Greensburg in 1918

One of the treasures in the local history collection at the Greensburg Public Library is this wonderful photo of the Lone Tree Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, which was taken in the Greensburg YMCA Gymnasium on April 1, 1918. The photo includes a card mount with the photographer's imprint, which reads, "The Eclipse Studio, Greensburg, Ind." 

The best part? Full names were written on the back! Unfortunately, there are 30 names listed, and only 29 women in the picture. Let us know if you can help us verify anyone's identity!

The great thing about digitizing photos is that you can zoom in to get a better look...

Front Row, L-R: Mrs. Mollie Fogg, Mrs. Ella Kitchen, Mrs. Lida Cobb, Mrs. Rose Zoller, Mrs. Lizzie Turner. Back Row, L-R: Mrs. Ethel Ryan, Mrs. Stella Rucker, Mrs. Florine (Sefton) Meek, Mrs. Laura Sefton, Mrs. Eliza Wolverton, Miss Vessie Riley, Miss Anna Riley, Miss Patience Rucher.

Front Row, L-R: Ruth Ryan (on floor), Mrs. Maud Johnston, Mrs. Cora Davis, Mrs. Flora Haas, Mrs. Eliza Crisler, Mrs. Eusebia Stimpson. Back Row, L-R: Mrs. Mary Swift, Mrs. Nettie LaRue, Miss Pearl Williams, Miss Rebecca Montgomery, Miss Hannah Baker, Miss Sadie Baker, Miss Sarah Montgomery, Mrs. Markland, Mrs. Victoria Craig, Mrs. Winona Deiwert, Miss Emma Donnell.

Of course, family historians will be excited to see if they recognize someone in the photo, but we can glean much more information than that! We can see what women in Greensburg were wearing in 1918, and how they were contributing to the war effort. We can see what the old YMCA looked like at that time. What else catches your eye in this photo?

Although they are difficult to see, one particularly interesting element is the WWI posters in the background.

Close-up of WWI posters

The Library of Congress (LOC) has digitized approximately 1900 WWI posters. According to the LOC, posters were an important way to inspire, inform, and persuade during the war.

By searching for phrases we can make out in the posters in this photo, we can see the originals and find additional details about them. For instance, by searching for the phrase "Over the Top," we learn that the poster on the far left is a color lithograph created in 1918 by Sidney H. Riesenberg to promote the purchase of U.S. Savings Bonds.

Over the top for you, 1918, Sidney H. Riesenberg

This is a great collection to browse and explore - and it's a fun way to learn about this time period.

Boys and Girls!, 1917, James Montgomery Flagg

If you know something more about our DAR photo or have other WWI-era photos of Decatur County you would like to share, please leave a comment or contact us!

Revisiting "About Town"

 

"About Town" was a Greensburg Daily News column that ran in the late 1970's. The column featured short articles about interesting local people. Many of these articles were clipped and saved in the library's vertical files. To make this information easier to access, we've compiled the articles in a binder, arranged them alphabetically by name, and made them searchable in our catalog. If you see someone of interest in the list below, but cannot make it into the library, please contact us. We can scan the article you'd like to see and email it to you! Otherwise, you are welcome to use this collection in person and make copies of any articles you'd like.

You will find articles about the following people in this resource:

Adams, M. H. (Rev.)

Armand, George

Barker, Bob

Bilbrey, Dan

Bower, Ora

Boyer, Cleo

Bradley, Charlie

Brown, Faith

Cable, Sue

Carel, Bill Jr.

Carr, Woody (Woodrow)

Childress, C. W. (Doc)

Comer, Norman

Dickson, Dale Donald

Fowler, Smiley

Frensemeier, Robert

Fry, Urban

Galbraith, Opal

Gordon, Ken

Hunter, Bill

Kohler, Herb

Licking, Ben

Longmyre, Gertie

Marolw, Earl

Miers, Nansi

Mitchell, Zue

Navarra, Audrey

Owens, Kenneth

Query, Hallie

Renigar, Cleo

Richey, Merle

Rinker, Ken

Robbins, Louise

Robbins, Sally

Runion, Bill

Schoettmer, Gary

Shazer, Delton C.

Shirk, Stanton (Mrs.)

Sturges, Jere

Tebbe, Glenn

Thomson, Tommy

Thornburg, Merritt C.

Tillson, Florine

Tillson, Marguerite

Woods, Ronald W.

You might also be interested in the authors of the articles. They were written by:

Austin, Don

Autry, Dave

Evans, Tim

Ewing, Kay

Gordon, Ken

Hall, Jim

Hall, Mike

Hellmich, Nanci

Hossler, Cindy

Hyle, Bob

Jackson, Pam

Sickles, Brad

Thank you to the Greensburg Daily News for publishing these articles!
They will be an invaluable resource to family and local historians for years to come.

Beck's Studio

John W. Beck was another Greensburg photographer during the cabinet card era. John was born 30 March 1865, and came to Indiana to teach school. During his years as a teacher, he became interested in photography, and began photographing professionally in 1885.

John lived in Osgood, Knightstown, Carthage and Kokomo before he settled in Greensburg. He married Dollie Smith 25 December 1891. Beck's Studio opened in 1911, and was still operating when Harding's History of Decatur County was published in 1915.

Milly Applegate photographed at Beck's Studio, Greensburg, Ind., c.1911

Beck's Studio Imprint

Beck's Studio on Main Street, south side, one block from the square

Photo provided by Decatur County Historical Society

If you know more about Beck's Studio, please share in the Comments section.

If you'd like to share a photo taken at Beck's Studio, please contact us!

We'd love to post it on our blog.

Family Photos: Millard Hudson's Main Street Studio

 Does your family photo collection include any cabinet cards? A cabinet card is usually a 4½ x 6½ inch photo mounted on cardboard. These were popular in the late 1800’s, but they quickly went out of style with the introduction of the affordable, easy-to-use Kodak “Brownie” camera in 1900. Cabinet cards are nice because they often identify the photographer on the back, which can help you place a photo in a time and place.

This photo of Ella A. Applegate was taken at Millard Hudson's photography studio at 9 1/2 Main Street opposite the Hotel DeArmond in Greensburg. Millard A. Hudson was born in Napoleon, Decatur County in 1858. He owned Greensburg's leading photography studio for a number of years before he quit due to health problems.

There are many ways to date a photo and identify where it was taken. In Fashionable Folks: Hairstyles 1840-1900, Photo Detective Maureen A. Taylor explains how to use hairstyles to date photos. This can be a great place to start if you have no other clues. The short, frizzed bangs in this photo indicate that it was probably taken between 1880 and 1890 - and the bangs could be fake ones attached to a comb!

To learn more about decoding your family photos, you might like another book by Taylor: Uncovering your ancestry through family photographs. Both books are available at the Greensburg-Decatur County Public Library. If you would like to share a photo taken at Millard Hudson's studio, please contact us!

Source: Harding, Lewis, History of Decatur County, Indiana. Indianapolis: B. F. Bowen & Co.,1915.

Greensburg's Carnegie Library Dedication

Check out Pat Smith's column in the Greensburg Daily News tomorrow - she will delve deeper into the history of our Carnegie Library. Today, she shares the program from the 1905 dedication, which included an address from Indiana University President William Lowe Bryan at the First M. E. Church and a reception at the library.

Carnegie Public Library Dedication, Greensburg, Indiana, Tuesday, January 24, 1905, First M. E. Church.

Organ by Miss Haas, Invocation by Rev. D. R. VanBuskirk, Solo by Will Monfort, Introductory Remarks by Will Cumback, Address by Indiana University President William Lowe Bryan, Benediction by Rev. George Murphy. City Officers: Mayor Frank Thomson, Clerk Bert Morgan, Treasurer Dale Welsh, Marshal George S. Dickey, Attorney Horace C. Skillman. Councilmen: Joseph Strasburger, A. P. Gaines, Moses Wallace, E. E. Doles, Albert Tower, George Baumgardner, W. A. Kirkpatrick, George Bowman.

Happy Birthday to Greensburg’s Carnegie Library!

Mayor A. M. Willoughby's hopes for a public library in Greensburg became a reality in 1901 when Andrew Carnegie donated $15,000 for start-up funding. 

Postcard from the library's collection

In May 1902, the site of the old W. A. Watson foundry on N. Michigan Ave. was chosen. The library opened its doors on January 25, 1905 under the leadership of Librarian Bessie Montfort. A writer for the Greensburg Standard wrote:

"All who have played an active part in bringing about the existence of this public library have conscientiously endeavored to make it wholly creditable to the one who generously gave it, hoping that it may prove a blessing to our beautiful little city for all time to come."

The Carnegie Library's first books had this bookplate inside the front cover.
Books checked out for 14 days with one renewal, and fines were 2 cents per day.

The library eventually outgrew the Carnegie building and moved to the current building at 1110 E. Main Street in 1994. The original neoclassical library has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. 

Greensburg's Carnegie Library today

Check out the following books to learn more about the man behind Greensburg's first library:

Andrew Carnegie by David Nasaw

Andrew Carnegie: The Man and His Work by Bernard Alderson

Autobiography of Andrew Carnegie by Andrew Carnegie

The Gospel of Wealth and Other Timely Essays by Andrew Carnegie

Sources
Fischer, Suzanne. Decatur County Interim Report. Indianapolis: Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana, 1999.

"Greensburg's New Carnegie Library," Greensburg Standard, 21 August 1903.

Harding, Lewis, History of Decatur County, Indiana. Indianapolis: B. F. Bowen & Co.,1915.

Greensburg Forever: A Good Resolution

Welcome!

At Decatur County History we will celebrate the past, present, and future of Decatur County, Indiana. We'll remember the people who built and shaped our county, the places we have loved (and the places we have lost), our celebrations, and our struggles. We'll explore it all, from Main Street Greensburg to the tiny towns that rarely make it on the map.

This blog will be a place to share your thoughts, photos, and memories of Decatur County. It will be a place to reconnect and remember. It will also be a place to learn how you can trace your own family's history, and share what you find.

Once a month, we will post an historic photo of Decatur County. If you have a photo or postcard you'd like to share, please contact us to tell us a little bit about it, and we'll be in touch with you soon!

G. H. S. Season '11 - '12 Champs

Do you see any familiar faces in this 100-year-old Greensburg High School photo? If you recognize anyone or have any additional information about this photo, please leave a comment or contact us!