LUCA Booklet - Indiana Historical Society

LOOKING UP
COLLEGE
AVENUE
A HISTORIC TREASURE HUNT
TM
CREATED BY JOHN SHERMAN AND MAYOWA TOMORI
NAME
GROUP NAME
GROUP LEADER
WITH SUPPORT FROM
WELCOME TO
“LOOKING UP COLLEGE AVENUE”
THE TREASURE HUNT
Join us on an exciting journey on one of the busiest and
most important streets in Indianapolis history. If you ride
IndyGo’s College 17A bus, you will pass all the buildings in
Looking Up College Avenue (LUCA). In this booklet, you will
find seven “tops” – photos of the tops of buildings along
College Avenue. It is your task during this treasure hunt to
use those photos, along with other clues we provide you here
and on social media, to find the buildings. When you find
them, answer the questions and draw the buildings
(or attach photos) in the spaces provided.
You will be given the opportunity to select a building of
your choice (No. 8). You will also find a historic “Looking
Down” structure (No. 9) that figures into the history along
College Avenue.
BEFORE COLLEGE WAS COLLEGE
The campus of North Western Christian University,
founded in a rural area in 1855, was near what is now 13th
Street and College Avenue, although those were not street
names in that neighborhood at the time. Find the historical
marker at that intersection today. The NWCU building,
pictured here, was designed by Irish-born architect William
Tinsley (later in that same decade, he designed Christ Church
Cathedral on Monument Circle). NWCU moved to Irvington
in 1875. This building was torn down in the 1920s. What is
the current name of NWCU and where is it located? (The
answers are on the inside back cover.)
SOCIAL MEDIA
Keep in touch with this project through social media. Post
photos and comments, too! Email us at LUCAhints@gmail.
com. Follow us on Twitter @LUCAhints, on Instagram
@LUCAhints and on Facebook at Looking Up College Avenue.
LEADER GUIDE
Print off a one-page LUCA Leader Guide at
www.indianahistory.org/LUCA
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We are grateful for the generous support of Kyle McKoy,
vice president, Public Programs and Exhibitions, and other
staff members of the Indiana Historical Society for providing
time and talent, historic photos and graphic design for this
booklet, as well as a kick-off party on Saturday, September
12. (For details on all events noted here, connect with us on
social media.) A PDF of this booklet is available for download
at www.indianahistory.org/LUCA. Another supporter is the
Harrison Center for the Arts, which will collect the completed
booklets and host a celebratory party on an IDADA First
Friday in 2016. Indiana Landmarks, Butler University and
Ball State University have also supplied information used in
this booklet and lent historic photos. The printing of these
booklets was made possible in part by a generous grant from
Printing Partners.
Enjoy looking up College Avenue!
Copyright © 2015 by John Sherman and Mayowa Tomori.
All rights reserved.
1
This Queen Anne-style building is in beautiful condition today, although there was a period of decline, shown in the photo
below, when plywood half-covered open windows and most of the building was vacant. It was erected by a family with
German origins. Many of the 19th-century white residents of Indianapolis had either been born in Germany or were the
children of German immigrants. On your treasure hunt, this is the southernmost building (in the Chatham-Arch Historic
District). It’s now on the National Register of Historic Places. From here, you will make your way north to find the other six
“tops.”
What is the address?
N. College Ave.
What name and date are on the building’s tower?
In what years, approximately, were most Queen Anne-style
buildings erected?
to
What company’s name is now on a sign in front of this building?
A 1982 view of Building No. 1 on our LUCA Treasure Hunt
Courtesy of Indiana Landmarks
2
Below is a group of students in 1908, probably 8th graders, some wearing ribbons, in front of their school, our Building
No. 2 on the LUCA Treasure Hunt. The original school is an Italianate-style building dated 1890. The larger building is a style
known as Romanesque Revival and is dated 1893. A third addition was built in 1956. The architectural firm for the 1893
building shown in the current and historic photos was Vonnegut & Bohn. This former school is now being transformed into
apartments for seniors.
What is the address?
N. College Ave.
What was the school’s name and number?
Who was the person after whom this school was named?
What positions did this person hold?
While we aren’t sure what was happening, what do you think was
the occasion for this photo?
What is the name of the famous writer whose grandfather cofounded the architectural firm that designed the 1893 building?
Students posing in front of Building No. 2 on the LUCA Treasure Hunt
Bass Photo Co. Collection, Indiana Historical Society
3
The Irving Apartments, constructed in 1909 with four five-room apartments, are among dozens of apartment complexes
along College Avenue. Hint: This is not far from Building No. 2 in this series. Although you can’t see the name from the
outside, “The Irving” is in the entranceway floor, composed of small black tiles laid within white tiles.
What is the address?
N. College Ave.
(Another hint: You won’t see a number on the outside of the
building, but it ends in “23.”)
What looks different, when comparing today’s Irving
to the 1911 photo?
What features can you still see today that were
in the historic photo?
Why were big, open porches for apartments and homes so
desirable in the early part of the 20th century?
The Irving apartment building in 1911
Indiana Historical Society
4
This building, erected circa 1905, was home to several thriving businesses, including a dental practice, pharmacy,
grocery, hardware store, plumbing and heating supply, and awning company when the photo below was taken. There were
apartments upstairs, too, which helps explain why this building took up the entire corner.
What is the address?
N. College Ave.
There were only two apartments in this building when this photo
was taken. But today, there are several. Why do you think that is?
(Hint: How many stories do you see today?)
A lot of businesses came and went over the years. What
businesses are in this building today?
What do you think people used awnings for in the 1920s? (Hint:
This was before stores had air conditioning.)
What other building on this treasure hunt has the same
drug store sign?
Thorpe Awning Shoppe and other businesses in 1924
Bass Photo Co. Collection, Indiana Historical Society
5
A man’s home is his castle – something that the renowned architect Preston C. Rubush took to heart when designing his
house on College Avenue. This Tudor Revival/Craftsman-style building is one of the most unusual houses on the block - with
half-timber details, two stories of stone and stucco, and a massive tower. (This is a private residence, so please remain on
the sidewalk when visiting Building No. 5 on the LUCA Treasure Hunt.) Rubush and his business partner, Edgar Hunter, are
also responsible for many other Indianapolis landmarks, including the Hilbert Circle Theatre, the Coca-Cola Bottling Plant on
Massachusetts Avenue and City Hall (shown below). Rubush also designed another home circa 1910 at 2515 N. College Ave.
On that site today is a gas station.
What is the address?
N. College Ave.
How does the home today compare to this photo?
Indianapolis City Hall, Neoclassical style, 202 N. Alabama St., circa 1910
The P.C. Rubush Residence, circa 1910
Bass Photo Co. Collection, Indiana Historical Society
Indiana Historical Society
6
In 1992, the Art Deco-style Ma-Co Market building was torn down, a very controversial move, and replaced with a
Walgreen’s drugstore with a bland design. Ironically, a Walgreen’s had been in the Ma-Co building for several years. It was
designed in 1929 for the Ma-Co Realty Co. by Pierre & Wright, architects. (See other images on the booklet covers.) Sources
differ: Ma-Co may stand for “Marion County” or it may refer to two street names, Maple Road (the former name of the
street that ran along the north side) and College Avenue. The Ma-Co had several large friezes on the second floor and a series
of small, octagonal ones. Walgreen’s has been replaced by another store in the same building, but some of the small friezes
(see the photo above) remain near the tops of the gables and two of the larger ones are now displayed at this corner.
What is the address?
N. College Ave.
What store is in the former Walgreen’s that was built in 1992?
What is a frieze?
A portion of the Ma-Co Market was saved. What store is in that
former Ma-Co structure?
Ma-Co Market Building, with Walgreen’s, and streetcar heading north
on College, 1930
Bass Photo Co. Collection, Indiana Historical Society
7
Prather Masonic Temple, a Neoclassical-style building designed by architect John P. Parrish, was built on the northwest
corner of a busy commercial area. The awnings on the ground floor advertise the Binkley & New drugstore. The Masonic
hall was upstairs. Across the street were many businesses, including the Uptown Theater built by Rubush & Hunter in 1927
(shown below and on the front cover), a bank and a filling station.
What is the address of the Masonic Temple building?
N. College Ave.
What is in that building today?
What year was the building erected?
Where did you find the date?
While James New remained at this corner for a few more years,
Charles Binkley opened a drugstore further north. Take a guess: What
business is in that building today?
What is that address?
Prather Masonic Temple, with Binkley & New drugstore, 1922
Bass Photo Co. Collection, Indiana Historical Society
N. College Ave.
What is a filling station?
On the right is the Masonic building named after Calvin Prather and
the Uptown Theater just south of a row of houses. Many of those
houses are there today. Can you find the one that is no longer there?
(Circle it in the photo.) Hint: The first house today (a double) ends in
27 and 25.
Photo shot from the top of the Masonic building, circa 1927
Indiana Historical Society
8
MAKE YOUR OWN #LUCAHINTS
Sketch out the top of a building on College Ave. Write a
brief description of your building’s features. Are there any
unique designs in brick or stone? How old do you think
the building is? Write down a few clues to help identify
what it is (or, if you can find out, what it was). Share your
#LUCAhints: Take a photo of your hint and post it on
Twitter, Facebook or Instagram with the tag #LUCAhints if
you want other people to try to guess what this building is
or was. (Write the address on the inside back cover.)
BONUS: LANDMARK
9
This photo has you looking down, not up. You’ll find this final landmark in a small park just west of College Avenue. It is a
memorial to help us remember what happened on April 4, 1968. #LUCAhints: It is guarded by two giants, one of whom is a
King. The structure incorporates guns gathered through an amnesty program and melted down. Draw the memorial.
What’s the name of the landmark?
Why does it exist and what does it mean?
What are the names of the artists involved?
On the back cover, there is a cutout in the metal of the memorial. Who is this person?
FOR MORE INFORMATION
NORTH WESTERN CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY
We’ve used many sources, including the Encyclopedia
of Indianapolis, the Indiana Historic Sites and Structures
Inventory’s Interim Reports for Washington and Center
Townships, HistoricIndianapolis.com, and several years of R.L.
Polk & Co.’s Indianapolis City Directory. For more information,
the libraries of the Indiana Historical Society, Indiana State
Library and Indiana Landmarks offer many books, articles and
photos.
NWCU is now Butler University, at 46th St. and Sunset
Ave. (Photo courtesy of Butler University)
MAKE YOUR OWN #LUCAHINTS ANSWER
Address
N. College Ave.
What is this building?
FRONT COVER PHOTOS
Dome:
Designed by Pierre & Wright for a Kroger Grocery and Baking
Company store in the late 1930s, today it is Moe & Johnny’s
restaurant at 5380 N. College Ave.. When Kroger opened,
there was also a small Pure Oil filling station at the corner,
adjacent to the building.
Corner post:
Where is this post?
What are the decorative objects on it?
Where were they originally?
Uptown Theater:
The film being shown was “The Unholy Night,” released in
1929, the year of this photo. The advertisement says, “All
Talking.” Why would it say that?
The Uptown Theater is gone, but the Classic Revival-style
building that is barely visible on the right-hand side of the
photo is still there. Built in the 1920s, it was a bank until the
mid-1980s. (The bank-deposit metal box is still on an outside
wall, but it wasn’t there in 1929.)
What is in that building today?
What occupies the space where the Uptown Theater was?
YOUR NOTES AND COMMENTS
Ma-Co Market: Ma-Co Realty Company (Ma-Co Market) architectural drawing, 1929. Pierre & Wright, Architects.
Courtesy of Drawings + Documents Archive, Ball State University