100 Years Ago: May 21-27

From The Indianapolis News, Friday, May 27, 1921: Fall Creek is so polluted that swimming in the stream should be prohibited according to Dr. Herman Morgan, secretary of the Indianapolis health department. “There are fourteen openings from which sewage overflow enters Fall Creek between the Monon Railroad bridge and Northwestern Avenue. As a result the water is highly contaminated at all times during the summer months. Typhoid fever, gastroenteritis, and eye, ear and skin infections may be readily contracted by bathing in the stream. From the standpoint of public safety and public health, the city should police Fall Creek to prevent swimming in the stream,” said Morgan. Health inspectors also surveyed sanitary conditions along Pleasant Run between Irvington and Garfield Park and found the water is so contaminated that parents should not permit their children to wade in the creek.