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    Greenwood
    Greenwood
    Greenwood
    Ebook198 pages1 hour

    Greenwood

    By Jim Hillman, John Murphy and Johnson County Museum of History

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    About this ebook

    By 1813, in an area originally inhabited by Native Americans, including a significant Delaware Indian village located on White River’s western banks, the future Greenwood was made safe for settlement by the Kentucky and Indiana militias. In 1818, with the New Purchase treaties and establishment of Whetzel Trace, the earliest east-west transportation route through central Indiana, the dense, overgrown forest became readied for settlement. Arising from humble beginnings as Smocktown, the community was officially named Greenfield in 1825, followed by renaming to Greenwood in 1833. The territory has seen tremendous growth through the decades since John B. and Isaac Smock arrived, transforming the land from a pioneer village into a contemporary hub of business and industry. Accused of being a “bedroom community” of Indianapolis, Greenwood strives to maintain its relevance as a unique and historically proud community.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArcadia Publishing
    Release dateSep 18, 2012
    ISBN9781439624517
    Greenwood
    Author

    Jim Hillman

    John Murphy, son of the Miramar Club's original general manager and former club employee, and Jim Hillman, childhood Riviera competitive swimmer, historical author, and instructor of sociology, explore the Propylaeum, Highland Golf and Country Club, Dolphin Club, Heather Hills, and several other facilities. Indianapolis Social Clubs provides nearly 200 rare vintage photographic memories that capture the heart, soul, and history of the clubs.

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      Book preview

      Greenwood - Jim Hillman

      Dad.

      INTRODUCTION

      The documented history of Greenwood is sketchy at best. There has not been a formal history of Greenwood written since the noted local historian Will Francis Averitt self-published Greenwood, Indiana- Its History, 1823–1965, a work that relied primarily upon personal accounts from the author’s friends and neighbors validated to the best of his abilities through years of research. Since 1965, a handful of articles have appeared in local publications, along with a few civic efforts to chronicle Greenwood’s history, but they were generally rehashes of Averitt’s work. The Polis Center at Indiana University–Purdue University at Indianapolis undertook a project that resulted in an updated summary of Greenwood history, but it contained little in the way of new information.

      Commissioned by Mayor Charles E. Henderson, a group of City of Greenwood employees led by John Myers and Elaine Hullinger undertook a two-year effort to unearth, compile, and assemble scattered community memories into Memories of the Wonderful World of Greenwood, a 350-page compilation published by the city in 2003. The project goal was not to produce a definitive history book but to snapshot, capture, and preserve the personal reflections and emotions of those who have called Greenwood home. The book has heart but with reliance primarily on the informal reminiscences of community members; many points of accuracy justifiably remain to be challenged. Since its original publication, several of the work’s noteworthy contributors have passed on, but their memories remain, the stories and revelations from which future residents will ponder, learn, and hope to understand, as these enticing testimonials commend the Greenwood way of life.

      At one point, Greenwood had an active historical society under the direction of longtime resident and historian Harold Toombs. He provided the impetus to create the Greenwood Museum that opened in the Polk Community House in 1965. However, over the following 15 years, interest waned, and the society eventually disbanded, closing the museum in 1980. The localized collection of city artifacts became dispersed, as did the volunteer historians who were the caretakers of Greenwood’s legend and lore.

      Further complicating the documentation of city history are the various perceptions of the physical boundaries of the area. While some central Indiana natives consider Greenwood to be all of the urban sprawl stretching south of Southport, others refer to Greenwood as the city proper, bounded on the north by the Marion-Johnson County line. Yet others consider the area encompassing the entirety of neighboring White River Township and the loosely defined Center Grove neighborhood as being Greenwood. While city plans include the annexation of some of these outlying areas, the focus of this pictorial history rests with historic Greenwood and its immediate outskirts.

      The land south of downtown Indianapolis, including most of Johnson County, proved difficult for early settlement. The original inhabitants were the Miami Indians followed later by Delaware tribes, residing along the eastern banks of the White River. The pristine waterway and nearby springs provided ample water and fish, and the surrounding dense forests provided abundant game and protection from outside invaders. The Delaware Indians ceded this land to the United States in 1818 and moved westward beyond the distant banks of the Mississippi River.

      It was not long after the Native Americans had totally vacated the territory that the first pioneers arrived from the south and east. The completion of the Whetzel Trace in 1819 provided a trail through the swamps and forests, bringing the opportunity for community settlement. Brothers John B. and Isaac Smock purchased land near the Madison Trail and in 1823 moved their families from Mercer County, Kentucky. The brothers are credited with founding Smock’s Settlement, often referred to as Smocktown, which was renamed Greenfield in 1825. Several years later (1833), the name was changed to the present Greenwood to avoid confusion with the nearby Hancock County community of Greenfield.

      Primarily of Dutch ancestry, many early settlers were the relatives, friends, and Kentucky neighbors of the Smocks and members of Mercer County’s New Providence Presbyterian Church. Other members of the Smock family settled in Switzerland County, Indiana, and still others became prominent at Pleasant Hill, Kentucky, a once-thriving Shaker community. Additional settlers began arriving in 1824, including the Alexander and Brewer families, George Noble, Robert Lyons, and Garret Vandivier.

      As the influx of settlers continued, the first significant steps of the evolution from village to city began with the establishment of a post office and school. The first post office was located in an inn owned by George Noble, the brother of Indiana governor Noah Noble. James Smock, younger brother of John B. and Isaac Smock, became the first postmaster. The first school was established in 1826 inside the Presbyterian church.

      Arising from Presbyterian roots, religion has always been a staple in Greenwood life. Mount Auburn Methodist Church, the area’s second established worship center, was organized in 1835 at the home of William Harrell. In 1836, it established the second area school. Other early congregations included the Greenwood Christian Church (1868), Greenwood Baptist Church (First Baptist Church of Greenwood, 1839), Honey Creek United Brethren Church (1845), Rocklane Christian Church (1846), and Greenwood Methodist Church (1849). The Olive Branch United Brethren Church (1859), Pilgrim Holiness Church (1922), Advent Lutheran Church (1944), Our Lady of the Greenwood Catholic Church (1950) and school (1955), and other faith communities continue Greenwood’s tradition of religious values and family life.

      While Greenwood’s first schools had religious affiliations and were developed as part of church ministries, public education became a reality in 1864, when a substantial community building was constructed for the sole purpose of education. When the original school burnt to cinders in 1865, classes moved to an available house on East Main Street. The displacement was short-lived, as a magnificent new four room, two-story brick school building was constructed in 1868, standing as a symbol of community pride and commitment to education. By 1899, this building was beyond safe capacity, and planning began on a new 12-room structure capable of meeting the growing community’s needs. The building was completed in 1901 at a cost of $17,000 and marked the beginning of the Greenwood Community School Corporation.

      Industry began to arrive in Greenwood in 1928, with the opening of sawmill operations by Lysander Adams, John Smart, and Darby Brunnemer, and John Wilson’s mill and coffin manufacturing business. On October 1, 1847, the first train chugged through Greenwood’s Madison and Indianapolis Railroad depot. The opening of rail transportation encouraged industrial growth, including Richard M. Steen’s carding business (1847), the A. G. Searle iron foundry (1850), a flour mill (1855), and the Polk Canning Company (1872). The home of Polk’s Best, the most historically relevant and recognizable of Greenwood’s early business enterprises, included over 3,000 farmland acres, expanding operations to diary processing, and the packaging and distribution of military food items during World War I. The Stokely Company (later Stokely-Van Camp) purchased the Polk Canning Company in 1930, continuing operations until 1959. James T. Polk is also

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