrical" station just south of Azalia. There was another building like this north of Azalia way out in the middle of a field. I'm sure it must be gone by now. If you look at GoogleEarth you can kind of make out the line of the rails. I was always told they ran along the power line. It would make sense the powerlines were ran there since a right of way already existed for the interurban. I can also remember some of the local farmers would run across buried debris from the interurban when working in the fields. There is a little story in one of my parents County history books. There was a one room brick school house on the corner between our farm and the road down to Mineral Springs, which was torn down in the early 60's. The story said that one of the teachers who taught there lived in Franklin and rode the interurban every day to the school. So there must have been a stop within walking distance. OK just took a peek at GE and it looks like the other station was northwest of the Azalia school. Looks like the debris or ruins are there. The route, if is is the same as the powerline also ran very close to the house of an old childhood friend. Her house was a huge Victorian that was rumored to have once been a hotel or guesthouse. If this were true I wonder if it was because of the interurban?
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Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2010 20:48:14 GMT -5
Hi jabaker,
Welcome aboard our website, I'm sure you will enjoy it very much. I have took quit an interest in the interurban having rode on it as a child. I believe the electrical station that you refer to is in Azalia, on the south side. I have been trying to place your home place, my grandparents lived in the first house east of the brush creek bridge on the north side of the road, which is 400s or now the Southern Bypass. The house across from them was the Day Place.This was about 1940, I know before your time, but at that time the interurban I was told made a stop at the intersection of Mineral Springs Rd. and road 400 south.
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jabaker
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Post by jabaker on Jun 16, 2010 8:15:35 GMT -5
Thanks for the welcome. Now I am trying to picture your grandparent's place! I don't recall any houses on the north side of the road east of the bridge, only the Forster place on the corner at Hwy 31, . The bridge you are referring to is the one east of 250E and 400S? Just north of Mineral Springs? Other than our farm and Cliff Schidt's place on the corner, I can't remember any other houses on the north side of the road. The name Day does seems to ring a bell. The Moores lived in a big brick house down a lane east of the bridge but that was on the south side of the road. I wonder if it is still there. Their daughter Patty went to school with my brothers. From the intersection of 250E and 400S, go west on 400S. Our farm was on the north side of the road, before you crossed the Armuth Ditch. "across" the road from us diagonally would have been the Newsom place. We never owned the farm. It was owned by Ed Armuth. The people that rented there before us were name Risk and before that, not sure. At one point I think Ed Armuth did live there, but maybe as a young boy or a newly married young man. You're right, 1940 was a little before my time, I was born in 1953. If there was an interurban stop at that intersection, then it was right at the school. I can remember when the power lines were put in and seeing the men in my Dad's field putting up the steel towers. They also put in some sort of a pipeline crossing 400S between our house and 250E. There was a huge tulip tree there. It was never in very good shape, it eventually died and was cut down in the 60's. When I was very young, part of it was already dead and only about half of had leaves and bloomed. We had twin beech trees in our front yard and a storm took one down in the late 50's. I never remember the tree standing but I do remember going out in the yard the morning after the storm and it was lying across the yard. We moved into the place in 1956 I think. Let me know if you'd like to see a picture and I'll contact David about it. Silly details that mean nothing much to anyone to me, but it's nice to verbalize them.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2010 18:31:16 GMT -5
jabaker,
I now know were your place would have been, that area like most has changed so much. The Schidt place is still there on the corner, but all of the trees that were on the south side are gone, the widening of 400 S. took all of those, I remember the trees as we went to my grandparents place. their house was about a 100 yards east of the bridge, the house has been gone for several years, most likely in the 50's, so I don't think that you would remember the place, I have posted a couple of pictures of the place on here some place, I will try and find them and let you know were they are at.
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nancs
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Post by nancs on Jun 17, 2010 6:37:45 GMT -5
WELCOME, WELCOME, WELCOME to all the 'newbies' to these message boards..............and it is WONDERFUL that you are posting your memories on the boards. That is truly what it is 'all about.' Every memory that any of us adds, just extends and clarifies Columbus history...................for future generations. Thanks to one and all. Am so loving the 'great reads' here of late. And know that many others are, as well. WELCOME! Nanc
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jabaker
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Post by jabaker on Jun 17, 2010 7:56:24 GMT -5
Thanks, Nanc, I've enjoyed posting and getting all caught up on what I've missed.
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jabaker
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Post by jabaker on Jun 17, 2010 9:04:18 GMT -5
George, I would love to see those pictures. Makes sense why I don't remember the place. Sounds like it was gone before we moved there. I have enjoyed going onto the County GIS site and clicking in the property records, since it shows a picture of the houses. So is the Day place you referenced the big brick on the south side of the road? It is still there! Looked it up yesterday. Our house wasn't much architecturally speaking (I can say that because I am an architect!) but I was so curious about those big brick houses which I think were built pre civil war and the huge queen anne victorians. We did not know any of the families that lived in them so I never got to see the insides. My Mom and Dad are pretty interested in the county history and they still remember alot about the area. They don't own a computer, otherwise they would love this website. They are in their 80's now. I was hoping you had mistaken Armuth Ditch for Brush Creek and that my old house was where your grandparants lived. Wouldn't that have been crazy? There is so much more about that old house I want to know that my parents can't answer. At one time, it is rumored it was only two rooms and it was located off of 250E in the field north of where it stood on 400S. Supposedly it was then moved and was added onto several times. I wanted to know how old it was and the location and order of the additions. I have no reason to believe it's not true since the house did not completely match in terms of the interior woodwork and the doorknobs etc. One of the rooms downstairs had a floor that was very out of level and only that room had no light switch. You had to turn on the light by a string hanging from a bare bulb. I would guess this was part of that original house. It also had another room on the back at one time that burned. We know that was true because there were charred rafters in the attic. I loved that house. I moved away in 8th grade. Like lots of things in life, I did not appreciate it until later.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 17, 2010 19:46:34 GMT -5
jabaker,
I found those pictures, they are in Columbus Indiana Broken Down by Decades 1930- 1939, page 3 replies 33-34, they are at the house not of the house, I do have a picture of the house and will scan it and then post it. The pictures that I did post shows 400S. as still being gravel, I do remember when a car went by, which was very seldom the dust would be every were. Yes, the big brick across the road from my grandparents place is still there, it sets away back off the road and when my grandparents were still there I'm sure it was called the Day Place.
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jabaker
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Post by jabaker on Jun 18, 2010 8:13:37 GMT -5
Thanks, I did look at those pictures this morning. I appreciate you pointing me in the right direction. I love seeing the old cars. My Dad has owned a 1928 Model A Ford Sedan since I was in the 6th grade. In fact it was the first thing I ever drove. That gas pedal sure was jumpy. I usually resorted to the throttle on the steering column. And always had to remember to turn on the gasline. I checked on how to post a photo and wow what a lot of steps. Not sure if I want to tackle that or not! We moved in the fall of 1967 to over near Newbern. At that time 400S west of 250E was still gravel. You are so right, that dust just flew. Every summer the county would come out and spray oil on a short strip of road in front of our house and the others on gravel roads . I don't recall further on west how many of those roads were gravel and where they picked up the paved roads. There wasn't really much traffic past our house though. Mostly just the neighbors who lived beyond us and the farmers on their tractors. I'd get a kick out of the one farmer who owned a John Deere. (I always considered farmers who owned a Deere well to do.) What I liked was to hear him drive by and hear the putt-putt of the diesel engine. My Dad owned Fords. Thanks for chatting.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 25, 2010 18:44:54 GMT -5
This is a unused postcard, so date is not known. The card was published by the Indiana News Co., Indianapolis Ind. and was made in Germany. After the interurban stop operating the terminal became the Grayhound Bus Station.
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Post by David Sechrest on Jun 26, 2010 0:43:50 GMT -5
George, that is a very nice postcard!
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RER
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"Democracy & Freedom"
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Post by RER on Jun 26, 2010 11:09:50 GMT -5
Interesting History About Indiana Interurban Rail Systems Unique Policeman's UniformFIRST: I want to acknowledge that George's latest picture of the Traction Terminal System of Indianapolis is fantastic. I enlarged the picture and two interesting things to me, came to mind. The dress of the folks seemed to be around 1905 to maybe 1920s. The policeman in the lower right corner had an almost British policeman top hat (or Bobby hat). SECOND: Now for a brief run of history of the Indiana Interurban Lines. Interurban systems were electric rail cars that ran between cities and were essentially extensions of existing streetcar systems. The term "interurban" was coined by Charles L. Henry, an Anderson, Indiana businessman and politician. When it was built in 1904, the Indianapolis Traction Terminal was the largest interurban station in the world. The first interurban train entered Indianapolis in 1900 and by 1910, the station was handling nearly 400 trains a day. At its peak, the station served nearly 500 trains a day and 7 million passengers annually. The Indianapolis Traction Terminal housed nine tracks and also served the Indianapolis streetcar system, allowing for easy transfers between the interurbans and local streetcars. Indianapolis was connected to the Indiana cities of Anderson, Columbus, Edinburg, Fort Wayne, Kokomo, Lafayette, Marion, Muncie, South Bend, and Terre Haute. Interconnected lines reached into Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, and Ohio. Indiana Interurban Track Map: By 1914, there were 1,825 miles of interurban tracks in Indiana, second only to Ohio in total mileage. Traction Terminal and Train Shed At Indianapolis Sources: Indianapolis Economic Development Portal and acknowledgment of George's postcard picture.
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RER
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Post by RER on Jun 27, 2010 9:27:16 GMT -5
Columbus & Indianapolis Interurban History ConnectionTravel Between 1907 & Late 1920s Picture 1907The Indianapolis Traction Terminal was originally built during 1904 for the interurban railways, and was used by buses until the 1960's, when Greyhound and Trailways opened their own separate stations. "The coup de grace for the rail systems was a fatal collision in 1941 on the line between Columbus and Indianapolis"_______________________________________________ Interesting article by Scott Bogren titled remembering when. Hope you enjoy the summary he presents, with the help of pictures from the Indiana Historical Society. Go here: web1.ctaa.org/webmodules/webarticles/articlefiles/Remembering_When.pdf _____________________________________________
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2010 17:20:23 GMT -5
Bob,
Thanks very much for the great article on the interurban. I rode the interurban from Edinburgh to Columbus in the late 30's several times when I was a child, still remember going down Washington to the interurban station at 3rd and Washington, remember the luggage carts in front of the station.
In the 1950's I used the Grayhound Bus terminal in Indianapolis when I was in service, I would take the train or fly in to Indy from California and then take the bus to Columbus.
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Post by richard on Jul 8, 2010 21:12:32 GMT -5
The following article appeared in The Republic, on March 22, 2006 Clipping Courtesy of Mr. Melvin Percifield
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Post by richard on Jul 8, 2010 21:14:38 GMT -5
The following article and picture appeared in The Republic, on August 9, 1991 Clipping Courtesy of Mr. Melvin Percifield
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Post by richard on Jul 8, 2010 21:15:27 GMT -5
The following picture appeared in The Republic, on May 21, 1988 Clipping Courtesy of Mr. Melvin Percifield
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