Article Archives: Building Blocks

Building Blocks is a monthly feature by historian Steve Barnett about historic properties on the east side of Indianapolis.

Peanuts and Cracker Jack

September 24, 2020 | by Steven R. Barnett

For decades an afternoon at the local Indianapolis ballpark watching the “Boys of Summer” wouldn’t have been complete without a cup of beer, a hot dog in a bun, a bag of peanuts, and a box of Cracker Jack. Those lazy, hazy days of memory almost became nothing more than … Read More

The Blues Play Indy

August 27, 2020 | by Steven R. Barnett

“The outlook wasn’t brilliant for the Mudville nine that day; the score stood four to two, with but one inning more to play….” Most of us have experienced the angst, as the poem continues, either as players or fans of “the game,” clinging to hope that the roster would hold, … Read More

How Now Brown Cow?

July 23, 2020 | by Steven R. Barnett

Where do you get your milk from? Almond? Soy? The grocery? Cows? There was a time when most folks went out back of their house to the shed or barn and got a pail of the refreshing white liquid from Bossie. Many city dwellers even had a family cow that … Read More

Mole Hill or Mountain?

June 25, 2020 | by Steven R. Barnett

In Marion County, “there are many gentle slopes and small elevations in and around [Indianapolis], but nothing that deserves the name of hill, except Crown Hill…and one or two smaller protuberances a mile or two south.” While this observation in the state geologist’s report gave the official topography of the … Read More

“It’s not a home until it’s planted”

May 21, 2020 | by Steven R. Barnett

My father liked to garden — vegetables, flowers — it didn’t matter. Some said he had a “green thumb” and if he stuck a stick in the ground it would bloom. His vegetable garden was not exotic, just the usual tomatoes, bush green beans, cucumbers and zucchini. Oh, and he … Read More