Flashback Friday

Contributed by Teresa Douglass, Genealogy Specialist

National Candy Day was November 4^th, four days after Halloween. Surely this is no coincidence! Grab a sweet treat and help the Genealogy & Local History staff identify the youngsters in this photograph taken around 1950.
This picture captures five young boys enjoying some lollipops. The young lad in the center has been identified as Joseph Martin. None of the other boys have been identified. If you recognize someone, please let us know by email or by calling 812-738-5412.

See this and many other images in HCPL’s Group Photo Collection.

Contributed by Teresa Douglass, Genealogy Specialist

Halloween Party, ca. 1950

Little is known about this ca. 1950 photo of a children’s Halloween party, except for its location: above the A & P grocery store on Chestnut Street in Corydon. No one in the photograph has been identified, but it is possibly associated with the Habermel family.

This image is part of HCPL’s Family Genealogy File Photos collection.

Contributed by Teresa Douglass, Genealogy Specialist

The Matthew E. Welsh Bridge spanning the Ohio River between Mauckport, IN, and Brandenburg, KY, was constructed 60 years ago. Construction began in August 1964. The bridge was formally dedicated on October 29, 1966, and opened to traffic on November 19, 1966.

The Matthew E. Welsh Bridge was completed in 1966 and named in honor of Indiana governor Matthew E. Welsh, who served from 1961-1965 and was a key supporter of the bridge’s construction. Built by the Indiana State Toll Bridge Commission, the bridge remained a toll bridge until August 24, 1992. Visit HCPL’s Transportation Collection in the digital archives.

This view of the Matthew E. Welsh Bridge was taken shortly after construction was completed. The structure stands about 100 feet above the normal river level and is 3,098 feet long. Visit the Walter and Mina Fried Slide Collection.

Contributed by Teresa Douglass, Genealogy Specialist

Harrison County’s glass history dates back to 1925, when the Co-operative Enterprise Glass Company of North Vernon, Indiana, relocated its plant to Corydon. The company produced hand-blown kerosene lamp chimneys that were sold throughout the U.S. and abroad. The plant, south of Indian Creek, employed about 200 men and produced 1,500 to 2,000 lamps daily.

Demand for lamp chimneys dwindled as electricity became more readily available and affordable, and World War II, coupled with rising automation in manufacturing, made the market for hand-blown chimneys obsolete. By 1941, the Co-operative Enterprise Glass Company in Corydon was one of only three companies left in the United States that made lamp chimneys exclusively. The Co-operative Enterprise Glass Company closed its doors in 1948 after twenty-three years in Corydon.

Fortunately, one of the company’s employees, Victor Zimmerman, used his glass-blowing skills to start a new business making hand-blown glass novelties instead of lamp chimneys. Over four generations, the Zimmerman family evolved that business into what is now Zimmerman Art Glass.

The following newspaper articles, published in 1925, detail the Glass Company’s arrival and development in Corydon.

The Corydon Republican, April 9, 1925

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Corydon Democrat, May 13, 1925

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Corydon Democrat, July 8, 1925

Contributed by Teresa Douglass, Genealogy Specialist

Explore your Harrison County family history at the Frederick Porter Griffin Center on West Beaver Street in Corydon. The Griffin Center is open 9 a.m.- 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and offers numerous resources on Harrison County families. HCPL’s digital archives include 66 collections with a wide variety of historic photographs and documents.

This collage features a small sampling of the hundreds of photos available online in the Family Genealogy File Photos collection of HCPL’s digital archives.

Contributed by Teresa Douglass, Genealogy Specialist

Football season is underway, and few could have guessed that the Indiana University Hoosiers would enter it as the defending national champions. Almost no one in 1960 would have predicted it, since the Hoosiers finished that season 1-8, but the fans packed the stadium anyway. The images below show one of the first games held in IU’s newly built Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, when the Hoosiers took on the Spartans of Michigan State University (MSU) on October 22, 1960. That day was both the dedication of the new stadium and IU’s homecoming. Sadly, the Spartans won, 35–0.
Fortunately, the Hoosiers now have Curt Cignetti.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IU and MSU football players line up for a play at the 20-yard line in front of a packed crowd during the October 22, 1960 game. It was one of the first games held in IU’s newly built Memorial Stadium. Construction of the stadium, designed by architects Eggers and Higgins, began in August 1958, and the facility opened on October 8, 1960. The October 22^nd game against MSU was the dedication day for the new stadium and also IU’s homecoming.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Indiana University’s football team gathers in a huddle on the field during a game against Michigan State University in October 1960. The game took place in IU’s newly constructed Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, Indiana, and drew a large crowd.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Indiana University’s marching band creates the IU symbol as it performs on the football field at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington. The October 1960 game marked the official dedication of the newly built stadium and the university’s homecoming.

For more images of this and other college football games and marching bands of the era, visit the Walter and Mina Fried Slide Collection and select College Football Games and Marching Bands.

Contributed by Teresa Douglass, Genealogy Specialist

These two teams from the Palmyra, Indiana FFA chapter placed second and third at the district land judging contest held in Orange County, Indiana, on September 29, 1954. The boys are not identified individually in the photograph, but the eight team members are Herbert Hoehn, Norbert Hoehn, Melvin Vance, Arvile Rudolph, Robert Davis, Harlan Adamson, Jack Rumbly, and Larry Martin. Their advisor, C. M. Foster, is standing at the far left in the back row.

Check out the HCPL Palmyra FFA collection, which contains a 1954-1955 chapter scrapbook with numerous photos and newspaper clippings, a newsletter, and a program and scorecard from a national land judging competition.

Contributed by Teresa Douglass, Genealogy Specialist

Take a look back at some favorite Corydon burger joints of the past with these print ads from the 1960s. Is anyone else getting hungry?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Meet you there after the game!

Austin “Jocko” Timberlake opened Jock’s Lunch at the northeast corner of Chestnut St. and Capitol Ave. in 1949. Known for its burgers, early breakfasts, and Saturday special pork tenderloin sandwiches, Jocko’s was a favorite spot for teens and grown-ups alike to meet and laugh with friends, catch up on local news and gossip, and grab some good grub. In business at the same location for over 50 years, the small diner became an iconic spot in the Corydon community, with its location widely known as “Jocko’s corner” long after the restaurant’s closure in 2000.

Have your cheeseburger and milkshake delivered to your car!

This print ad for the Dog-N-Suds drive-in restaurant features an image of the Corydon business where several vehicles are parked for curb service. The restaurant was located north of downtown on Highway 135 (current location of El Nopalito) and was a popular hang-out for teens and families.

Check out HCPL’s Businesses of Harrison County collection.

Contributed by Teresa Douglass, Genealogy Specialist

As the dog days of summer come to a close, we give a shout-out to our four-legged companions and take a look back at some well-loved canines of the past.

Dr. Guy D. Baker of Crandall, Indiana (left), and Paul Reynolds of New Albany, Indiana (right) are pictured at the 1947 annual meeting of the Hoosier Fox Hunters Association. The foxhound in the photo belonged to Reynolds and won first place in the derby at the event.

View Group Collection No. 1

The Griffin family dog, John Henry, leaps over the fence at the Porter-Griffin house toward Maurice Griffin in front of the home on Walnut Street in Corydon ca. 1910.

Patrick and Helen Porter Griffin sit near their fireplace with John Henry sitting at their feet.

View Griffin Family Photos

A young Bonnie Eckart (1933-2023) stands for a photograph with her dog Trixie ca. 1938. Bonnie was the daughter of Straude Ray and Myrtle McKim Eckart.

View Family Genealogy File Photos

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Standing beside the logging truck on Harry Conrad’s farm east of Corydon, near the Grange Hall ca. 1936 were, from left: Clarence Crecelius, Tom Crecelius, Oscar Crecelius, and Alvin “Smitty” Smith with “Peanuts” the dog.

View People at Work 

Contributed by Teresa Douglass, Genealogy Specialist

September 8^th is International Literacy Day, which highlights the importance of literacy to individuals, communities, and societies. Public libraries have long played a significant role in developing literacy in their communities, so to celebrate International Literacy Day, we feature a page from an early Harrison County library register with entries from 1839-1878. During this period, residents subscribed to the library for a set period of time or paid a small amount with each loan. The list of works loaned out ranged from popular novels to books on travel, science, nature, history, and politics. Some of the most popular items checked out of the library were:

• Waverly novels – a series of wildly popular novels by Sir Walter Scott published between 1814 and 1831.
• The Pickwick Papers – the first novel by Charles Dickens published in serial form between 1836 and 1837.
• Plutarch’s Lives – Biographies of famous Greek and Roman men by Greco-Roman philosopher and historian Plutarch at the beginning of the second century.
• Ferdinand and Isabella – a work about the young Spanish monarchs whose marriage in 1469 led to the unification of Spain.
• Various nature field guides and sketchbooks on plants, gardens, botany, etc., and various medical guides.
• Travel and adventure works about faraway places – Egypt, Yucatan, Poland, & Russia

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

View the complete Harrison County Library Register, 1839-1878