Saturday, January 11, 2025
ADDISON TIMES MAJOR SPONSOR: STEPHENSON RIFE ATTORNEYS
SLEDDING WEATHER
Children participate in the timeless tradition of sledding at Morristown Park earlier this week. | photo by JACK BOYCE
NOTEBOOK:
A white Ford Fiesta struck and knocked down a mailbox in the 800 block of Olmstead Drive and left the scene. Video footage of the incident allowed officers to obtain the license plate number of the vehicle, but they had so far been unable to contact the vehicle’s owner.
The Shelby County Recycling District elected new officers on Thursday. Mayor Scott Furgeson and Jeremy Creech were elected chair and vice-chair, respectively, of the board of directors. Pam Dearinger was elected chair of the Citizens Advisory Committee, and Nora VanNatta was elected fiscal officer.
Adjusted Gross Revenue at Indianapolis Horseshoe Casino (Shelbyville) was up in December from the prior month. The casino reported AGR for December 2024 at $25.2 million, up from November’s $23.4 million. Last month’s revenue was down slightly from the $25.8 million AGR reported in December 2023.
The Shelby County boys basketball tournament was postponed last night due to the weather. The games were rescheduled for tonight with the boys and girls championship games on Monday evening.
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NATIONAL NEWS: Gas stations have begun to retool their offerings, following the playbooks of regional brands like Wawa and Buc-ee’s and ramping up their food business amid tighter margins on the gas side of the business. Casey’s made $312 million in gross profit last quarter selling gasoline while earning $620 million in gross profit on its food and beverage business, which is almost $200 million more than straightforward pizza restaurant Domino’s made. (Sherwood News/Numlock)
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Shelby County History: The Hydraulic Canal That Never Was
from the files of DAVID CRAIG
The geographic location of Shelbyville made hydraulic power attractive. There was an unlimited power source at the confluence of the Big and Little Blue Rivers. The Blue River of pioneer days was much mightier than it is today. The first settlers in the county saw Blue River flood into what is now Shelbyville most of the year. Our city was a swampy forest that the Indians even avoided. Even in the late 1800s a steamboat ran up Big Blue River to a picnic ground north of the city.
John Walker was one of the first to use the hydraulic power of Big Blue River. Walker constructed one of the county's first mills at the northern edge of Shelbyville. This was where the old Porter Pool was located. Walker's house sat next door on the former Coca-Cola property. The mill dam was on Blue River near the end of Noble Street. The race ran south going under Harrison Street to the mill.
In the period immediately following the Civil War, Shelbyville was stagnant. There was little business growth and the same with population growth. Then, as today, the local movers and shakers sought ways to stimulate economic growth. Many believed construction of a hydraulic canal into the city would attract manufacturing. This was the period when steam power was young. Also, water was cheap and plentiful in the Shelbyville area.
By the summer of 1867, there was enough interest in the hydraulic canal to call an organizational meeting. The first meeting was held in the summer of 1867. It was proposed an engineering survey be made to see if a canal was practical.
The next meeting was held on June 1, 1867 in the Mayor's office. Chairman of the meeting was James McGuire. The engineer's report was read and accepted. A committee was appointed to draft Articles of Association.
The third meeting of the Hydraulic Canal Association was held on June 15, 1867. The minutes were printed in the Volunteer paper of June 20, 1867. Many of the powerful men of Shelbyville at that time were in attendance.
It is easy to picture Jim Milleson walking from the west side of the square down West Washington to the City Hall. John Blessing, owner of a new building on the square, may have traveled to City Hall with Henry Doble. Many businessmen assembled in the Mayor's office that June evening of 1867.
The meeting began with the appointment of James Milleson as chairman. After his appointment, Milleson called for the minutes of the previous meeting to be read. This was done by the secretary. There was an outstanding livery bill from M. P. Barger for $6. A motion was made and seconded to pay the livery bill.
Chairman of the finance committee was John Blessing. He reported the association had collected $9.50. Then George Kennedy gave $3 and Henry Doble contributed $1.75.
Articles of Association were then read and accepted. Then over the objection of some members there was an amendment to the Articles. There were to be 2,600 shares of stock sold at $25 a share.
A five-member committee was appointed to promote stock sales and finalize the Articles of Association. The members were John Blessing. D. P. Campbell, Leonedas Gordon, George Senior, and Square Van Pelt.
After the committees were appointed a motion was made to adjourn the meeting. The next meeting of the Association was to be on July 6, 1867 at the same location.
The Association had a survey done to see how practical a hydraulic canal would be. The engineer's report stated the canal could be built in a short time at low cost. It was estimated that 400 horsepower could be generated at normal river levels. It was proposed by the engineer to bring water from Brandywine into the canal to boost the horsepower.
For unknown reasons, the canal was never completed. The Volunteer of June 3, 1869 called for a revival of the canal project. In the 1876 history of Shelby County, the argument is repeated for the hydraulic canal. By this time steam and electricity would power the growth of furniture manufacturing in Shelbyville.
SHS Courier Archive Highlights:
Feb. 29, 1996
A prom preview noted that decorations would be based on an “aquatic” theme. Prom would be held at SMS, and post-prom at the SHS gymnasium.
Theresa Anderson advanced to the final round of Student Council District 10 elections.
Making the Grade: “A” for the Choral Department’s Music in Motion program; “D” for the Variety Show: “Don’t be fooled; the name has more variety than the show did.”; “A” for Phil Goggin (he made the IHSAA State Finals in wrestling); and an “F” for class basketball: “Waldron wins 1A state championship. We get beat by Center Grove in the 3A sectionals. WHS better than SHS? Noooooo!”
Vita Pup was the hit craze. “Students have numerous reasons for purchasing a vita. Some buy because they just passed a test; others buy because they just flunked a test. Still others buy just to experience the legendary brain freeze.”
SHS swimmers Dustan Reed, Chris Wetnight, Bob Decker and Brady Campbell broke the school’s 200 free record.
This Day in Shelby County History
News around Shelbyville and the surrounding area as reported on or about this date in history. Selections are curated by The Addison Times from Shelby County Public Library Genealogy Department materials.
2005: Major Hospital had recently bought out several private medical practices in town, and hospital officials said they would continue the trend.
Waldron High School seniors Melissa Procell and Ryan Wallace were named queen and king of the school’s winter formal held at Occasions banquet hall.
1995: Joe Green was commended for reporting a fire in Flat Rock a few months’ prior. Green had gone to a freezer in his back yard for a loaf of bread when he saw a fire at a neighbor’s home. He reported the fire to his dad, who called 911, and the fire damage was limited.
1985: State officials announced Shelbyville was one of six Indiana cities in the running for a Japanese automobile manufacturing plant that could employ between 1,000 and 3,000 workers.
1975: Southwestern’s Jerry Parmer was the Most Valuable Player in the Shelby County basketball tournament, hosted at Garrett Gymnasium, where the Spartans defeated Triton Central, 66-59, in the title contest.
1965: Major Hospital officials announced plans to create a five- or six-bed Intensive Care Unit. The Major Hospital Foundation, which had been organized in October 1961, would be responsible for providing equipment through donations.
Undefeated Triton Central had won the Shelby County Tournament. Team members were Bob Crafton, Mike Wells, Ron Drake, Roger Shelton, Jim Alexander, Darvin Kelley, Steve Howard, Norm Lahey, Bob Rowe, Steve Brockman and Ken Dickman. Student managers were Richard Hargrove, Dennis Creed and Paul Mohr. Marvin Tudor was the coach, and Don Mendenhall was assistant coach.
1955: The Chew & David Market, owned by Charles Chew and Chester David, celebrated its one-year anniversary. The food store was located at the corner of Broadway and Vine streets in the former Ross Super Market building.
The Shelbyville school board discussed a problem: when they took over the land for Morrison Park from the Parks Dept., for the purpose of eventually building a new high school, they had agreed to fund three teachers to supervise the park all summer and to maintain the equipment. “We have Morrison Park. We have no money to operate it with,” Superintendent J.W.O. Breck told the board.
1945: A Shelby County father and son captured the Corn King and Corn Prince titles at Purdue University. Charles Fischer, who had been International Corn King in 1940, and his son, Thomas Fischer, 11, were the winners.
1935: The federal government funded four FERA workers to repair shoes for children who were unable to attend school because of their lack of adequate footwear. The shoes had been donated through a Lions Club campaign. Bessie Shelk donated a stitching machine for the project.
Willard Kehrt, of Shelbyville, was named co-captain of the Indiana University basketball team. Kehrt, who had been a stand-out athlete at SHS and a former carrier for The Republican, also pitched for the IU baseball team.
1925: More than 2,000 people participated in a fox drive in Moral, Sugar Creek and Brandywine townships. Only one fox was captured. “Those who took part were more than enthused and stated they had much fun and amusement out of the project, even though some of the foxes got away.”
1915: First Presbyterian Church started a lecture series for boys and men. The first session, presented by H.A. Wolfe, had an attendance of 221. Wolfe’s father had built the old Wolfe mill, one of the first in Shelby County, near Morristown. Wolfe also shared experiences from his time out West in the speech, titled, “Boy to Cowboy.”
ADDISON TIMES MAJOR SPONSOR: Freeman Family Funeral Homes & Crematory
OBITUARIES
Margaret Ann “Peggy” Shaw, 93, of Boggstown, passed away on Thursday, January 9, 2025, at Traditions of Columbus. She was born April 28, 1931, in Indianapolis, the daughter of James and Thelma (Schmitt) Reilly. On September 2, 1950, she married Edward M. “Sonny” Shaw, and he preceded her in death on July 4, 2023. Peggy is survived by her daughter, Sandra Jo Brumfiel and husband, Raymond, of Dugger; sons, James Edward Shaw and wife, Joni, of Elizabethtown, and Timothy Gordon Shaw and wife, Sandy, of Columbus and Debbie Shaw of Boggstown; sister, Phyllis Alexander of Indianapolis; grandchildren, Joshua Brumfiel and wife, Lisa, Jessica Hart and husband, Justin, Peter Shaw, Andrew Shaw, Allison Shaw and Nic Robbins, Melissa Staley and husband, Tom, Mallorie Bailey and husband, Joe, and Harrison Shaw and wife, Emily; great-grandchildren, Ronin Rudd, Victoria Robbins, Soren Staley, Arlo Staley, Leland Staley, Olivia Hart, Hannah Hart, Landon Hart, Samuel Brumfiel, Bria Brumfiel, Macie Bailey, Madeline Bailey, Marion Bailey, Edward Shaw and Evelyn Shaw; and numerous nieces and nephews. In addition to Sonny, Peggy was preceded in death by her parents; and brothers, Gene Reilly, George Reilly, Gordon Reilly and John “Jack” Reilly.
In 1949, Peggy graduated from Warren Central High School, and attended Butler University. Peggy was an active member of the Boggstown Presbyterian Church, serving in leadership and youth activities. She was a realtor and broker with Shaw Realty for over 20 years, retiring in 1990. Peggy was a developer of Hoosier Links and Forest Brook. Peggy was also a member of the Order of Eastern Star. She enjoyed gardening, painting, sewing and antiquing. Peggy had a large collection of fruit jars. She was a founding member of the Jelly Jammers Club, which promotes preservation of antique jelly glasses. She was also a founding member and former president of the Joseph Boggs Society for Historical Preservation.
Visitation will be from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Wednesday, January 15, 2025, at Freeman Family Funeral Homes and Crematory, Carmony-Ewing Chapel, 819 S. Harrison St. in Shelbyville. Funeral services will follow at 1 p.m., at the funeral home, with Pastor Roger McDaniel officiating. Interment will be at Boggstown Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made to the Boggstown Presbyterian Church Women’s Group, 2488 N. Sand Creek Rd., Boggstown, Indiana, 46110, Joseph Boggs Society, 2616 N. Sand Creek Rd., Boggstown, Indiana, 46110 or Boggstown Cemetery, 6296 W 400 N, Fairland, Indiana, 46126. Online condolences may be shared with Peggy’s family at www.freemanfamilyfuneralhomes.com.