A Trip to the Hub
Courthouse and library visit
I spent a few hours today at the courthouse and library in Winamac. The library has an extensive genealogy section, and I found a few things there that I didn’t know existed.
The courthouse visit was fruitful: Joseph B. Shultz bought his first parcel of land in Pulaski county from none other than the famous Turpie Brothers, of Monon! They had extensive landholdings in White County, and were written up in the old White/Pulaski county history book. Francis Horner bought his first piece of Pulaski county land from J.L. Stump. Dr. Elston bought some of his farm property from Henry Ballard. I’m still sifting and sorting, and I’ll definitely need to make a trip back once I digest all of it.
At the library I found the piece about Henry Madaus renovating the hotel. From The Democrat, September 19, 1901:
Henry Madaus is overhauling what is known as the old soldiers home and is remodeling and fixing it up in fine shape. Large plate glass windows are being put in, and when completed, it will make one of the finest hotels in any little town in Northern Indiana.
Amongst other tidbits: the “first car to hit town” was reported on July 26, 1897. Meta Horner, daughter of Francis S. and brother of E. W., was a gifted musician. After completing her studies at “normal school,” she repaired to Cincinatti, where she attended the music conservatory there. A news article on December 7, 1900 reports that “Fred Weishaar has moved into his new bakery.”
I also found a big shelf full of pictures from the county’s sesquicentennial, including lots of original pictures that appeared in the 1953 Medaryville centennial book.
The picture above is Jimmy Ahler’s IGA, in its earliest dress. He took over the Mitchell grocery, which was the successor to the Weishaar business. It was remodeled before the pictures in the centennial book were taken.
The picture on the first page is of the “Horner Block,” which was a large building completed in 1905. It is still standing, “barely.”
Posted by Brian Capouch on Tuesday, November 21, 2006