Butler Builds a Community

Irvington History

Irvington is a suburb in Indianapolis, located five miles east of the city center. The boundaries for the district are above.

The town is easily accessible from downtown Indianapolis, as well as other cities in Indiana by the streetcar system that ran through it. It was established in 1870 when Jacob Julian and Sylvester Johnson moved to this area of farmland hoping to move away from their hometown that was corrupted with politics. They purchased 320 acres of land for $32,000. 

According to the Irvington Historical Area Plan, Irvington is historically significant to Indianapolis because it was one of the “first planned suburbs” (Irvington Historic Area Plan 21). It was much different than Indianapolis, as designed. “The original plat of Irvington deviated from Indianapolis' typical grid layout, and instead included a winding, picturesque street pattern that reflected the ideals of the Romantic landscape design era” (Historic District: Irvington). This was a new concept during this time period, but it appealed to many people due to the newness, and the different feeling that the city provided.  When it was first established, Julian and Johnson intended for the area to have space for a public park and a female college because these were things that were important to them to include in a town, and Julian’s daughter attended a female college in his hometown, and this had a special connection to him. The land was “perfectly situated along the National Road and bracketed by two railroads providing plenty of transportation opportunities to those who inhabited the new and unnamed town” (Young Ch1). Transportation to a new city is important to have in order for the town to grow and gain population. Having the railroads, as well as the streetcar line that ran on the National Road was vital to the area’s growth and accessibility. In the newly developed suburb, deeds included rules “to reinforce the natural beauty of Irvington by outlawing bird hunting and requiring lot owners to build sidewalks and plant street trees” (Irvington Historic Area Plan 22). 

In 1902, Irvington was annexed by the city of Indianapolis after the residents in Irvington petitioned for better municipal amenities. The roads had started to get worse due to weathering and heavier use, sidewalks were needed along the streets, and fire protection services were needed after the school in the community burned down twice. Because road improvements and other town improvements were based on taxes that the residents paid to the town, this annexation gave “Irvington the opportunity for better roads, protection from fire, and a city water supply” because the city had more money to give to the area to improve their conditions versus what the town received from its taxpayers (Young Ch 1). This annexation also brought more people to the suburb because of the increased amenities, as well as the improved transportation. Indianapolis helped improve the transit to Irvington, and this transit stretched across Indiana. A quote from the 1891 Butler yearbook shows how the annexation renewed the transportation that already existed in Irvington: “But those are experiences of the past. Those motors have been en- dowed with new life, and now skim along over the road like swallows over the water. Slowness is no longer a feature, and the trip to Irvington would lack all variety and interest if it were not for the traveling Prep, the gay, exuberant, skittish Prep, the irrepressible, roaring moss- back Prep” (The Drift 93). This advanced transportation brought much diversity to the town, and Irvington handled it differently than most towns across the country at this time.

Irvington, unlike many communities in the United States, was welcoming of all people. At this time, there was a severe prejudice against women and African-American people in the north and the south. When Irvington was first created, the prejudice was mainly in the south, right after the prohibition of slavery. As time progressed, African-American people moved to the north seeking opportunity to own land and make a living on their own, and segregation began. Irvington was one of the only places in Indiana that did not have segregation, until much later, and wrote their deeds specifically to allow African-Americans to own land. “The plat did not forbid African Americans from owning land; the abolitionist stance of nearly all the community’s first land owners insured a degree of tolerance not likely seen in most central Indiana small towns” (Irvington Historic Area Plan 22). Businesses in Irvington, including Butler University, employed women, and had several female students. “The college might also rightfully brag of its progressive nature where female employees are concerned, since Northwestern also employed the second woman ever to hold a position on the faculty of an American college” (Browne). In addition, Butler University had the first African-American female to get a degree before 1900 in Indiana, and she was also one of 81 to get a college degree before 1900 in the United States.  The university is actually known for their inclusion and welcoming nature- “Northwestern Christian, now Butler University, holds the distinction of being one of the first institutions with college standing in the United States to offer equal educational opportunity to women” (Browne).

Butler University

Before Butler University came to Irvington, it was located in downtown Indianapolis, under the name of Northwestern Christian University. Originally, it opened in 1855 and stayed at that location for 18 years, with 20 students and 2 professors (The Drift). It was relocated to Irvington in 1873 because they wanted a larger campus. At the time, the institution was a Christian university, and taught in departments including: Philosophy, Music, Mathematics, Latin, Biology and Geology, the Bible, English Language and Literature, Greek, Chemistry and Physics, Modern Languages, and a preparatory department to prepare students for college and acted as a high school that led into the university. In 1877, the name of the university was changed from Northwestern Christian University to Butler University “in honor of Ovid Butler, an Indianapolis attorney and the school’s founder” (Young Chapter 2). 

The school was based on the Christian church, and was a private Christian university. “Two features of the school should be specially mentioned. First, it was distinctly declared that Christianity and the morality of the Bible should be taught from the Bible itself as a part of all the college courses. But this instruction was to be entirely non-sectarian” (The Drift 9). The fact that the institution was based on Christianity meant that the people moving to Irvington to attend the school were all religious, and had different morals than other people at the time. The school had several sports and student organizations that kept students engaged with the community and with the school. The sports included football, baseball, tennis, and bicycling. In addition, student organizations included Greek life for the majority, and clubs that related to reading, writing, and discussion of these things among students and faculty (The Drift). Greek life at Butler was a very important aspect of the school and also helped engage with the surrounding community because of the events that the fraternities and sororities would hold in Irvington.

Though Butler University was the first and most major institution in Irvington, it wanted to work with other institutions that came to Irvington later to support them and grow engagement between the university and other things in Irvington. One example is the College of Missions, which was “operated by the Christian Women’s Board of Missions,” and was “the tie to Butler was natural as the two schools often offered credit for each other’s classes” (Young Chapter 2). Butler University was very engaged with the community, and attracted many people to the area with its staff, students, and other people that were affiliated with the institution.

Culture and Development of Irvington

Butler University started Irvington’s real development and changed the culture of the small town forever.  Before the university arrived to the town, it was all farm land, with very few houses; it was not developed at all, except for a streetcar line that ran through it to connect Indianapolis and Greenfield. The Indianapolis Historic Preservation Commission said, “The social and cultural character of the new suburb was to a great extent set in July of 1873, when Northwestern Christian University, then located in Indianapolis’s Old Northside, decided to relocate to Irvington” (Irvington Historic Area Plan 23). Butler was such a large source of attraction and development due to the people that the university brought. The institution brought professors, other faculty such as the president, students, and residents to stay in the surrounding area while their kids attended school there. An article wrote that “the population of the village consists mainly of those who have been drawn thither by its educational inducements. This gives it a special character of cultivation and good order, while, as a home for students, it is singularly free from the temptations and dangers often surrounding college life” (Butler University). The reason that the original founders of the suburb gave land for the university to use was to bring development, and Butler brought development, people, and infrastructure to the new town.

Butler University constructed several buildings, which added to the architectural advancements of the community, as well as the infrastructure. Irvington has several architectural styles that build the character of the community such as Victorian, American Craftsman, Tudor, and Dutch. The Indianapolis Historic Preservation Commission said that “the university itself was responsible for the construction of a number of buildings” (Irvington Historic Area Plan 23). This construction of new buildings in the area inspired other buildings and development. According to the 1891 Butler yearbook, there were several new businesses looking to serve the area and its residents including the following: shoe stores, bicycle store, grocery store, the Indianapolis newspaper, photographer, tailor, restaurants, chocolate shop, hat and furnishings store, sporting goods shop, ice cream shop, Indianapolis Business University, dry cleaner, wood engraver, hardware store, florist, barber shop, real estate company, underwear store, and a home store. These things were all vital to have in a town because it serviced the residents, and gave them a reason to stay, and not move to a city that offers these amenities at a larger scale. A different form of development that took place at a large scale was residential development. When people moved to the area, the area was mostly farmland, and very little housing. As professors and students started moving there, “not only did educated professionals invest in the college town by building grand homes, but Butler University also became a major benefactor to the town, helping various entities obtain money for needed improvements” (Young Chapter 2). The addition of the university brought a change in culture, with the addition of new educated mindsets to the community.

The university had many student-led organizations that dealt with reading and analyzing text. Some were all women, and others met with a diverse group from the university. As these students and faculty were sent out into the community with these new ideas and mindsets of more educated writing and art, these two things became a major theme in Irvington. Irvington was very welcoming to these people with their new ideas, and they began to start writing and creating art in their homes. Some made it to be very successful in their careers, while others were doing it for their own enjoyment. Two quotes that show that art and writing were big in Irvington at the time are as follows: “The natural setting and intellectual climate of Irvington attracted a group of Hoosier artists who, during the 1920s and 30s, became known as “The Irvington Group.”” (Irvington Historic Area Plan 24); “Irvington also served as the home of a number of significant authors during the early twentieth century, many of them women” (Irvington Historic Area Plan 24). Having these themes become more evident in the town’s culture made it easier to interact with the community, and Irvington soon became a great example of having a healthy town-gown relationship.

The majority of Irvington’s population consisted of people affiliated with the university, or with the churches in the area. For the most part, the community was very engaged with the university, but there were some aspects that were disconnected. A few ways that Butler University became connected with the town and its population are that the faculty and students often participated in community events and supported local businesses due to the fact that the campus was small, and there was little to do there except for study and go to church. The institution also was well connected because “Butler University helped Irvington achieve its desire to be a cultural leader in the city by offering plays and lectures that locals often attended” (Young Chapter 2). The residents of the community wanted recreational activities to do while not working, so the university put on events that the community could come participate in. The faculty was also well connected and informed of what went on in the town because they lived there. Butler University provided the main attraction of the town, as Julie Young mentions, “Butler University was not only the cultural epicenter of the town but its professors often served on the town board” (Young Chapter 2).

One year after Indianapolis annexed the suburb of Irvington, the university noticed that they would soon need to expand due to more students coming to campus, and the range of studies increasing. Finally, in 1928, the university left Irvington to a larger area on the northside of Indianapolis (Young Chapter 2). As with most towns with educational institutions planted in them, Butler University brought much development and change to the city of Irvington. Today, this change is still evident thought the university moved out. Some graduates stayed in the area, as it had much promise and potential, and other people started moving to the area. Only one original building from the campus remains today, which is the Bona Thompson Memorial Library. Butler University left a legacy in Irvington that is still evident by the artsy culture that still exists.