Bloomington - Monroe County History Center

Dr. John Herschel Lemon Reminisces about Early Life in Bloomington

Nov 26, 2018Monroe Historypeople, places, wehiaBloomington, Indiana, John Herschel Lemon, Monroe County

Blog post by Randi Richardson The item noted below is based on a column in an unidentified Bloomington newspaper called “Looking Back.” It was found in a scrapbook compiled by a man named Fred Lockwood. The scrapbook is held by the Monroe County History Center, Bloomington, Indiana. It also includes information and a photograph from

Hays Market One of a Kind

Aug 8, 2018Monroe History3 Commentspeople, placesBloomington, Cavaness, Currie, Curry, Garage, Hays, Indiana, Market, Monroe County, Morton Street, Quarries, Sixth Street, Smithville

Many people who have lived for a while in Bloomington remember Hays Market at 6th and Morton streets. It wasn’t always a market, however, and the stone carving over the door provides a clue to its origins. The first owner of the building was Lawrence Currie and his son, John. Lawrence Currie, whose name was

Certificates of Selection for the Civilian Conservation Corps

Jul 17, 2018Monroe HistorywehiaBloomington, Civilian Conservation Corps, Indiana, Monroe County, Stevens, work relief

The Civilian Conservation Corps was a public work relief program that operated from 1933-1942 during the presidency of Frank D. Roosevelt. Initially, the program provided manual labor jobs related to unemployed, unmarried men between the ages of 18-25. Later it was modified to include older men up to the age of 45 and they were

Scoby’s Divorce and Battle for Child Custody

Jun 21, 2018Monroe History1 CommentwehiaBloomington, divorce, Indiana, Monroe County

Although there were significantly fewer divorces in the early nineteenth century than there are today, they nevertheless did exist. One of the earliest divorces on record in Monroe County is that of James and Ruth Scoby. On August 24, 1824, the Monroe County sheriff was commanded to bring several witnesses to court to testify on

Earliest Telephone Book in the County

Jun 4, 2018Monroe History2 CommentswehiaBloomington, Indiana, Indiana Genealogical Society, Monroe County, telephone

We don’t know with any certainty when telephones were first introduced in Monroe County or the date of the first telephone book. However, the date of the earliest known telephone book in the county is 1902. It has been preserved on microfilm at the Monroe County Public Library in Bloomington and is part of the

Gentry Bros. Organize Another Big Show

May 22, 2018Monroe HistorywehiaBloomington, circus, Gentry, Indiana, Monroe County

The front page of the Bloomington (IN) Evening World on October 22, 1917, announced that Bloomington, the home of circuses and circus men, was to have another big show enterprise organized by J. W. Gentry, East Kirkwood Avenue, who helped make the Gentry Bros. Show famous from coast to coast. Gentry reportedly was at work

Affidavits for Soldier’s Exemptions

Apr 17, 2018Monroe HistorywehiaBloomington, Indiana, Indiana Genealogical Society, Monroe County, Soldiers, Veterans

In 1927 the federal government determined that “any honorably discharged soldier, sailor, marine or nurse who had served at least 90 days or more in the military or naval forces of the United States and who was totally disabled as evidenced by a pension certificate or the award of compensation, and the widow of any

Tarzan: One in Twelve a Native of Bloomington

Apr 2, 2018Monroe History5 CommentswehiaBloomington, Dennis Miller, Indiana, Monroe County, South Henderson, Tarzan

All totaled, twelve men played Tarzan on the silver screen. Three were from Indiana. One was a native of Bloomington. Elmo Lincoln, a native of Rochester originally named Otto Elmo Linkenhelt, portrayed the ape man during the silent film era as did James Hubert “Babe” Pierce from Freedom, Owen County, Indiana. Denny Miller was from

A Bear to Remember

Mar 12, 2018Monroe History1 CommentwehiaBloomington, merchants, Monroe County, North Walnut, Schmalz

Roy H. Schmalz was born and reared in Patricksburg, Owen County. When he was 12 years old he traded a pig for a gun. His father instructed him in the use of the fire arm. That was the beginning of Roy’s lifelong love of hunting. After owning general stores in Patricksburg and New Market, Roy

Biosketch of Thomas Lewis, Former Slave

Mar 5, 2018Monroe History1 CommentwehiaBloomington, Indiana, Monroe County, Slave Narratives, Slavery, Thomas Lewis

In the 1930s and early 1940s, more than 140 years after the U. S. Constitution declared slavery illegal in the United States, former slaves were interviewed under the auspices of the Works Progress Administration. The materials, archived at the Library of Congress, are known as the Slave Narrative Collection. Some of the narratives have been