Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then and Now: Woodruff Place Gazebo, 800 block West Drive

“Woodruff Place ! … The whole addition is surrounded by a massive, artistically carved stone fence; all the streets laid with Nicolson pavement; all the sidewalks with stone; gas and water pipes to each lot;...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then and Now: Circle Park and Meridian Street

  Although faded and discolored, this extremely rare stereoview shows Meridian Street looking south from the middle of Circle Park (now Monument Circle) prior to 1870. Photographers and stereoview publishers Salter and Judd worked together...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then and Now: Southeast Corner of Pennsylvania and Market Streets

Half of a circa 1876 stereoview looking south on Pennsylvania Street from Market Street (The Indiana Album: Loaned by Joan Hostetler) Merely a decade after the end of the Civil War, photographer John W. Pendergast...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then and Now: Bird’s-Eye View North from Marion County Courthouse

Photographs of Indianapolis buildings prior to the 1890s are difficult to find. Clients typically requested portraits, so most photograph galleries specialized in capturing the likenesses of individuals. Fortunately a few local photographers added landscape and...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then and Now: College Hall and the Daguerreotype of Mr. and Mrs. Calvin Fletcher

1856 daguerreotype of Calvin and Keziah Fletcher. This is the only known image of Fletcher’s second wife. Note that the brass mat is embossed in the corners “W. H. Weeks” and “Indianapolis.” Click for larger...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then and Now: 1939 and 1945 N. Pennsylvania Street

In the digital age, many young people have no memory or understanding of the role of negatives in photography, much less glass negatives. So a word of advice: should you find boxes of glass plates...

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Posted in: Historic Miscellania Early Indianapolis and Indiana Photography

With the help of smart phones, people have the ability to take decent quality photographs at a moment’s notice–quite different than 100 or so years ago. In today’s technologically advanced environment, it can be difficult to understand...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then and Now: 300 block of W. Market Street (now Robert D. Orr Plaza)

Courtesy of the Indiana Album: Loaned by J. Parke Randall, ia-30-17 J. Parke Randall was a young architect  in Indianapolis in 1953 when he received an assignment from his boss Edward D. Pierre: photographically document...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then and Now: The Payne House, 783 Middle Drive, Woodruff Place

The Indiana Album: Glass negative loaned by the Woodruff Place Civic League Woodruffian is a  tongue-in-cheek moniker used to denote one as a resident of Woodruff Place neighborhood. A ruffian (defined as “a strong and...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then and Now: West Indianapolis at W. Morris Street and Blaine Avenue

Time it was, and what a time it was, it was  A time of innocence, a time of confidences  Long ago, it must be, I have a photograph  Preserve your memories, they’re all that’s left...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then and Now: Bass Photo Company, 308 S. New Jersey Street

Much of Indianapolis’s visual history from the past century is known due of the  foresight of one commercial photography studio: The W. H. Bass Photo Company, located at 308 S. New Jersey Street from 1897...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then and Now: Second Presbyterian Church and World War Memorial, East Vermont Street

Some of the earliest images of Indianapolis streets and buildings are found as stereoviews, two views of the same subject photographed from slightly different angles. When the mounted side-by-side prints are viewed with a special...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then and Now: Progress Laundry, 422-26 E. Market Street

Courtesy of the Indiana Album, ca. 1911 lantern slide from the collection of Joan Hostetler This week I showcase two lantern slides that I purchased on eBay of the Progress Laundry Company. Lantern slides were...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then and Now: Moeller Photograph Studio, 1122 Prospect Street

Courtesy of the Indiana Album Indianapolis has been home to hundreds of photographers, mostly located downtown along Washington and Illinois Streets until the suburbs expanded on the outskirts of town. In the early 20th century,...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then & Now: 500 Block of Indiana Avenue

Indiana Avenue, the diagonal street angling northwest from the heart of the city, has historically been known as Indianapolis’s African-American business and cultural hub. The first black-owned businesses appeared in the 500 block of Indiana...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then & Now: West Residence / Colonel’s Cupboard, 1500 E. Michigan Street

One of the city’s little-known gems is the Colonel’s Cupboard, tucked away on the grounds of Arsenal Technical High School. The restaurant, operated by high school students, is located in a brick Italianate house completed...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then & Now: Eastern Fire Station/Firehouse Colorlab/Angie’s List, 1030 E. Washington Street

Luckily, several of our city’s old fire stations have survived through the years and have found new uses. The Eastern Fire Station is one of the oldest, having been constructed in 1896.   The three-story...

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Posted in: Then & Now Then & Now: 300 Block of Massachusetts Avenue

Courtesy of the Indiana Historical Society, NHPRC Cirkut Negative Preservation Collection Staff at the Indiana Historical Society dated the photograph as 1906 based on a date on a poster. Before Massachusetts Avenue was known as...

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Posted in: Then & Now Indianapolis Then and Now: Bird’s-Eye View of the City Market 222 E. Market Street

In this week’s Room With a View column featuring  Chelsie Roy‘s photo of the Indianapolis City Market, the author wondered what the view would look like with Tomlinson Hall, the former community building that stood west...

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Posted in: IndyView Revisited IndyView Revisited: The Circle, 1942

A blustery rainstorm blew through Indianapolis in January, 1942. Photographer John Vachon was in Indy on assignment for the Farm Security Administration, and he chose to document street scenes with his small rangefinder Leica as...

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