Thanks to local residents for submitting this historic photograph of their house, located just west of Shadeland Avenue at 625 N. Edmondson Avenue (formerly Rice Road) in Warren Township. The brick 1860s house was part of the Askren dairy farm. In the circa 1900 photograph, members of the Askren and Rice families (including Carolyn “Carrie” Leona Rice on the far left) stand in front of the home’s picket fence. Carrie married George Washington Askren in 1917 and they lived here for many decades. [Askren was the great-grandson of pioneer John Thomas Askren, who owned over 1,000 acres north of the current site of Irvington. His home, the second-oldest house in Indianapolis, was featured by Ryan Hamlett in December 2014.] Other than the addition of dormer windows and the removal of shutters, the exterior facade remains remarkably intact. Today the house is an anomaly, standing out in the neighborhood of primarily 1950s and 1960s houses.
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OK, Joan, so now I am curious. How does this family relate to the Thomas Askren house that is off 16th Street. The two houses are not far apart, so I’m guessing they are related.
Tim, the owner of this house was the great-grandson of the Indianapolis pioneer who built the Askren house near 16th Street. Thanks for the question…I’ve added a sentence and link about the Askren house, the 2nd oldest surviving house in Indianapolis.
Incredible! A lot of real estate!