Some of the Bricks were used to build Waynedale United Methodist Church. The barn was then used to house a riding stable, there is a crossing built into the river you can still make out so they could take the horses over to Foster Park and ride the Bridle Trail (now the hiking trail that runs along the rivers edge). It's where the seats pavilion is now. You can still see the carriage house there. March 26, 1913 it was flooded, 60 children were stranded, with 4 drowning during rescue attempts to evacuate the building.
Sixty orphans and fifteen others in the Allen county orphans home had to flee to the second story of the building last night, after having been without service from the heat and power plant since noon. Water was flowing through the lower floor. Two men with a boat had been sent to the home by Trustee Branning last night to carry the marooned children and adults to safety should there be an alarming rise of the waters during the night.
The boat, however, was small, with capacity of only six. Shore was two blocks away and thirteen round trips would have been required to rescue the children and their caretakers in case of necessity. Early in the night at the home it was said there was no immediate need of help and that the situation was not alarming. The most serious problem seemed to be how to get coal. There is a store of it on hand, but this is under water. Three stoves, however, were being used at the institution and it was stated there had been no suffering.
The water has been encroaching on the place since early yesterday morning. The orphanage school which is presided over by Miss Theresa Hammond, did not open as the water was even beginning to flow into the basement.
Of the sixty children, a number of them are so young that they are practically helpless and one of them cannot walk. Mrs. Ida M. Overmeyer and her assistants, however, were giveing the children every possible attention. It was stated early in the night that there was plentiful supply of food on hands.
Four orphan girls, inmates of the Allen County orphanage, were the toll claimed by the flood yesterday morning.
The dead: KITTY WISE, aged six years. ARDA WOODS, aged ten years. ALICE MANNEN, aged twelve years. ESTHER KRAMER, aged twelve years.
Two others, riding in the boat with them in the first move to take them from their water-surrounded home to dry land, were saved; thanks to the efforts of Charles Gephart, and Miss Theresa Hammond, their teacher. The two who were pulled from the water were Opal Jacobs, seven years old, and Delle Sturm, aged eight years.
But for the strength of Gephart, his presence of mind and the assistance of Miss Hammond, these two would have been added to the list of dead.
Miss Hammond Ill.
Miss Hammond who was thrown from two boats during the day, lies at her home, 1201 Fairfield avenue, in serious condition, being threatened with hysteria and pneumonia.
Gephart, the hero of the day, persisted in his work about the home and the Broadway bridge yesterday afternoon despite the ordeal
The bodies of all the orphan children drowned when the boat in which they were being taken from the county home Wednesday capsized, have been recovered, those of Arda Woods, Kitty Wise and Alice Manan having been taken from the water this morning. The body of Esther Cramer, another of the child' vietims of the Hood, was found yesterday morning.
Corporal Mathias and Privates Strunk and Lang and James Councler found the bodies of the three children this morning. near the Broadway bridge. That of the Wise child was lodged against a fence while the other two were found floating in a corn field just west of the bridge and north of the Fort Wayne & Northern Indiana tracks. The first body was found about 6 o'clock this morning and the other two were located within a few feet of one another about an hour later. They were brought to shore and removed to the Ebersole grocery, where the coroner viewed them and then ordered them sent to the various undertaking rooms to prepared for burial.
Commissioners Will Have the Allen County Home Cleaned Up.
NO SUNDAY VISITORS
Members of the board of county. commissioners went this morning to the Allen county, orphans* home and found the water out of the building. A force of men was put to work scrubbing the mud from the floors and walls and the heating plant was put into operation.
The grounds will be cleared as far possible during the day and the board thinks the children will be able to return on Monday. The fires will be kept going in the mantime and the building will be thoroughly dried.
There will be no Sunday visitors at the grounds. Orders have neen issued to the sheriff to keep everybody off and this order will be strictly enforced. The porches did not leave the building as had been thought and only the steps are gone.
Children Are Content.
The children in the First Presbyterian church parlors are bright and contented today, though still showing some signs of their recent nervous shock and the confinement indoors. They content themselves and each other with their books, games and sewing. The boys are happy if anyone calls on them for an errand about the building and the older ones are pressed into service now and then. The older girls are helping in the kitchen and diningroom. Groups of the smaller girls are busy with doll clothes and one eight- year-old sat all by herself patiently trying to sew some trimming on the waist of her dress which she was wearing that had been partly torn off. Another small girl was singing a hymn from a book for the rest of the group who were keeping their fingers busy. Only one child was idle for the moment and she was secretly wiping her eyes as if she had been crying.
When Mrs. Overmyer told the children of the finding of the bodies of the drowned children but little was said. Just a wave of sorrow passed over the faces of the children and with little handclasps of each other they averted faces and went on about what they had been doing.
In the kitchen busy hands were preparing, baked beans, stewed tomátoes, fresh potatoes for dinner and bologna and fruit were ready. Mrs. Schumacher prepared at her own home chicken noodle soup for the entire company and sent it over ready to serve.
"Everyone rested well last night," said Miss Goorley, "and Mrs. Overmyer and I are feeling much better."
Water is hauled for the baths as well as for use in the boilers for keeping the church warm. A portable bathtub is also in the church for use during this emergency.
The Allen County Orphans' Home once stood where Indian Village Park sits today. This, as the name states, was a home for children who would be placed with willing parents. Today is a short history of this orphanage.
In 1894 a private, non-profit, charitable corporation was formed by the citizens of Fort Wayne. This voluntary association had shareholders, each of whom paid $1 per share to support what would become the "Allen County Orphans' Home." Seeking a location, the Board led by Thomas Ellison worked with the County to construct a building on the grounds of the then-current poor farm. Ellison, a prominent city attorney, served as an Indiana state senator from 1896 to 1899, helping to author many Indiana laws requiring care for dependent children.
From November 19, 1894, to April 1, 1920, the expense of maintaining and operating the home for orphans was borne and met by association. The amounts paid to the association by the County for the care of children were barely sufficient and were sometimes insufficient to meet the cost of food alone. To pay all the expenses of maintaining the home, the voluntary association was accustomed to soliciting contributions and help from the public. Unfortunately, it became too much to bear, and the Orphans' Home ceased operations by ceding maintenance and control to the Allen County Board of Commissioners.
Shortly after, in 1925, the City and Suburban Building Company purchased the land, which included the poor farm and orphanage. Eventually, while building Indian Village, the Company traded the 10.5-acre area back to the County in exchange for the city funding the swinging suspension bridge across the St. Mary's River. The only known remains of the original orphanage are the brick buildings in the Indian Village Park today and the Waynedale United Methodist Church. The Church purchased one of the buildings, dismantled it, and used the bricks for their future congregation in Waynedale around 1927.
Information From:
In re Lowe's Est., 117 Ind. App. 554, 70 N.E.2d 187 (1946)
[ Some of this information is in the legal case Most Reverend Noll v. Lincoln National Bank & Trust Co., 117 Ind. App. 554 (1946) Dec. 12, 1946 · Appellate Court of Indiana · No. 17, 422 117 Ind. App. 554 In re Lowe's Estate Most Reverend John F. Noll, etc., et al. v. The Lincoln National Bank and Trust Co. of Ft. Wayne, etc., et al. Rehearing Denied March 6, 1947. Transfer Denied October 8, 1947. at Caselaw Access Project at Harvard Law School. ]
Indiana Orphanages by Indiana Genealogical Society, Inc. April 3, 2023
on YouTube
Apr 3, 2023 #familyhistory#genealogy#indiana This was an IGS Facebook Live Event from February 2022. We discussed Indiana orphanages with Diane Steproe. As an experienced genealogist and researcher, Diane has extensive knowledge of the history and genealogy of Indiana orphanages. During our discussion, we learned about these institutions, as well as the impact orphanages had on Indiana's social history. Don't miss this insightful conversation with Diane Steproe! The Indiana Genealogical Society is proud to host the IGS Facebook Live events, which are held on the first Tuesday of every month. For updates on our upcoming events, please visit our Facebook page at @indianagensoc. And if you have ancestors from Indiana, be sure to check out our website at www.indgensoc.org for more resources and information on how to connect with your Hoosier roots.
