The Shelbyville News
Saturday January 24, 1946
Page 3
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YOUR TOWN — "OLD MIDDLETOWN"
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Little Towns
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I love the little towns. They stand
Between the cities lifted spires
As children reverently
Beside their sires
In their sequestered loveliness
One knows a friendly warmth of hand
That no metropolis extends
However noted grand
It is a heritage to claim
Nativity in one of them
God bless the town villages
Each little Bethlehem.
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Rose Myra Phillips
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In talking to many folks about their native village we have been impressed by
the affectionate way all speak of their own little town—proud of their pioneer
people and their pioneer history, proud of their present communities and their
people and ready always to see the humorous side of many events and situations.
When we came across the above poem we felt it was exactly the expression of what
we have found concerning out own little Shelby County towns.
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"Old Middletown"
On Road 29 and at the end of the short road which connects it with Waldron is
Middletown, one of the very earliest of Shelby county villages. The village was
founded June 19, 1829 by Thomas Hayman, says Rev, Sluter by William
Haymond and Daniel French, says Mr. Chadwick. As far as our
acquaintances with this part of the county we have never known any other way of
spelling Haymond than this just given.
It became a great trading post and says Mr. Earl Haymond, "The
vehicles would be parked for blocks, if there had been any blocks, on either
side of the village." There was a large hotel owned and managed by Ike
Morris, one of the early business men of the town, necessary to take care of
the travelers over the post road. This was before building of the railroad which
was first planned to pass Middletown, but the plans were changed and the village
was by-passed in favor of Waldron. The Middletown folks thought their village
would grow and prosper with the railroad but the town declined with the failure
of the plans. Early in its prosperity many handsome homes for that day were
built. Later when the interurban was built it too by-passed Middletown. But the
village is favored by being on the Old Post Road, now No. 29 one of the main
arteries of travel in this part of the county.
Some of the earliest settlers were the family of
Moses, Haymond, French and Eubanks. One authority says that Joseph Cummins operated the
first general store; another says that the first merchant was David Liggett,
who later became a banker in Greensburg. Frank Haymond, father of Earl
Haymond, was one of the early merchants; he first had a store on one side of the
road and later moved into a building on the other side. Mr. Earl Haymond now of
Shelbyville, and in the Shelby National Bank, was born and raised in
Middletown-born in the building which was the Ike Morris Store.
In the early days of road building in the village was a toll-gate town and
Mr. Haymond’s mother, when quite a little girl, took care of the toll gate,
lifting and lowering the pole and taking the toll.
At Rev. Sluter’s writing the town had one church, two dry-goods stores, two
groceries, one drug store and one blacksmith shop.
Waldron was our grandparents’ principal trading center but occasionally
grandmother would take us with her and wander over to "Old Middletown"
and do a bit of trading at the general store of "Old Peter Gross."
Now that was not a disrespectful way of speaking of the merchant, for he really
was quite old. Mr. Gross was a native of Germany, coming to this country in
1851, and a number of years later found his way into Shelby county and Old
Middletown. If one knew how to select things of value from a mixture of things
there were some really beautiful things in that store. On one visit grandmother
had a seeing eye for a tea-set, a tea-set that brought forth exclamation of
admiration from the time she served guests with it to this day when we have what
is left of it. There were 12 tea plates, 12 cups and saucers, two cake plates, a
tea pot, cream and sugar bowl, and a bowl for pouring tea dregs.
On the short road between Middletown and Waldron there is a very deep ravine
at the bottom of which were the remains of a distillery. This had ceased
business long before our visit to Middletown and there were many weird stories
which went out from it, sorta’ Rip VanWinkle-ish stories-of strange
thunderings and rumblings of kegs and liquor barrels—and our childish
wonderings made us want to get past it in a hurry if the time was dusk or dark.
Today the village has a garage, a welding shop, the
Stanley Cort
Construction Company and a large poultry business owned and managed by Mr.
Lymon Norris, whose wife, Mrs. Norris is Shelby county’s school health
nurse. Mr. and Mrs. Norris moved to the village about eighteen years ago and
says Mrs. Norris "We like it so much we will probably live here the
remainder of our years."
In the village are 29 homes; we say ‘homes’ for that is what they are and
that is one thing of which the folks are proud, for every house in the village
is owned by the folks who live in it.
Contributed by Barb Huff
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Laid out by William Haymond and Daniel French. Acknowledged by Haymond June 19th,
1829, and by French September 30th, 1838, consisting of twenty-nine lots laid off. Main Street laid
out on the Michigan Road from the land east seventy-four and a half feet, from the bend northwest
seventy-one feet eleven inches. The other streets thirty-three feet wide; alleys ten. Joseph Cummins' Addition was laid out March 30th, 1838, by "Joseph Commins as Commissioner of the
Probate Court of said county, for the heirs of Thomas J. Euband, deceased." Surveyed by
John Hendricks, January 31st, 1838, consisting of ten lots laid off north of the original town plat. Michigan road runs north 28 degrees west, 100 feet wide, next to Conn's Creek on the west. The Moscow
road in this plat is made a street forty feet wide. This is one of the oldest towns in the eastern part of
the county, and prior to the construction of the C.,I.,St.L.& C.R.R. was a business point of considerable importance. The road was at first surveyed and graded through the town. The citizens, to meet
the demands of a supposed increased business, built large and commodious houses, which, when the
route was changed, depreciated at least seventy-five percent, in value. The town has never recovered
from the blow, and at present has but a dry goods, grocery, drug and milinery stores and blacksmith
shop. The Moses, Haymondses, Frenches and Eubands were some of the early residents of the town and vicinity. The first stores of any consequence were kept by Joseph Cummins and
David Lovett. Samuel Baxter was an early blacksmith. He also kept tavern. G. W. Bliss was a cabinetmaker. J. J. Bliss sold goods a few years later. About ten years ago a distillery was built near the town by Miller & Powell, but later the firm was named Powell & Feaster. The capacity is now about one barrel per day. Business has been suspended for the past two years.
History of Shelby County, Indiana, Chicago: Brant & Fuller, 1887, pg 445.
Copied by Phyllis Miller Fleming
The Shelby Republican
Thursday, August 23, 1877
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From Middletown.
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Almost every town in the
county is represented by correspondents in the "Republican," and we
thought a few notes from here might not be amiss.
Middletown
Contributed by Phyllis Miller Fleming
The Shelby Republican
March 4, 1876
Shelbyville, Ind.
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Letter From Middletown.
There has been considerable sickness in and about this place. Our town is doing a flourishing business. We have one Dry Goods Store, carried on by I. G. Morris, of world renown, for selling goos cheap; one Boot and Shoe Store, presided over by Peter Gross; one Grovery Store, owned by E. W. Slackheart. We also have a Wagon and Blacksmith Shop. They are all doing a flourishing business.
Our Turnpike is almost completed from here to Waldron.
Peter Gross has purchased a fine Horse and Buggy, and we expect to see him come but with flying colors when the roads get good.
Bennett Powell has the best donkey team in the county.
Phares Arnold has purchased property and will soon become a resident of this burg. Consent.
J. S.
Copied by Phyllis Miller Fleming
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