National Hamburger Month in May kicks off some of the busiest grilling and barbecuing season of the year. Americans love their burgers and restaurants dedicated to making them just right have been in business for generations. Almost every town in the country has a favorite local hamburger restaurant, either currently open or only in the mists of yesteryear. In Fort Wayne, one of the most notable hamburger restaurants was Gardner’s Drive-In Sandwich Stand. Gardner’s was the brainchild of Francis (Frank) & Ilah Gardner and his parents Willis & Josephine Gardner. In 1935, Gardner’s was opened and stood on the northwest corner of Jefferson and Webster. In 1954, a new brick building replaced the original building and was a popular downtown hangout for high school students. The Gardner family remained in the restaurant business until 1967, when bankruptcy forced the closure of their restaurants. The downtown building was demolished and soon replaced by a Penguin Point restaurant from 1967 until 1994, when it was replaced by the current Rally’s and King Gyro chains. To learn more about Gardner’s history, the History Center’s gift shop offers a robust Old Fort News issue from 2004 dedicated to this juicy topic. #sociallyhistory
Local legend at Jefferson Blvd. and Webster Street was started by Frank Gardner in 1935. Torn down in 1973. A photo with a short article stating: A Gardner’s drive-in restaurant was prepared to open later that week across from Memorial Coliseum. The new eatery had seating for 162 guests – including 22 at the counter – and curbside service was also available. More than 2,000 guests had been invited to dine there on Sept. 29 before the official opening the following morning. Copied from `Sept. 27, 1960: A day in photos of Fort Wayne by Corey McMaken posted August 25, 2022 in the
History Journal archives of the Journal Gazette newspaper.
Gas House Restaurant - aka Don Hall's Gas House Restaurant
Hall's Gas House restaurant on Superior Street of the local Don Hall's restaurant chain was named for the old gas works started in the 1850s that were located there.
Under the Gas Lights by Tom Castaldi published May 23, 2013 in the History Center Notes & Queries blog. Back in 2007 the Gas House was closed for 3 months to clean up 2.4 million gallons of coal tar from its days as the original manufactured gas plant that produced “town gas” by heating coal, coke, and/or oil in a closed vessel. The gas was captured and cleaned of impurities before being stored in large round structures known as gas holders. Town gas was distributed first for lighting streets, homes and businesses, and then for heating and cooking. But the process typically created byproducts such as coal tar, a dense, oily liquid. ... Other clean ups have followed since because, as NIPSCO spokesman Larry Graham said at the time, “It’s impossible to get it all.” Copied from St. Mary’s River near Gas House Restaurant set for another environmental clean up by Kevin Leininger published September 7, 2018 in
The News-Sentinel newspaper.
Ever recognize this? It originates from the Downtown Fort Wayne City Market on Barr Street dating back to 1910. Prior to the demolition of the market, the head was removed from the concrete pavilion and now sits in our lobby!
We have a piece of Fort Wayne historyevery corner.
[ Door from Allen County Jail Built 1874 - Razed 19?7 ]
Gasoline Filling Stations
The first pump for dispensing kerosene was invented by Sylvanus Freelove Bowser here in Fort Wayne then sold September 5, 1885 to a grocery store in Fort Wayne. From First Gas Pump and Service Station by the American Oil & Gas Historical Society. The first gas filling station in Fort Wayne was erected around 1915-16 from an August 21, 1921 in The Journal Gazette newspaper article. One of the oldest in the city Barto's filling station 1201 Creighton Avenue, opened in 1930 and closed 84 years later in 2014. The world's first purpose-built gas station was constructed in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1905 at 420 South Theresa Avenue, from Filling station on Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. The first purpose-built, drive-up gas station opened in 1913. At the time, there were approximately 500,000 vehicles navigating almost exclusively dirt or gravel roads. Today, there are more than 270 million vehicles traveling on the nation’s 3.94 million miles of paved roadways, with approximately 38 million vehicles fueling up every day. Copied from The History of Fuel Retailing published February 23, 2022 on convienence.org.
FRIDAY FROM THE ROAD… Gulf Filling Station – US National Road As more and more Americans owned automobiles and...
As more and more Americans owned automobiles and enjoyed the freedom of traveling, the need to buy fuel led to what became known as “Filling Stations”. Prior to filing stations, drivers bought fuel from pharmacies, general stores and hardware stores. Gulf Refining Company opened the world’s first drive-in gasoline station in 1913.
INRA Board Member Pat Chase provides this wonderful story about the former Gulf Filling Station, along the National Road in Knightstown, Indiana.
“This was my first paying job. I made $1.00 an hour working there starting my freshman year of high school 1959-60. Caley Wyatt was the first owner-operator of the Gulf filling station. They had torn down a big house that sat on this corner to create the modern Gulf station. Wyatt then sub-leased it to Arthur "Tubby" Lindsey and his wife Mary. Tubby who was my Sunday School director at the Presbyterian Church and elementary basketball coach hired me. Initially my job was to wash cars on Saturdays and then I worked my way up to be able to wait on the customers, pump their gas, wash the windshields and check the oil dip stick. Gulf was a full-service filling station. This picture is probably when Wyatt had the station. The very large Wyatt family had a dairy processing plant, and it appears from the photo one of their delivery trucks is to the right of the station. The Gulf was the first filing station that you came to when traveling west into Knightstown on 40. So, we got a lot of traffic as they came into town. There were at least seven filling stations on Main Street in Knightstown in the 1950/60s before they built I-70. Marathon, Texaco, DX, Phillips 66, Sinclair, Sunoco, Standard Oil. This Gulf filling station was later torn down and it is now a convenience store that has self-service gas pumps.”
Knightstown’s Historic District was listed on the U.S. Register of National Places in 1986. The district is roughly bound by Morgan, Adams, Third, and McCullum Street and includes about 654 structures. The historic district occupies most of the town of Knightstown which is bisected by the Old National Road.
We welcome your stories, experiences and memories!
Credits: Pat Chase, US National Register of Historic Places.
G.C. Murphy Co.
Designed by Alvin M. Strauss. Store at Calhoun and Wayne streets is recalled in the newspaper article The last downtown department store June 26, 1982 by Kevin Leininger from the archives of The News-Sentinel.
Geary's World Museum
A 19th century dime museum, a dime was the admission price, offered all sorts of attractions. Read about Geary’s World Museum by Carmen Doyle posted January 31, 2014 in the History Center Notes & Queries blog.
Saturday marks 40 years since General Motors, one of the biggest automotive manufacturers in the world — announced plans to build a new factory in Fort Wayne.
Saturday marks 40 years since General Motors, one of the biggest automotive manufacturers in the world — announced plans to build a new factory in Fort Wayne.
George Rongos February 15, 1935-October 16, 2022. George’s International Market was founded by George Rongos in 1985. George moved to the United States from Kastoria Greece in 1954. Upon his arrival into the United States George worked a series of odd jobs until landing a job at Slater Steele where he retired following 32 years of employment. Throughout his years at Slater Steele George had a dream, a dream of providing Fort Wayne shoppers with a better, more diverse selection of ethnic foods from around the globe. This dream became a reality with the purchase or a local grocery store which became the first George’s location at 2041 Taylor. In the following years George began making weekly trips to Chicago and other markets to hand pick the best meats, cheeses and produce. George lived his dream for twelve years until he passed it along to his son’s Chris and Jerry when they purchased the store in 1997. In 2001 George’s was moved from its original location to a much larger property right up the street at 2021 Broadway. Today George’s International is an amazing cultural event in and of itself. Come down and take a look at everything we have to offer from fresh produce, meats, cheeses, a full bakery as well as our restaurant which serves up some of the best Mexican food in town. Come experience the passion the Rongos family has brought to the shopping experience, we guarantee you will be back for more! Copied from their History page.
ur hearts are heavy as we share that George Rongos, Founder of George’s International Market, passed away peacefully on October 16, 2022 in his home with his loving wife and family by his side. George touched so many and we would like to thank you all for the love and support all the years of his life. We will always remember George in all the ways we knew him.
Photo of first phase of shopping center ground breaking for Lincoln National Bank & Trust Company and 9th Rogers Market November 2, 1967 at 6300 East State Blvd. was shown in a photo from a November 3, 1967 article in The Journal Gazette newspaper posted on You are positively from Fort Wayne, if you remember... Archived group only visible to existing members on Facebook. Otis McFadden president of the Allen County Plan Commission; Jack Sutter, Allen County Plan Commission; W.W. Rogers, board chairman of Rogers Market; Tom Jehl, President of Jehl Brothers, developers of the center; and Carl Gunkler, jr. vice-president of Lincoln Bank were shown in the photo.
“In 1968, Maplecrest Road was a dirt road that ended at two-lane East State Boulevard and the land where Georgetown sits was a cornfield,” Jehl said in an email. “There were very few homes at all east of Reed Road. Today, Maplecrest is extended all the way to New Haven, and Georgetown Square is a thriving shopping center serving several thousand households in the northeast area of Fort Wayne.” “I remember going to the site … when they had just stakes in the ground and strings and ropes trying to mark the site,” Partee said. “My dad had built Lake Forest Subdivision that’s right behind (the square) and had two Parade of Homes back there.” Copied from Georgetown Square celebrates 50 years by Garth Snow gsnow@kpcmedia.com May 30, 2018 at KPC.news.com.
This little architectural gem is our subject of this week’s Throwback Thursday post. Gerding’s Drug Store occupied the building for many years. This c. 1923 building did not originally have an Art Deco appearance. A c. 1940 remodeling project created the Art Deco look. This retail building is flanked with by chamfered bays of display windows. Fluted inset pilasters are on the northeast and southeast corners of the building. The façade has a veneer of limestone panels, with an aluminum covered marquee in the center that held a blade style sign. The Fairfield Avenue store was remodeled in 1940s. It previously had a craftsman-inspired design. Herbert H. Gerding ran this location of Gerding’s Drug Store. He owned the drugstore until his death in 1962. His son, Paul joined the family business, and owned it until his death in 1991. Historic Photos Courtesy the Wisconsin Historical Society.
German-American National Bank Publication date 1906. In 1918 during World War I became Lincoln National Bank, in 1990's became part of Norwest Bank, then in 1998 merged to become Wells Fargo Bank from Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. In 2018 acquired by Flagstar Bank, then in 2021 announced a merger with New York Community Bancorp while retaining the name Flagstar.
Goeglein Homestead (Banquet Hall & Reception Hall) Fort Wayne, IN December 13, 2009 goegleinscatering on YouTube.
As the home of Goegleins Catering since 1951, The Goeglein Homestead located on Maysville Road has stood as a familiar landmark to more than three generations. Constructed in the mid 1800s, the Goeglein Homestead still consists of 5 original buildings including the brick barn, the large wooden barn and the quintessential white farmhouse. While renovated and modernized, the Homestead still maintains its distinctive character and atmosphere including the massive hand-hewn barn beams, a hand built stone fireplace, and original brick walls.
After 1930 was at 117 East Rudisill Boulevard east of Calhoun Street. Current Street View photo from Google maps shows Hollywood Beauty Shop is located at this address.
“Faith healer” Reverend B.E. Rediger came to Fort Wayne in 1926. He struggled to get his message of faith out to the people, so he ventured into self-publishing his own magazine with some success. It wasn’t until he used his oratory prowess over WOWO radio that his vision of a full church came to be realized. His little church, The Fort Wayne Gospel Tabernacle (now the Craftsman Club pictured), at 2329 Winter Street went from mostly empty on Sunday following his first broadcast to overflowing the next.
It was quickly apparent that a new and bigger church was needed. With the Great Depression in its early years, Rediger moved forward cautiously to build The Fort Wayne Gospel Temple at the NE corner of Rudisill Boulevard and S. Calhoun Street. Large enough to sit 3,000 people (for reference, the Embassy Theatre sits 2,471), the Temple was the second largest church of its kind in the world. At its dedication, nearly 10,000 people were in attendance. A year later when the 38 year-old Rediger died from complications of Appendicitis, 18,000 paid their respects. The Gospel Temple lived on to about 1990. The building has since been demolished, but its image is forever engraved on the reverend's tombstone.
On July 4, 1929, the building housing WOWO and WGL caught fire. No casualties were reported, and operations were moved to a nearby location; amazingly enough, the station's large pipe organ, a familiar sound on the station, was not damaged in the blaze.[7-6-1929 JG article] Operations were resumed the following day, [7-5-1929 JG article] and the WOWO pipe organ was later relocated to Gospel Temple in Fort Wayne copied from WOWO on Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
In 1938 Billy Graham turned down a preaching job here from Brushes with fame on the bottom of WOWO heard its listeners on 1930-1939: DECADE OF BANKRUPTCY & BUREAUCRACY by Bob Caylor on
The News-Sentinel newspaper.
October 3, 1941 - Charles Lindbergh told 10,000 people crammed into and around an America First Committee rally at the Gospel Temple that President Franklin Roosevelt was "drawing dictatorial power into his hands" in an attempt to condition the United States for war. Copied from the 1940-1949 Timeline from Fort Wayne History from the archives of
The News-Sentinel newspaper.
To the editor: William Graham, grandson of Billy Graham, is coming to Fort Wayne this October. How many know or remember when Dr. Billy Graham came to Fort Wayne? He had just graduated from Wheaton College and married his wife, Ruth, in 1943. He came to speak at the Fort Wayne Gospel Temple that is long gone. It stood on the north side of Rudisill Boulevard between Calhoun and Clinton streets. It was built in the late 1920s and seated around 3,000. It was a mega church before they were heard of. I remember it was packed out when Charles Lindbergh gave one of his America First speeches at the Temple in 1941. There is a picture of the packed church, platform and choir loft in the book, “Lindbergh,” by A. Scott Berg. It was the largest temple at the time outside of the Mormon Temple in Salt Lake City. Utah. Copied from William Graham’s visit brings back memories posted April 29, 2017 in the KPCNews.com.
Sievers' big break: The Gospel Temple on Rudisill Boulevard had two broadcasts. In the morning, they had the Morning Radio Bible Class, and every Sunday evening at 10 o'clock, they had the Back Home Hour. And I hung around there and got to carry the microphone from the choir to Paul Rader, the minister, and to me that was the biggest thrill in the world, to be carrying a live microphone. I would have loved to have been able to say something into it. And I would go there in the morning for the Morning Radio Bible Class, and one morning, the engineer didn't show up, and they thought they couldn't go on the air. Copied from REMEMBERING THE 30sBob Sievers shared several memories with News-Sentinel staff writer Bob Caylor. Here are some excerpts of their conversation.
A 2007 visit to see the building was going inspired a discussion including these paragraphs: A preacher named Reverend R. G. Rediger came to Fort Wayne in 1926 with a God-breathed vision to build a church. You might say he struggled for four years to get the vision off the ground, but when he became discouraged, the Lord told him Isaiah 27:3 was His word over His plans for Fort Wayne, “I the Lord do keep it; I will water it every moment: lest any hurt it I will keep it night and day.” When Reverend Rediger went on radio with an hour-long Gospel program, things seemed to shift for him in a big way. He had started his work in a small church that soon could not hold the crowds that came, so in 1930, the foundations for a 3000-seat building were laid. The dedication, on November 23, 1930, drew 10,000 people. This was the beginning of the Fort Wayne Gospel Temple that remained in operation until 1990. What is so amazing about this story? Reverend Rediger built his church as the result of a vision from God . . . in the heart of the
Great Depression. copied from A Reason for Optimism by George and Lorraine Halama September Newsletter 2021.
Ground breaking was in April 1983 at the former site of the Jefferson Theater at 120 W. Jefferson Blvd. The economy had 20 percent interest rates and the 8,000-employee International Harvester truck plant was about to close. It opened in December 1984, with first convention in January 1985. It now attracts 200,000 visitors each year, at least half of them from out of town, 90 percent of the Grand Wayne's events are private. In 2005 the facility was enlarged from 95,000 to 221,000 square feet. A Hilton hotel opened shortly after the convention center did in 1985. A second hotel a 250-room Courtyard by Marriott hotel opened in August 2010. Grand Wayne 30 years old Downtown icon controversial in the beginning by Sherry Slater published February 8, 2015 in The Journal Gazette newspaper. It's been grand for 'father' of Fort Wayne convention industry by Kevin Leininger was published January 17, 2013 in
The News-Sentinel newspaper.
#TBT “Traffic zips beneath the skywalk that will connect the Grand Wayne Center and the Embassy Theatre” June, 1984. Photo by Cathie Rowland via the Journal Gazette.
#TBT“Traffic zips beneath the skywalk that will connect the Grand Wayne Center and the Embassy Theatre” June, 1984. Photo by Cathie Rowland via the Journal Gazette.
Grand Wayne Convention Center celebrates 40 years of operation: bit.ly/GWCC-WOWO The center hosts about 325 events each year, contributing an estimated $10 million into the local economy annually.
Episode 78: Roofs and Architectural Styles Dec 13, 2018 On this week's Between the Studs, we're hanging out in the beautiful Lakeside Park neighborhood, and talking exterior styling! Join in and get some design inspiration for your next home also shown on our Neighborhoods page.
Episode 160: Sweetwater Sound The BTS crew is at Sweetwater's amazing Fort Wayne headquarters, checking out instruments, music, and how they relate to architecture!
Celebrating 200 Episodes February 3, 2023, Two hundred episodes of trends, construction processes, and Lonnie bloopers! We're celebrating this milestone with a walk down memory lane, highlighting some of the best episodes of Between the Studs.
Celebrating 200 Episodes: Part 2 February 15, 2023, We continue on our journey through 200 episodes of Between The Studs! Fair warning: you may be exposed to Izzy's cheesy magic act.
See our Eagle Marsh Nature Preserve section, established in 2005, a wetland southwest of Fort Wayne in a valley near the St. Lawrence Divide that drains into the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River Basin. The Miami Indians called the area “the Glorious Gate,” and Indiana pioneers called it “the Great Marsh.” It was the portage between two water systems, the Wabash and Maumee rivers, both vital to transportation and trade. In 2015, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built an earthern berm 80 feet wide and 8 to 10 feet high to prevent mixing the river waters from a 100 year flood that might allow invasive Asian carp, that grow to 100 pounds, from crossing the marsh into the Maumee River that will allow their entry into Lake Erie and the Great Lakes. Read more in Eagle Marsh project proving complicated by Brian Francisco published September 28, 2014 in The Journal Gazette newspaper now on the Internet Archive Wayback Machine.
Greyhound Bus Terminal
The 10,500 sq. ft. iconic building built in 1938 at 233 W. Jefferson with Greyhound Blue steel enameled panels with glass blocks and the running Greyhound logo was quietly razed on Saturday, May 9, 1992 and turned into a parking lot. Greyhound Bus Depot 1953 article by
Randy Harter, Fort Wayne historian and authorin the Fort Wayne Reader. April 4, 2019 post of a postcard by Hofer and Davis, Inc. Land Surveyors on Facebook similar to the one below.
Streamline Moderne is the term for describing the style of Art Deco in which our white neon-trimmed Greyhound Bus Depot was designed , one of over 50 depots around the United States created by renowned Louisville, KY architect William S. Arrasmith. Fort Wayne’s was an outstanding example of this genre of transportation architecture, which exhibits aerodynamics and a sense of speed.
This iconic building — located at 233 W. Jefferson and clad in “Greyhound Blue” steel enameled panels, as well as utilizing glass block and the sleek stylized running Greyhound logo — was completed in 1938. Its construction, featuring a rounded wing-wall to partially shield the buses from Jefferson Blvd., was to replace the old bus station at 123 E. Berry at Court St. that had only allowed for on-street loading of the passengers and their luggage.
After having sat empty and sealed-up for over 15 years, the owners of this architectural treasure — local attorney Joseph Christoff and his family — had the 10,500 sq. ft. building quietly razed on Saturday, May 9, 1992 and turned into a parking lot. This was despite a News-Sentinel article less than four months earlier on January 20th in which it was reported that Director Ron Fletcher of the Redevelopment Commission was “casting about” for a new urban venture that could include the former Greyhound bus station; according to the Assessors Office, for tax purposes the property was valued at less than $42,000, including the land.
Besides its gorgeous exterior, many recall the terminal’s second floor restaurant, its shoe-shine stand, photo-booth, pinball machines and the individual pay-to-watch coin operated TV-Chairs in the lobby. Construction is expected to start soon at this site of the former Greyhound Bus Depot for a 125-room Hampton Inn & Suites. Just beyond the depot in this view at the southwest corner of Jefferson and Harrison is the English Terrace restaurant, which over the years was also called Mrs. Millers English Tea Room, and finally simply the Terrace Room. This building was razed in the 1970’s, became a parking lot for Belmont Beverage and is now the site of the Marriott Courtyard. Across the intersection is the 1928 Indiana Hotel, which was still in operation at the time this photo was taken, but would later close in 1971. (Courtesy HPC/ACPL)
A tip of the hat to Creager Smith, Don Orban and Craig Leonard for their insights on this piece.
Randy Harter is a Fort Wayne historian, author and the history/architecture guide for FortWayneFoodTours.com
DR. PATRICK’S POSTCARD ROADSIDE: A quick message scribbled on this 1940 postcard and mailed off to family in Ohio depicts what to the transient sender was just the Greyhound bus station in Fort Wayne, Indiana. To us of the future, it is a Streamline Moderne gem, one of more than 50 “Greyhound blue” porcelain enamel bus terminals designed by William Arrasmith and scattered across the line’s nationwide system. The Fort Wayne depot opened in 1938 replacing a Berry Street bus stop that required passengers to load and unload at the curb. The new station had a second story restaurant and loading stalls for buses screened from the street by a glass block pierced wing wall. The station closed in 1977, survived the 1980s in a neglected state of abandonment, and despite hopeful ideas for adaptive reuse was demolished in 1992. A Marriott Courtyard now stands on the site adjacent to Parkview Field built in 2009 for the Ft. Wayne Tin Caps, farm team for the San Diego Padres.
Workers unearthed the nearly intact Gronauer Lock in 1991 during construction of the U.S. 24 Interstate 469 interchange east of New Haven. It was 155 feet long and about 40 feet wide built in the mid-1800s as one of more than 70 locks on the 468-mile Wabash and Erie Canal that connected Lake Erie near Toledo with the Ohio River near Evansville. Some of the timbers are tulip poplar up to about 32 feet long, 2 feet wide and 1 foot thick. Read more on the Gronauer Lock section of our Wabash & Erie Canal page.
Guldlin Park
Intersection of Van Buren Street and Michaels Avenue - Street View photo from Google map with over 30 user submitted photos on Google including the current Fort Miamis historic marker plaque front and back , and a former 1983 DAR marker. The current marker Fort Miamis was installed in : 2000 by the Indiana Historical Bureau and Society of Colonial Wars in the State of Indiana. It replaces the First White Settlement Marker shown in the 1963 Monuments and Plaques Markers in City Parks book. The marker Site of Fort Miamis is no longer standing. It was installed in 1948 by the Indiana Historical Bureau and stated: First white settlement in Indiana; fortified by French by 1712. Located among the Miami Indians. Burned in 1747 and rebuilt on St. Joseph River it was shown at Indiana Historical Markers.
Guldlin Park The First French Fort by The Bicentennial Heritage Trail Committee, On the Heritage Trail: A Walking Guidebook to the Fort Wayne Heritage Trail (Fort Wayne: ARCH, Inc., 1994), 108-112 is on the West Central Trail 17 stops on the Heritage Trail by ARCH ( Architecture and Community Heritage).
The park is named for Addie Bleekman Guldlin, who moved to Fort Wayne in the 1890s with her parents and husband, Olaf Guldlin, who became wealthy investing in Indiana’s then-booming natural gas industry. She was a supporter of the city’s then-new Park Commission and believed that central-city children had no safe place to play. So she persuaded the city to build a large playground off Van Buren Street near the site of the French Fort Miami (erected in either 1722 or 1680) and a deadly skirmish between Indians and American soldiers in 1813. Copied from Riverfront improvements at Guldlin Park are only a hint of what could come later by Kevin Leininger posted March 14, 2019 in
The News-Sentinel newspaperand on the Wayback Machine.
