At Columbia and Lafayette Streets, someone vandalized a valuable stone in the June 16, 1907 article in The Journal Gazette newspaper.
Battle of Kekionga
There is an historical marker Harmar's Defeat in the Lakeside neighborhood.
See 2017 book The Bones of Kekionga by Jim Pickett, a retired teacher, that blends a historical and fictional depiction of what really happened during the 1790 Battle of Kekionga between American General Josiah Harmar and Miami Chief Little Turtle. Copied from Driven by city history Driver's education course includes tours of downtown by Austin Candor published August 22, 2017 in The Journal Gazette newspaper.
See August Becker. The Becker House, located in Fort Wayne, Allen County, Indiana, is an outstanding example of the Free Classic Queen Anne style. Designed by architect Harry W. Matson and built in 1886, with a front porch and brick veneering likely added circa 1895, the two-story, cross-gabled, blond brick structure is situated on the south side of West Williams Street midway between Fairfield and Hoagland Avenues. Copied from Section 7 page 4 of the Summary Paragraph of the 34 page NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Registration Form for Becker House 425 West Williams Street at Indiana Department of Natural Resources including 13 photographs of maps, architectural drawing, exterior and interior of the house.
ATC member Arline Nation continuing to improve the Hoagland-Masterson neighborhood. Good to know that the ATC Pigtail Project Porch will have historic status 😉
ATC member Arline Nation continuing to improve the Hoagland-Masterson neighborhood. Good to know that the ATC Pigtail Project Porch will have historic status
Congratulations to the Becker House in Fort Wayne and the Bloomfield School near LaGrange for being listed in the...
Congratulations to the Becker House in Fort Wayne and the Bloomfield School near LaGrange for being listed in the National Register of Historic Places. ARCH was pleased to prepare these nominations.
Built in 1887, this three-story brick Queen Anne has a wraparound front porch and 13 rooms. Its original owner, Mr. August Becker, immigrated from Germany at 18. His first job was driving a team of horses. He learned the baker’s trade and opened a grocery and dry good store on Fairfield Ave. Becker became a director of Tri-State Building and Loan Association, Van Arnam Manufacturing Company, and the Home Telephone & Telegraph Company. And a realtor! We know because the current owner used ARCH’s expertise to document and research the history of her home to list it on the National Register of Historic Places. This service is one of the many things we do in this community to help people learn more about their homes and share in the joy of historic preservation. To learn about this paid service or to become a member of ARCH and support ARCH’s mission please visit our website at archfw.org.
When Arline Nation saw Fort Wayne’s historic Becker House in 2012, she knew she wanted it for her home. However, the...
When Arline Nation saw Fort Wayne’s historic Becker House in 2012, she knew she wanted it for her home. However, the road to owning the 1886 Queen Anne wasn’t easy. After years of vacancy, the foreclosed property was a wreck, with broken plumbing and radiators, damage from frozen pipes, and cracks in almost every window. But, beneath the damage, Nation saw her dream Victorian home. “It took almost a year from the time I put my offer in to get the house in my name and fix to a point it was livable,” says Nation. After years of restoration, Nation plans to safeguard investment in her historic home by donating the property to Indiana Landmarks as an estate gift.
In 1893 Wing and Mahurin began construction on Robert and Clara's Romanesque styled mansion. Same architect as the University of Saint Francis' Bass Mansion and The History Center both in Fort Wayne. Robert served as a state senator, assistant U.S. Commissioner for Indiana, and was a prominent lawyer. Clara helped form the first classes at the Fort Wayne Art School and was the co-founder of the Fort Wayne Museum of Art. The couple was originally from the Muncie area but moved up here for business purposes. They were a very prominent couple during their years here in Fort Wayne. Not only did Clara leave her forever footsteps at the Art Museum his law firm is still going strong known as the Barrett-McNagny law firm serving the local area still today. They only had one child Bessie but unfortunately due to illness died at 11 months old. After Robert's death in 1901 the home was sold to William K. Noble who ran a lumber company that operated in 3 states. His family of 3 lived there for 22 years and sold the building for $50,000 to The Klaehn Funeral home. In 1935 the west side addition was added due to high demand. At this time funerals were no longer held in the residents home as they were done in the 1800s. Today there are over 14,000 square feet in this absolutely breathtaking mansion. No detail has gone unnoticed. It remained a funeral home for over 93 years. Until they left the building in 2018 and the Sturm's bought the building in 2020 to preserve its beauty. We want to preserve our precious history first and foremost. History is the reason why we are all here today! Copied from their website: https://thebellmansion.com/. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thebellmansion states: The Bell Mansion is a 130 year old gorgeous victorian event center. We also offer tours!!
Robert C. Bell and William Nobel House at ARCH ( Architecture and Community Heritage) starts with: The residence of Robert C. Bell was built in 1884. The distinctive Richardsonian style was one of the earliest designs of the prominent Fort Wayne architectural firm of Wing and Mahurin (who also designed the Old City Hall and the Elektron Building). The stone used for the exterior of the residence is native Indiana limestone. The wood used for framing and support, along with interior decorations came from the Jacob Klett & Sons Lumber Yard & Planing Mill which contradicts the 1893 date above and below.
Landmark on West WayneKlaehn, Fahl and Melton One of the finest examples of a well preserved downtown Fort Wayne structure is “The Home” located at 420 West Wayne Street. Spanning a full century and portions of two others, it was the stately residence of Robert C. Bell who built it in 1893. For the past eighty years it has been occupied by the Klaehn, Fahl & Melton Funeral Home. posted September 8, 2015 (Fort Wayne Monthly “Along the Heritage Trail with Tom Castaldi” – July 2010 No. 68) on the History Center Notes & Queries blog.
It was in 1888 when Clara Wolfe Bell, young wife of a prominent attorney and aspiring politican, persuaded John Ottis Adams to travel weekly to Fort Wayne from Munice to take charge of a painting and sketching class in a second-floor room at the southwest corner of Calhoun and Wayne Streets. from Historical Highlight: Mrs. Hamilton's Carriage House Suzanne Slick, Collections Information Specialist July 25, 2018 by KThompson on the Articulate From the Fort Wayne Museum of Art.
Have you ever visited this 130 year old Historic Mansion in Fort Wayne, Indiana? If not.. add that to your bucket list!...
Lace up your rollerskates! We are headed to Bell’s Skating Rink on Indiana 930 for our Throwback Thursday post. Bell’s may have the distinction of being the oldest roller rink in Indiana. Joseph Bell turned the Lincoln Highway Dance Hall into the rink in 1926. Previously the dance hall had been an open air pavilion and the floor was dirt. Joseph and Anna Bell were Italian immigrants. The rink has stayed in the family. Over the years the rink has been updated with new murals and a switch from pipe organ music to popular songs. The brick house attached to the rink likely dates back to the 1930s or1940s.
Belmonte Stores
Local "dime" store chain went out of business when the big box stores came to town.
A 30-by-50-foot log cabin, made of squared-off tulip tree logs dating from at least the 1850s and likely used by federal Indian agents engaged in removing native tribes from Indiana. It is a log cabin getaway spot run by Klare Stech that ended up on more than 40 acres of land in Cedar Creek Township at 18017 Devall Road outside Spencerville. It used to be on land that had been a turkey farm off Maysville Road near St. Peter Evangelical Lutheran Church, which traces its founding to 1838. Information copied from website and Retreat into the past 1800s cabin rented out to lodgers after years of restoration work by Rosa Salter Rodriguez published March 17, 2013 in The Journal Gazette newspaper.
Founded in 1880 by John G. Birkmeier, a Delphos, Ohio teacher who started the business as a way to increase his income while raising six children. In the first few decades after its founding, larger memorial monuments were set using a horse-drawn cart with an elaborate system of pulleys.
Originally located along the banks of the Miami-Erie Canal in Delphos, Ohio, John G. Birkmeier’s grandson, Alexander C. Birkmeier expanded the business to Fort Wayne, Indiana selling cemetary monuments and headstones from his bicycle and sending orders to the Delphos-based operation. In 1927 he built a home for the Fort Wayne business to simplify operations for the family. That same Spanish Eclectic-style building is still used today and is located at 2323 W. Main Street in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Located directly across the street from the city's largest cemetery, Lindenwood Cemetery, the building sat on the main highway leading west out of Fort Wayne. The route of U.S. 24 was later moved south of the building which sits on the old bed of the Wabash and Erie Canal. Read the rest of their history at www.birkmeier.com/?page=history archived on the Internet Archive Wayback Machine. The current About Us page is different: https://www.birkmeier.com/who-we-are/history-and-staff
Location, location, location: It’s the mantra in deciding where to buy. In this case, proximity to Lindenwood Cemetery...
This post was shared April 1, 2021 by Allen County Genealogical Society of Indiana. A comment March 9, 2024 asks about any relationship with the Birchmier family that came from Switzerland to Ohio sharing this link: History of the Birchmier Familycompiled by Muriel Birchmier and Marjory Birchmier Pulaski, Iowa - Davis Co. July 1979 starting with the family of Jakob Birchmier 1776-1812 married Maria Annae Kuenzi in Switzerland before moving to Ohio.
At the 1:40 minute mark this video claims the 1992 Amore book shown above says it was invented in Colorado. The History of the Kmart Blue Light Special - “Attention Kmart Shoppers” posted Feb 22, 2021 by Retail Rewindon YouTube Beginning in 1965, possibly an idea created by menswear department manager Bob Anderson, Kmart became known for their Blue Light Specials. A Blue Light Special was a random announcement of a sale highlighted by a rotating blue light and an announcement via the intercom system. The Blue Light Special was successful for a couple of decades but as Kmart began struggling by 2000, the Blue Light Special made a couple of comebacks in hopes of rekindling nostalgia and memories of what Kmart once was.
ATTENTION K-MART SHOPPERS! 🛒 Back in the 80 & 90s, a former @Kmart employee saved a private collection of original in-store background music cassettes from being lost to history. Take a nostalgic stroll through the aisles at Attention K-Mart Shoppers by Mark Davis (And Others). Copied from an April 16, 2023 post by Internet Archive on Twitter.
Blume, Martin, Jr., Farm
7311 Flutter Road, Martin Blume Sr. born in Germany, immigrated to the United States with his parents in 1835. In 1863 Martin Sr. moved to Allen County and acquired a large section of land, which he cleared and farmed until he retired. He sold 157 acres of land in 1878 to his son Martin, Jr.. Brief post May 6, 2017 on You know you've lived in Fort Wayne too long when... Private Facebook groupmentions this property has a National Register of Historic Places Registion Form including 8 photos and on page 8 mentions the large two story brick Italianate house of Henry Young on Trier Road that dates to 1885, the 1865 two story Italianate house of William Shordon on Maysville Road and 1880’s brick Victorian Jacob J. Vonderau farm house on Wheelock Road.
Who thought old bottles found in strange places could be interesting history?
Dewy’s Bottle Museum (antique bottles found) posted Jun 24, 2022 by Daniel Beals on YouTube. Dewy began researching county archives, connecting with other bottle hunters over the internet, to learn where forgotten dumping grounds once were. “All old dumps are located behind, or near water and cemeteries,” Dewy learned, “around railroads they’d also dump, because of old railroad stations, they’d throw their trash somewhere so they would just throw it on a hill or anywhere and just bury it.” His most interesting trip, was to an old privy. He tells us he has only been lucky enough to take part in one dig so far. “If you don’t know what a privy is… it’s a place where the outhouse was,” Dewy said, “you dig into these holes and find glass where they put their outhouses at, because that’s where they put their trash at.” “It tells a story of that family, or whoever was there,” he finished. Copied from the longer description also at 21Country: Dewy’s Bottle Museum on 21AliveNews.com.
The Bowmar Brain came out in the Autumn of 1971, with four functions and an eight-digit red LED display, for $240 from Calculator at Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
A final technological innovation associated with Fort Wayne is the hand- held calculator.
The Bowmar Instrument Corp. was formed in Fort Wayne in 1951 by Edward and Joan White. He earlier had been head of the electron-mechanical section of the Farnsworth Television Co. At first a one-employee operation in a barn loft at Smith Field, the company grew to 30 employees by 1953, and by 1957 had expanded to occupy the site of today's operation on Bluffton Road.
In 1971, the company introduced the first hand-held calculator called the "Bowmar Brain." The technology developed at Bowmar, which included the familiar red "LED" (low energy diode) readouts, enabled American business to regain from the Japanese the lead in calculator electronics.
As it turned out, Bowmar lost the calculator in the marketplace because it was unprepared for the huge popularity of the new item. Borrowing heavily to increase production and determined not to use cheaper foreign labor, Bowmar found itself unable to compete in the calculator price wars of the mid-1970s. In addition, the Bowmar product was hurt by having to deal with its chief rival, Texas Instruments, for basic components - many of which, it later was learned, were defective or held up in delivery. Bowmar, like ITT and Magnavox of Fort Wayne, withdrew from the consumer market and has concentrated instead on government and industrial contracts
In celebration of reaching the 100-year milestone, Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation Director Steve McDaniel dedicated improvements to Bowser Park today along with Fort Wayne Deputy Mayor Karl Bandemer, park and neighborhood representatives and public officials.
The park sign now proudly displays a Centennial Legacy Park insignia. In addition, an art mural by artist Lyndy Bazile evokes civic pride in the park and neighborhood and stands just yards away from the original stone marker provided by Sylvanus and Sarah Bowser in 1923. The stone is inscribed “for the comfort and pleasure of our neighbors and their children for all time to come.” Interior and exterior upgrades to the pavilion feature updated restrooms and walkways to make them accessible to people with disabilities, concrete improvements and a new roof.
204 West Main Street corner of South Harrison Street, west of The Landing one block south of Promenade Park. 2019 Street View photo still shows construction site from Google maps with over 260 photos. Born of Midwestern charm and modern design sensibilities, The Bradley is a true reflection of the city it calls home, immersed in Fort Wayne’s genuine spirit of community, industry and creativity. Evoking a sense of comfort and warmth, The Bradley has been collaboratively designed by Barbara Bradley Baekgaard, co-founder of the iconic lifestyle brand, Vera Bradley, and Provenance, known for its collection of award-winning boutique hotels. Copied from About The Bradley at Visit Fort Wayne.
Broadway business association has completed improvement projects over the last several years. Local businesses, such as Mad Anthony Brewing and George's International Grocery, and attorney Steve Shine, whose law office is on the Broadway Plaza. www.broadwayfortwayne.com.1014-1016 Broadway row of c. 1890 commercial buildings were purchased in 2010 by ARCH ( Architecture and Community Heritage).
Broadway Explosion
February 3, 1966 a house at 3401 Broadway near Kinsmoor and Broadway exploded. See 1966 Broadway Gas Explosion page on the Timeline.
Broadway State Bank
Broadway State Bank --Fort Wayne, Indiana filmed August 11, 1976 when it was The Palace and The Scorpion dancing pool hall live music bar business posted November 11, 2016 by the Allen County Public Library on YouTube. This clip is a short piece that is part of a longer series of Fort Wayne landmarks documented on open reel video tape in the 1970s. The series was made possible by the Fort Wayne Public Library, now the Allen County Public Library. This segment was recorded August 11, 1976 at 1930 Broadway in Fort Wayne, IN.
Camera and Editing by Steve Fortriede.
Located at the at the corner of Broadway and Taylor Street. George Kelly, not George Machine Gun Kelly robbed the Broadway State Bank August 20, 1930. Walter E. Helmke, Mayor Paul Helmke's grandfather was the prosecuting attorney on the case after Kelly was arrested in Chicago and brought to Fort Wayne for trial. It was the top story in local newspapers for many days. See SUMMIT CITY HISTORY NOTES The straight story on 'Machine Gun' Kelly by Richard Battin published by
The News-Sentinel newspaper.
2441 Broadway. June 11, 2022 photo posted on Facebook: A little throwback for you today. This was the theater as it stood in 1926. Opened as the Broadway Theater on November 5, 1923. It was renamed Indiana Theater in 1934. From the 1970’s this theater last operated as Cinema Blue, an X-rated theater which closed in 1985. The building became home to a restaurant in 1998, called the Catablu Gourmet American Grill. In May 2009, it became a jazz club known as The Philmore on Broadway. By 2017 it was an entertainment & events venue. And coming in 2022 it will re-open as the newly renovated Chateau On Broadway!
The Philmore on Broadway at CinemaTreasures.org has an October 9, 2009 comment with a decent amount of history such as: The newly built Broadway Theater was to develop a reputation for showing the best silent movies in a pleasing atmosphere. The building had a stage, an auditorium that had an arched ceiling which provided better ventilation and acoustic properties, contained an orchestra pit and three sets of balconies, it could seat 600 people, the ladies room provided space for parking baby buggies, and the screen was made of the best gold fiber. The film featured at the Grand Opening of the Broadway Theater was Back Home and Broke starring Thomas Meighan, a poplar leading actor of the time. Everyone attending on opening day was given a rose (New Broadway Theater). Referencing two newspaper articles: “New Broadway Theater.” The News-Sentinel 3 November 1923. Pond, Cindy. “Indiana Theater Closes Nov. 9.” Journal Gazetter 27 October 1969. November 5, 2022 post by The Chateau on Broadway discussed November 5, 2022 on True Fort Wayne Indiana History on Facebook. Century old Broadway theater will now be the Chateau on Broadway by Jamie Duffy posted: Jan 18, 2023 on CBS WANE-TV NewsChannel 15.
Brotherhood Mutual Insurance Company provides insurance for churches and related ministries. Founded in Grabill in 1917, Brotherhood Mutual is a provider of property, liability, workers compensation, commercial auto and foreign travel insurance for churches and related ministries. The company, which serves more than 40,000 churches and ministries in 43 states and the District of Columbia, has been recognized as one of the best places to work in Indiana by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce for five straight years.
Brown, W.B., Company
From ARCH Facebook March 30, 2013 EventWorld-class manufacturer of Arts and Crafts Mission style furniture, electric lighting fixtures, and store interiors from 1906 to 1923, the W.B. Brown Company, known locally as the "Chandelier Factory", was one of northern Indiana's most successful design-manufacture firms during the peak of the American Arts & Crafts movement of the early 20th Century.March 30, 2013 brochure on ARCH ( Architecture and Community Heritage) on Facebook.
Today Mayor Tom Henry, Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation Director Steve McDaniel, community representatives and additional public officials dedicated the new paved pedestrian trail and picnic shelter at Buckner Park in southwest Fort Wayne.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony highlighted some of Buckner Park’s unique geographical areas, including grass prairies, wetlands, stream crossings, woodlands and vistas. This ¾ mile trail to the new picnic shelter will wind through these areas and offer bench seating made from recycled materials at scenic spots.
Bueschings Peat Moss
Website: https://www.bueschings.com/ In 1998 - Dan Buesching was digging up peat in the pond for the family peat buisness and hauled up a mastodon tooth-filled skull, leg bones, part of a pelvis, two large leg bones and other parts. IPFW students soon joined in the excavation, and in the end it turned out Buesching’s find was one of the most complete mastodon skeletons ever found in this part of the country. Read about the mounted skeleton now on display as Fred the Mastodon on our 1998 Timeline. Bueschings donated the fossil to the Indiana State Museum where they have it on display. You can also visit the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and at Science Central in Fort Wayne, Indiana to see the casting. Copied from Bueschings Peat Moss & Mulch About page.
For "Throwback Thursday" we share another Mastodon found! This is at Buesching's Peat Moss on the Cook Road. In 2004 IPFW celebrated their 40th Anniversary and local businesses painted these Don's in tribute. BTW...it was at Bueschings they unearthed a Mastodon!
Byron Health Center
Intersection of Lake Avenue and Beacon Street - Street View photo on Google map in October 2022 was still showing Byron Health Center under construction in 2019.
Byron Health Center has its roots as the Allen County Poor House, built in 1853 in the Waynedale area. In 1916, the facility was moved to its current location and Fort Recovery, an anti-tuberculosis tent hospital was established. This later became known as Irene Byron Hospital. The facility was named to honor Irene Byron, who died while serving her country in World War I and was an executive secretary of the Anti-Tuberculosis League. Copied from Our History page of the Byron Health website. Formerly at 12371 (12101) Lima Road, from 1919-1976, there was an Umarked Cemetery discussed on our Perry Township Cemetery page. The new facility at Lake Avenue and Beacon Street broke ground in 2018 and moved to new home in 2020.
While we moved to our beautiful new home on Beacon Street in 2020, seeing this building be torn down is definitely bittersweet for our staff and residents, as well as Greater Fort Wayne. Byron has a long history of serving Allen County in a unique way and while this physical location will no long exist, our beautiful memories and the life that was lived and celebrated within these walls will never leave us.
Let us know your favorite memory of the old building in the comments!
Grateful to our friends at WANE 15 for this this thorough reporting. As it says in the article, we moved to our new home in 2020, where we have a beautiful mural that showcases our long history and dedication to serving those in Allen County.
If you are interesting in coming to have a tour of the new building, contact us at info@byronhealth.org!
Today, we celebrate the life and legacy of our beloved namesake, Irene Byron, whose dedication to care and compassion still guides us every day here at Byron Health Center.
As a pioneering nurse, Irene’s commitment to service and humanity touched countless lives. Her words continue to inspire us to this day, as seen below.
We honor her today and always. Happy 142nd Birthday, Irene!
: Sierah Barnhart Photography
