USA > Indiana > Lake County > Reports And Papers Of Lake County Indiana (1958-1966) > Part 10
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of Schererville.
The announcement of the death of Michael Seberger, September 22, 1959, and T. K. Fisher, January 30, 1960, was made. The latter, 92 years old, is a former president.
The second quarterly meeting was held February 11, 1961, at Center Schoolhouse, Eagle Creek Township. The co- operation of the youth of the community made it a unique occasion.
Connie Childress was the accompanist for group singing; Judy Gagnon, Paul Hittle, Howard Nutt, and John Walge- muth comprised a brass quartette from the Lowell High School band which produced fine harmony. David Schultz, an eighth grader at Center, gave an excellently prepared story on "Cov- ered Bridges." One hundred and seventy of these structures remain in Indiana.
A skit, written by Miss Rena Dahl, was presented by Christine Gunnerson and John Ellis. Alex Wilkas sang "God Bless You and Keep You"; he has a powerful tenor voice that gives great promise of a career.
Leon Dean, agriculture teacher at the Crown Point High School, presented two historical films, "Halifax, N.S." and "Washington, D. C."
An announcement, in regard to selling tickets for the Ca- puchin concert to be held in St. Mary's gymatorium to raise funds to finance the moving of the log church to the new lo- cation and of a $50.00 gift from the association, was made by the president.
Mrs. Brown proposed that the publication of the history conform to the five year plan that is recommended in the con- stitution. If one volume, each five-year period would com- prise a chapter.
The third quarterly meeting, May 13, 1961, was held in the basement of the Ainsworth School.
Mrs. Alice M. Demmon's reminiscence was a fascinating story, "The Main Road" or old U. S. No. 30, first called "The Lincoln Highway." Beginning with William Ross, the pioneer of the area, the "poet laureate" Daniel Underwood, the keeper of the "California Exchange," who was the cordial host to the "49ers" westward bound for gold, and numerous other indi- viduals contributing a share to the colorful panorama, we felt
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that we had known them too.
The fourth and fifth grade pupils sang folk songs in a most pleasing manner.
Herb Reed, Chesterton, declared that every state park saved for posterity has involved a bitter struggle, as is true in the "Save-the-Dunes" effort. His filmed pictures of the beauty of this unusual region illustrated his discussion.
Miss Nettie Barman thanked the association for their gift and cooperation in the "Log Church" project.
The eighty-fifth annual meeting, August 12, 1961, was held in the basement of the Criminal Court building. The committee in charge of the dinner arrangements were Mabel Becker, Margaret Kolling and Faye Schultz. Rev. P. J. Ham- ilton, Methodist Church, Crown Point, gave the invocation.
Miss Cynthia Bryant, Eagle Creek Township, an "I F Y E," spent her assignment in Switzerland. She illustrated her narration with her own slides; it was a graphic account of people, places and daily activities.
Henry Fieler reported on the location of the marker to designate where the sixteen Indian trails seemed to have con- verged in Merrillville.
This year there have been ten executive meetings, three quarterly and the annual session. Itinerating the meeting place is the new policy. The date will be the second Saturday of the last month of the quarter.
November 11, 1961, the first quarterly meeting of the year was held at the Jane A. Horton Ball School in Hanover Township. Rev. George W. Knapp gave a stirring address and thought-provoking comments about Veteran's Day. The chil- dren, under the direction of their music teacher, Miss Sara Ward, sang a group of patriotic songs.
Mrs. Henry Sneeden traced the development of the Cedar Lake area from a favorite haunt of the Pottowatomies to its present struggle to be an incorporated city. The sturdy, tal- ented pioneers set high ideals. The Jane A. Horton Ball School is evidence of that effort. The Lake County historian, her son, was an eminent scholar and preacher.
Ethel Vinnedge read a paper written by Henry Taylor about West Point, the settlement that contended to be the county seat.
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The bronze marker, formerly at the Ball farm homestead, was moved to the Jane A. Horton Ball School grounds. The na- tive boulder and plate have been cleaned. In a brief ceremony Chester A. Clark, on behalf of the association, presented the gift to the school. Principal Daily Hill accepted the gift in the name of the Jane A. Horton Ball School.
In response to a request, it was moved by Avis Brown, seconded by Ethel Vinnedge and carried, that a copy of Tim- othy H. Ball's book, "Will It Live" or "The Lake of the Red Cedars," be a gift to the Lowell Public Library.
The second quarterly meeting was convened February 10, 1962, at 1:30 P.M. in the basement assembly room of the Methodist Church, Lowell.
A rare treat was beautiful music by the contest winners of the Lowell grade school band: Laverne Pettigrew, saxo- phone solo; Vivian Hale, the cornet; Carl Peterson and Aleda Hale, trombone duet. Debby James was the piano accompan- ist.
Rev. E. L. Worley, a lifelong resident of south county, drew a striking word picture by contrasting past conditions with the present. He reflected that an area becomes what its people make it; he enumerated the states on the eastern coast of our U.S.A., and the European countries from which the immigrants came, which were recognized for ideal citizen- ship and who desired only the best for their children. Evi- dence of these goals are that the first Protestant church was built in the West Creek community, the first public school building was in Lowell, little factories and mills sprung up and agriculture was an art that yielded rich returns.
The third quarterly meeting May 12, 1962, convened at 1:30 P.M. in the auditorium of the Merrillville High School building. A choral group of the high school rendered several charming songs. Mrs. Wm. Vanderlaan displayed artifacts and told everyday life stories of the Pottawatomies who win- tered along the Kankakee and moved north to Crown Point and Merrillville to plant gardens, and to the Gary area for berry season. Their ceremonial grounds and dancing floor were not far from this very spot.
Henry Fieler reported that permission must be secured wherever the marker for the "Trails" is placed.
Mrs. Hester Adams, Columbia City, formerly of Lowell, was a guest. She is vice-president of the Indiana State His-
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torical Society.
The 86th annual meeting, August 11, 1962, was a most enjoyable holiday in the summer house beside the artificial lake at the Fred and Irene Homfeld country home. The large flag floated in the breeze, inspired us as we gave the pledge of allegiance and sang America, and listened to the recording of "I AM AMERICA," dramatically recited.
Duanne Gunnerson gave a skit, "Historical News, Past, Present and Future." Mrs. Harold Sorenson reviewed "Toe Hold on Lake Michigan" by John Drury. Jonathan Jennings, Indiana's first governor, made possible "The 10 mile pur- chase" which has been so vital to the growth of the north-end of the state as the greatest industrial area in the United States.
Two photostatic copies of maps of Lake County, 1891, were presented to the association by Delbert Purkey, Ham- mond.
Distinguished guests were Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Doak, Ecuador, South America, who have stopped for a brief visit in their native communities, LeRoy and South East Grove, enroute to their new station on the Island of Cypress.
The first quarterly meeting, November 10, 1962, was held in the Kolling School, St. John Township. Talent was from the St. John community and contributed by the Moffatt Dance School, piano solos by Theresa and Larry Schaeffer, and accordion duets by Warren and Danny Boller.
Miss Margaret Kolling told that there had been two frame structures before this new brick edifice. All had been located on this 35-acre tract donated by her great-grandfather about 1850 for school purposes only. The bell on the frame build- ings has been preserved.
James C. Howe, Gary, fascinated his audience with tales about "Railroads of Lake County." There are eight major trunk lines, two belt lines, and one electric-the South Shore. His fifty-three years of service afforded experience with wood-burning, coal, and the oil-burning locomotives. The diesel ruined romance for him as an engineer.
St. John recently celebrated its 125th birthday. Wal- ter Gard, direct descendant of John Hack, the founder, rem- inisced family and community incidents.
The second quarterly meeting, February 10, 1963, met in
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the Criminal Court basement. Emphasis was placed on the patriotic themes in speech and song. Mrs. Wm. Vanderlaan conducted a peppy songfest, with the story background of "America," "The Star Spangled Banner," etc .- a nation ex- pressed by song.
Fred Homfeld's commentaries, as he showed the slides taken recently on his trip "Behind the Iron Curtain," sharply contrasted our life of freedom and blessings.
The association opposes the county official's proposal to abandon and destroy the courthouse when they build the large complex north of town.
The third quarterly meeting, May 11, 1963, was a large representation traveling to the Presbyterian Church in Schnei- der. Miss Dahl remarked, in her acceptance to the welcome extended, that it was a homecoming for her; she taught in the Schneider schools several years.
Local participants in the program were Mrs. Margaret Gerrick, Rev. Austin Heuthe, Alex Wilkas, Cheryl Hartwick, Mrs. Calvin Alhmier, Mrs. Lloyd Studor, and Fred McRoberts, school principal. Mrs. Earl Little gave a vivid word picture of the struggle to redeem the swamps for farmland. Mr. McRoberts supplemented with maps and background com- ments. Cumberland Lodge, established by English nobility sportsmen, was a famous old landmark that burned in 1946. "The Three I's" was built in the area in 1881; the New York Central (north-south) in 1905. Frank Ahlgrim's house was the only one in 1906. He started a store and had the postoffice in it. The town was named for Fred Schneider in apprecia- tion of the labor and material given by him when the New York Central Railroad was built; an intriguing story.
The eighty-seventh annual meeting was August 10, 1963, in the Criminal Court basement assembly room. Arthur Mapes' poem, "INDIANA," adopted by the 1963 General Assem- bly as the state poem, was read by President Dahl during her welcome. Bob Lindau played the accompaniments for Dar- win Stephan's solo program. Danny Solliday, Kouts, added two solos with his dramatic interpretation. Bernadette Shon- ka sang two delightful soprano solos. Both were accompanied by Rosella Jarrett. Two clarinet solos were given by Jack Gorball of Lowell, accompanied by his sister Jane ; all teenager talent.
Mrs. Frank Strickland, of Lowell, told how one gets
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"drawn in" by a hobby before showing her handmade minia- ture houses from her "Lane of Friendly Nations"; architec- ture and furnishings were authentic. Mrs. Thomas W. Ha- ney, Crown Point, displayed her unusual "Lincolnia" collec- tion of pennies, medals, trophies, and photographs of our martyred President. Miss Margaret Kolling, Schererville, ex- plained the intricacies of her classified button collection. Mrs. Arthur Frame collects fans, tiny to large, ornamental and use- ful.
The first quarterly meeting of the current year was No- vember 9, 1963. It was held in the Christian Church in the historic community of Deep River. Lee Hodsen reminisced about Woodvale history and legends. John Wood arrived from Massachusetts in 1835. The mill was a most important factor in the history; it was on the Sauk Trail or the later Lincoln Highway.
Chester Crisler elaborated upon the natural scenery and the possibilities of a state park which is being considered. He and Mrs. Mary Lou Vanderlaan were named to attend the Porter County Historical Society meeting at Valparaiso to learn more of their intention along this thought.
Mr. and Mrs. Henry Fieler gave a travelogue of Egypt where they had recently toured.
Mrs. Haney convened the second quarterly meeting, Feb- ruary 8, 1964, in the Hobart Library basement assembly room. At 1:30 P.M. fifty-two people registered and enjoyed the hos- pitality of the Hobart people. Mrs. Faye Shults and Mrs. Frank Davis were refreshment hostesses, and the excellent program was presented by other hosts.
Rev. Jasper H. Cox, Methodist pastor, gave a meditation. Mrs. Leonard Blair, soprano soloist, sang and led the songfest of old-timer songs.
Mrs. Miriam Pleak prefaced her "History of Hobart" with a resume of "The Northwest Territory." The description of the topography, the tales of various period struggles, the de- velopment of industry and professions and those who were the leaders produced a vivid mental picture for the listeners.
Mrs. Joseph E. Brown presented to the association the index and the two volumes of the "Old Cemeteries Research" that was compiled a few years ago by the Julia Watkins Brass Chapter, NSDAR, of Crown Point. Mrs. Wm. Vanderlaan
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had made these copies for our association ; permission granted by the local Crown Point chapter, DAR.
Continued interest in a museum is expressed by the dis- cussions and the claim we have in ownership of "The Old Homestead."
May 21, 1964, over fifty people, members and guests, gathered in the gymnasium of the Shelby public school for the third quarterly meeting.
Mrs. Haney, president, spoke of the purposes, the activi- ties and the fellowship to our guests.
A most interesting and informing account of the Shelby community through the years was presented in panel manner by the Misses Ruth and Mary Holton and Mrs. Neal Sirois. These were traditional facts learned from parents and grand- parents who were the first to live in this Kankakee marshland with great possibilities when it became rich farms. It was always an alluring recreational region. Photographs and relics heightened the reminiscences.
Mary Lou Vanderlaan reported that the crossing of the Indian trails is approximately where Bonne's Supermarket stands, south of Merrillville, on the west side of Broadway or Indiana No. 53 .*
Walter Gard displayed a life insurance policy issued to Timothy H. Ball. He reminded all to attend the memorial services, May 30.
The extreme south village of Lake County generously shared their rich traditions with us. Our itinerary over the county is revealing new storehouses of that precious commod- ity that we call HISTORY.
The Hammond Historical Society recently made a con- ducted tour to Crown Point and vicinity; also south Lake County. The itinerary was provided by Mrs. Joseph E. Brown, historical-secretary: Location of marker, description, pur- pose and by what or by whom it was erected, the roads to fol- low to reach the spots. The research, made by Mrs. Waldon A. McBride and Mrs. Joseph E. Brown for the NSDAR, was a helpful reference. Aided by Mrs. Vanderlaan, Mrs. Brown compiled a list of markers, placed in the county as stated
* Location of said Indian Trails is corrected and located in chapter VII, page 152-3, where dedication marker was presented.
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above and also places that were worthy to be marked, which was sent to the sesquicentennial state marker committee in Indianapolis.
Covered Bridges By D. SCHULTZ Their Place in Our Past
There is something unique about covered bridges. A few people respect them as the artistry of our forefathers, there- fore, they must be preserved at all costs. To thousands of tourists they are worth seeing, regardless of the roads that have to be traveled. To millions of Americans they are sym- bols of the many pleasures of earlier days.
Their initial charm is not at all concealed; it is the roof on the top. If the bridges were human, they would be in- sulted if we were to say the roofs were just an architectural flourish.
A logical question, which is almost as old as the bridges themselves, is "Why were bridges covered ?"
They weren't covered to protect the traveler. Neither were they covered to make the horse think they were barns in- stead of bridges, nor to prevent Old Dobbin from shying from the water's glint. There are many more tales such as these; although they all had one thing in common, that was, they were all false.
The only and real reason was to protect the wooden skele- ton; thus preserving the bridge itself.
Early experts in woodworking knew that wood's greatest enemy was water. Alternately wetting and drying wood will cause it to rot after a time. Because of this bridges were covered to keep the inside structural timbers dry. The longer they were kept dry, the longer the bridge lasted. Floors were expanded: the important things to protect were supporting sides and trusses, which gave the structure its strength.
That's all the reason there ever was. If you were to ask any old-time New England carpenter why bridges were cov- ered you would receive this answer: "Why did our grand- mothers wear petticoats? To protect their underpinnings. Why did they cover bridges? Likewise."
Most people think covered bridges are seen just here and
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there; also, some think they are nearly vanished landmarks. This would certainly not be the case. A survey made prior to 1957 reveals that there are well over fifteen hundred bridges in existence in the United States and Canada. In areas of southern Pennsylvania and Ohio, western Oregon and north- ern Quebec, Canada, they are still used for crossing of streams, while most bridges are preserved as national landmarks.
Rock-ribbed Yankees would be surprised to learn that eighty per cent of all the bridges are located out of their state. With 400 covered spans within her boundaries, Pennsylvania leads all her sister states in the struggle for top honors. Ohio is the nearest competitor with 271. Most citizens of Indiana would be shocked to learn that their state ranks an honorable third on the list with 170, followed by Oregon with 164; how- ever, the December, 1959, Indiana Historical Bulletin lists 153 bridges.
More people than you'd probably suspect can recall the covered bridges they knew and took delight in during their youth. Covered bridges have always attracted children. The dark tunnel had a delicate aroma of wood shavings, ammonia, hay and horse manure. This could hardly be called Chanel No. 5, but it was a scent that, once sniffed, could hardly be forgotten. Bare toes, sifting through the cool sand on the floor on a hot day, knew a wonderful feeling. Sometimes a worm-baited fishline dangling through the cracks in the floor would produce a "whopper."
In the daytime acrobatics could be performed in the raf- ters; but at night a different thought was usually taken. A fear of robbers, waiting to jump you, was a common fear. If a small boy was caught running through the bridge at night, it would be proof that he was a chicken.
The most popular of all signs, found on a bridge, read similar to this: "$5.00 fine for riding or driving on this bridge faster than a walk." This might sound a little nutty today, but on bridges of that day and age it had a sound bear- ing. A constant tramp, tramp, coming down in synchronism, did more damage to the structure than overloading beyond the normal capacity. The fear of damaging the joints is why soldiers were ordered to break step when crossing bridges; the same rule applied to horses.
Covered bridges have always had a romantic appeal for both unmarried and married couples. Ask Grampa why they called them "kissing bridges" and you'll be rewarded with a
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reminiscent chuckle.
The covered spans served as a shelter for all kinds of meetings. Church services were sometimes held in the bridges on a hot summer Sunday.
Each covered bridge holds memories, whether large or small, and added together the recollections amount to a lot of affection for the old spans. When they go, a part of our past goes with them.
THE BONES OF A BRIDGE
Longfellow described a covered bridge as "a brief dark- ness leading from light to light." It's this brief darkness that people fail to examine, even though they may love these dark, dusky tunnels. The interior of any bridge tells just what was being protected in the bridges when the builders put the roofs and sides on. From the study of the skeleton on the inside you could tell just what the bridge is about.
Those who know and respect covered bridges have more pleasure in them than many casual travelers' observations. Liking a bridge makes it a delightful picture. Our bridges de- serve to be honored for their engineering as well as for their charm.
A bridge is described as a structure for furnishing a road- way over valley, chasm, water, or other roads.
In European history there were wooden bridges before stone bridges were thought of. When he wanted to cross a gap, a good stout tree, felled from one bank to another, served as a bridge. In years later a simple crossing of this type was called a stringer bridge. Its shore foundations, provided by nature, were called abutments. Men soon began to improve these crude bridges.
The next step, in bridge building, was the discovery that splitting a long stringer in half gave the traveler better foot- ing. A further invention was that the stringers be separated and short logs be laid across to form a wider walkway.
Here was one basic plan for a bridge. It is a plan used successfully in short bridges today, although steel girders are used instead of wooden stringers.
What would be done if a stream was wide? Naturally, a longer log could be used. But the longer the log the more the sag in the middle. Unknown geniuses, in central Europe, de-
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veloped a means to counteract the sag. First of all, each stringer, or log, was supported underneath by two log braces, supports slanting from the ends to the midpoint of the bridge. To do this the builder cut two logs, pressed their butts into either bank and sloped their tips upward so that they met in an obtuse angle in the center of the stringer in the form of the inverted V. Next, a crosspiece-in the form of a parallel stringer set lower against both banks-was added to close the open end of the inverted V and to prevent the diagonal arms from shifting. This horizontal piece came to be called the lower chord; the original stringer was termed the upper chord. This, then, was a truss, a triangular system of timbers so de- vised that each timber helped support another, and together they supported the weight that was placed on the whole. Later still, a center post made its appearance, reaching from the apex of the inverted V down to the midpoint of its new base. This simple arrangement of timbers was given an obvious name-the kingpost truss. It is the earliest form of the bridge truss design.
A natural development of the kingpost was the queenpost truss, the better half of the royal family. If you demonstrate a kingpost by placing your index fingers together in a peak and joining your thumbs to form a base, you can easily see what a queenpost truss is by placing a matchstick or pencil stub horizontally between the tips of your index fingers and joining your thumbs as before. In a queenpost you have re- placed the peak of the kingpost with the horizontal crosspiece and have allowed the base to become longer. The queenpost created a truss capable of spanning wider streams than the kingpost could manage to do.
The first American innovation was to amplify the ancient use of a wooden arch to strengthen a multiple kingpost; this was the Palmer truss, created by Timothy Palmer, followed shortly by the basically similar Burr truss, first built by Theo- dore Burr. But in the 1830s bridge building brought about the discovery that with careful and more intricate trusswork, the arch could then be dispensed with entirely in favor of a panel truss, at first referred to as the Long truss after its original inventor, Stephen H. Long. A Long truss was com- posed of a series of boxed X's with three or more panels com- posing the entire truss.
So far the bridges discussed here have had only one span, meaning the length of the bridge from one abutment to the other. The clear span is the distance between the faces of the
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abutments, while the truss span-the most commonly used expression-denotes the bridge's truss length regardless of how far it may extend, including the distance beyond the actual abutments.
Bridges were given the name multi-span when they had to be supported in the middle by piers, either natural or man- made. This was done only where a waterway was extra wide.
Progress has brought destruction to many covered bridges. The engineering put into the covered spans of yester- year promised that someday bridges would soar high and mighty over mighty waterways.
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