Griffin Emily - Hidden History of Montgomery County, Indiana

Published by The History Press

Charleston, SC 29403

www.historypress.net

Copyright 2012 by Jodie Steelman Wilson, Emily Griffin Winfrey and Rebecca McDole

All rights reserved

Cover images courtesy of the Crawfordsville District Public Library.

First published 2012

e-book edition 2012

Manufactured in the United States

ISBN 978.1.61423.830.0

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Wilson, Jodie Steelman.

Hidden history of Montgomery County, Indiana / Jodie Steelman Wilson, Emily Griffin, and Rebecca McDole.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

print edition ISBN 978-1-60949-522-0

1. Montgomery County (Ind.)--History--Anecdotes. 2. Montgomery County (Ind.)--History, Local--Anecdotes. 3. Montgomery County (Ind.)--Biography--Anecdotes. I. Griffin, Emily, 1984- II. McDole, Rebecca. III. Title.

F532.M75W55 2012

977.248--dc23

2012004818

Notice: The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the authors or The History Press. The authors and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The authors would like to thank the head of the Reference and Local History Department at the Crawfordsville District Public Library (CDPL), Bill Helling, for his support and extensive help throughout the entire process. We couldnt, and wouldnt, have done it without you! Dellie Craig was always willing to help us with any request, and her amazing memory for our collection items frequently came in handy. Thank you to our library director, Larry Hathaway, and our library board for their support in the production of this book; thanks also go to the many previous librarians and donors who created the rich local history collection we have at CDPL. Thank you to Joe Gartrell and The History Press for seeing the significance of our countys history and our contributions to the historical record; and thanks also to Ryan Finn, who guided us through completion. To all those who have helped us throughout this process, we are sincerely grateful.

A very special thank-you goes to the family members of our chapter subjects: Jeanne Ann Vanderhoef, for Maude Snyder; Stephen Goldman and Kathy Shimberg, for the Harry Freedman family; Sally Herr, Eleanor Herr, Ann White and Jeff Bennett, for Shirl Herr (and Nellie Coutant); the family of Lillian Lookabill Hodgson; Patrick Camblin, Roy Camblin and Nolia Brandt, for Mary Oda and Frederick Eglin; the members of the Boynton-Harbert Society, for Elizabeth Boynton Harbert; and Marjorie Ross and John Ross, for Malcolm Ross.

Thank you to our other sources: John Kummings and Mary Kummings for the Taft photograph; Barb Coghlin for details on Mary Oda Eglin and Horace Hickam; Clay McCutchan, Eglin AFB historian; Maria Freire, for her permission to use the photograph of President Kennedy and Malcolm Ross taken by her late husband, Del Ankers; Eric Frye of the Crawfordsville Fire Department; Steve Loy and Donna Jeffers; Hubert Danzebrink and Sandy Lofland-Brown for courthouse details; and Mary Kay Duggan and Kathleen Correia for assistance with Hartman sheet music. Special thanks go to Karen Bazzani Zach for her recollection of Ruth Morgan and her knowledgeable responses to many questions on various local subjects throughout this project.

We also wish to thank Alison Wright of the Montgomery County Historical Society and Beth Swift, archivist at Lilly Library, Wabash College, for providing us access to information and photographs within their institutions collections.

Emily would like to thank her husband and best friend, Russell, for his loving support and endless encouragement. Also deserving of mention are Emilys parents, sister and grandparents, who, although far apart in miles, have always been so closely devoted to her endeavors.

Jodie would like to thank her familyMichael, Annie and Alifor their support during the writing of this book. Thank you to her parents, Keith and Sheila Steelman, for her years at the University of Illinois, where she learned to write for the public good, and to Professor Lou Liebovich, who taught her how.

Rebecca would like to thank all her family, especially her parents, Don and Deb, for their support and unfailing confidence in her. Thank you also to her best friendsHolly, Krissy and Triciafor their encouragement and help with this project.

INTRODUCTION

Montgomery County, Indiana, never fails to surprise the visitor with its unique and varied history, but even local residents are often unaware of some of their countys heritage. Of course, anyone who spends some time in Crawfordsville will eventually know about General Lew Wallace, author of the longtime bestseller Ben-Hur, and Senator Henry Lane, who helped found the Republican Party and get Abraham Lincoln nominated for the presidency. However, Hidden History of Montgomery County, Indiana strives to bring to light many of the areas other deserving stories. Much research on Montgomery County has been done, but it does not always provide information on lesser-known people, places and events. Nevertheless, this book should not be viewed as a comprehensive hidden historythere are many more fascinating stories to tell and people to explore. You may also wonder why a local figure or event you expected to find is not listed here. Many worthy people and occurrences are not reported in this book simply because they have often been documented and are readily available elsewhere. In addition, we have only so much room and cant include everything we would like. Realize, too, that the facts we present may not match existing publications either online or in print; we have made great efforts to use primary sources, we have found additional family information and we have enhanced previous histories.

Our current research would not be possible without patrons donations of historical documents, photographs and family histories to the Crawfordsville District Public Librarys local history collection and archives. Fortunately, the majority of our primary documents had been retained and protected at the library, which is committed to preserving the rich history of Montgomery County for future generations. Through the librarys online local history databases (www.cdpl.lib.in.us/lh), CDPL is able to share its vast collection of resources with descendants and researchers around the world.

We must admit that none of us is a native of Montgomery County, but working in a county with such an impressive and colorful background has led us to embrace this county as our own. As reference and local history librarians, we are fortunate to hear firsthand accounts from residents and uncover never-before-published gems in our archives on a daily basis. We are continuously discovering new stories about our adopted county, whether in documents that have been hidden for one hundred years or in oral histories that are simply new to our nonlocal ears. Our enthusiasm for local research has grown as we see the twinkle in the eye and hear the excitement in the voice of a resident remembering a presidents speech on a train, a movie stars stop at the local milkshake bar or his or her grandfathers downtown business. Without the willingness of these individuals, recording the history of Montgomery County would prove futile. If not for the generous people who share their stories, photos and documents with us every day, these historic artifacts and precious memories would be lost forever. Furthermore, we are fortunate to work in a community where historical organizations and societies collaborate, support one another and share one common goal: the preservation of our countys heritage.