Green Roof Mortarboards

Ball State University is known for its innovative green designs, such as the nation's largest closed geothermal system. Here, in an undated photo circa 1990, are College of Architecture and Planning students wearing green roof mortarboards at graduation.

To all of this year's CAP graduates, congratulations!

Image: Graduation photograph, ca. 1990. College of Architecture and Planning Collection, Drawing + Documents Archive, Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries.

World Leisure Environments Symposium, 1975

In April 1975, the College of Architecture and Planning hosted the World Leisure Environments Symposium. Among the many discussions and lectures held over two days were The Environmental Psychology of Urban Leisure by Dr. David Canter, The Hotel as Part of the Landscape by Knud Friis, and Club Méditerranée's Philosophy and Organization as it Relates to its Physical Facilities by Linda Kundell.

The Archive is currently digitizing audio cassettes from the symposium, as well as other guest lectures from the 1960s-1990s. We just recently received these images of the event, the one above depicts the building's entrance decorated with cars, hang glider, and a banner, and the second picture, below, was taken around the corner and shows two horses with their riders near the building.

Images: World Leisure Environments Symposium, 1975. College of Architecture and Planning Collection, Drawings + Documents Archive, Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries.

Summer Hours

The Archive is open during the summer by appointment. Call 765-285-8441 or email the Archive to schedule an appointment.

Image: National Concrete Masonry Association's Pictorial, 1962. Trade Catalog Collection, Drawings + Documents Archive, Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries.

"Disappearing Muncie" appears in the paper

Check out today's article in the Muncie Star Press on our exhibit Disappearing Muncie: Our Lost Heritage. The exhibit is a collaborative project between Archives & Special Collections and Drawings and Document Archives, and includes architectural drawings, photographs and ephemera from both collections.

Visit the online article: http://bit.ly/lZmlBF

Downtown Muncie and the Courthouse Square, 1967

Prof. David Hermansen, founder of the Historic Preservation program at Ball State University, took these downtown Muncie photographs in the summer of 1967. Earlier in the year, the city tore down its courthouse that had been built in the 1880s. Other historic buildings had already been destroyed or would be soon.

The photos above are taken from the crater left by the courthouse. You can see the railing that surrounded the perimeter of the courthouse square. The building in the top right photograph is the Wysor Building, which was later torn down.

Built in 1904 by architect Cuno Kibele, the Wysor Building was razed in 1986 after a fire damaged the structure. The archive has drawings, photographs and building specifications in its Kibele and Garrard Architectural Records Collection. Note the interurban tracks in the street between the Wysor Building and the courthouse in the photograph below.

Images: Downtown Muncie photographs, 1967, (DOC 86.005) Documentation Collection, Drawings + Documents Archive, Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries.
Wysor Building, ca. 1904, (7-04.001) Kibele & Garrard Architectural Records Collection, Drawings + Documents Archive, Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries.

Paramount Theater, Anderson, Indiana

We often find unintentional markings on our older drawings–an accidental splash of ink, coffee rings, even an inky fingerprint–but today we found the uncommon, but not the first, shoe-print. The above drawing is a detail of the majestic 1928 Paramount Theater in Anderson, Indiana, from the A.M. Strauss Architectural Records Collection.

The heel marks are clearly visible–note the nails that once held together men’s shoes. The letters “H A S S . . . S H O E” are also visible on the print to the left. These unintentional details recall the romance of the early 20th century, when we can imagine our architects bent over their worktable, bow-tied and waist-coated, with pen and ink in hand.

From the number of small detail drawings such as this one, Alvin Strauss clearly labored over the details of the Mission/ Spanish revival-style Paramount Theater, which he referred to at that time as simply the "Anderson Theater". The National Register of Historic Places lists the architect for the theater as John Eberson and A.M. Strauss.

Eberson was a nationally-known architect for his theater designs and often contracted with local architects. A little research into the lettering of the shoe print uncovered the Hass Shoe Company of Riverside, New Jersey, that was in operation during the 1920s. Eberson operated his practice out of nearby New York, so it is conceivable that it was Eberson who stepped on the drawing when he visited Strauss' office in Fort Wayne.

Like many downtown theaters, the Paramount experienced decline and eventually closed its doors. Preservation-minded citizens facilitated an extraordinary effort to restore the building's opulence in the 1990s and it operates as a concert venue today.

Image: Paramount Theater detail, 1928, (32-501), A. M. Strauss Architectural Records Collection, Drawings + Documents Archive, Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries.

Dan Kiley Fort Wayne Drawings Donated to the Archive

The Archive recently received a gracious donation from landscape architecture professor Malcolm Cairns of Modernist landscape architect Dan Kiley’s set of drawings for Concordia Senior College, now known as Concordia Theological Seminary, in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Kiley designed the landscape in 1955, collaborating with architect Eero Saarinen who designed the buildings for the site. Illustrative of their longstanding history of partnership and design synthesis, these drawings depict their holistic Modernist aesthetic for the built environment.

If you appreciate modern design, you've no doubt heard about the upcoming opening of the Miller House in Columbus, Indiana. Another sublime and synchronous masterpiece of Saarinen architecture and Kiley landscape, although this time with Alexander Girard designs for the home's interior, the Miller House is now under the auspices of the Indianapolis Museum of Art and will be open for tours this spring.

We’re thrilled to have copies of Kiley's important Concordia Theological Seminary designs in our collection. They are available for research by students, faculty, and outside researchers.

Image: Dan Kiley Concordia Senior College drawings, 1955, (G 2011.014) Drawings + Documents Archive, Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries.

Fort Wayne's Brookview-Irvington Park Historic District Placed on National Register

Fort Wayne, April 20, 2011: The Brookview-Irvington Park Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places by the United States Department of the Interior on March 21, 2011.

The district is composed of three related suburban neighborhoods that reflect principles of design important in the history of community planning and development: Oak Knoll designed in 1906, Irvington Park designed in 1910, and Brookview designed in 1917. Together these areas combined the naturalistic landscape design with curvilinear circulation, park areas, and convenient access to roads, trolleys, and interurban railroads to create desirable neighborhoods.

The naturalistic development that landscape architect Walter Hoxie Hillary laid out for Irvington Park utilized the existing topography of the wooded site. In his development of Brookview for the Wildwood Builders, noted landscape architect Arthur Shurcliff further expanded and refined this idea by creating meandering roads that followed the natural contours and developing home sites focused on the scenic beauty of Spy Run Creek. The slightly earlier Oak Knoll development reflects a form of railroad era suburb that is rare in Fort Wayne. Women architects Joel Roberts Ninde and Grace E. Crosby designed several houses in the district, and the district has an outstanding collection of homes with a variety of architectural styles.

The City of Fort Wayne obtained Federal grant funding administered through Indiana's Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology to assist with the effort to prepare the application to the National Register of Historic Places. The City used the grant to contract with a listed qualified professional, ARCH, Inc. to research the district and prepare the nomination. The completed application was reviewed by the Fort Wayne Historic Preservation Commission before it was forwarded to the Indiana Historic Preservation Review Board and finally to the National Park Service.

The National Register of Historic Places is the Federal government’s official list of prehistoric and historic properties worthy of preservation. In Indiana, this program is administered by the Department of Natural Resources-Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology, with assistance from the City of Fort Wayne as a Certified Local Government. Listing in the National Register provides recognition and assists in preserving our nation’s heritage. It does not prevent a private owner from altering, demolishing, or disposing of the property as s/he wishes.

Image: Residence for the News Sentinel, sheet 3, Fort Wayne, Ind., 1935. A. M. Strauss Architectural Records Collection, Drawings + Documents Archive, Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries.

Federal Park, Muncie, 1909

This was the view of Federal Park in Muncie in 1909. The old Muncie post office is the building flying the flag, next to the park. The building still stands at 401 S. High Street, although it has been added onto in order to turn it into part of the Horizon Convention Center. In the distance is Muncie High School.

Notice the bicycles strewn in front of the entrance to the post office, and the playground area, complete with a slide to the right. The abundance of park benches indicate this park was likely a popular destination for downtown families.

From Ink to CAD

Witold Rybczynski, architecture critic and professor of urbanism at the University of Pennsylvania, recently penned an interesting commentary on the effects of the computer in the field of architecture. As an architect who straddles the divide between pencils and computer-aided design (CAD), Rybcynski has a unique perspective of how the advance of CAD has changed the profession and those in it.

He describes the Renaissance method of architectural design, which “not only lacked Xeroxes and blueprint machines; it even lacked pencils. All drawings, including rough sketches, were done in ink.” Innovations such as the T-square, the pencil, and the eraser made the process quicker and easier, but none have changed the process of design so much as the computer. Ryncynski contends that time and painstaking, deliberate effort are integral to the design process - and that the computer has eliminated the need for both.

Students and visitors to the Drawings and Documents Archive are always impressed with the detail and precision of our hand-drawn plans and blueprints. The faculty wax nostalgic over the fine lettering and reminisce about the long hours at the drafting table during their college years.

We don't just have drawings in our collections, either. From our Kibele & Garrard Architectural Records Collection, we have an extraordinary array of ink wells, pens, T-squares, blotters, compasses, powders and other tools of early 20th century architects and draftsmen.

Unidentified Indiana

We know that feeling when you just want winter to end. Take today, for example. Two weeks ago we were wearing flip flops and now we're back to winter coats. It's enough to make you want to take a cruise to a Caribbean island to wait out the real end of the winter.

Or, if you can't afford that vacation, you could at least design a basement that encompasses all of the elements of a cruise but without the perils of water or travel, like this basement photographed by the Indianapolis architect Fran Schroeder. The location of the photograph is unidentified, but likely it belonged to a home in Indianapolis during the late 1940s-50s. Clearly the owner of this room felt much the same way about winter as we do.

If anyone knows the location, please let us know. We'll come over immediately.

Image: Basement, n.d. (34-199), Fran E. Schroeder Architectural Records Collection, Drawings + Documents Archive, Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University.

Indianapolis Monument Circle Idea Competition

Have a good design idea for the state's most recognizable public space? Now is your opportunity to submit ideas for consideration in the juried Indianapolis Monument Circle Idea Competition, a project of Indianapolis Downtown, Inc.

The panel of jurors are design leaders throughout Indiana, including the dean of Ball State University's College of Architecture and Planning, Guillermo Vasquez de Velasco and the Indianapolis Museum of Art's director Maxwell Anderson.

Information on how to enter can be found on the competition's website. The deadline to apply is April 15, 2011.

Image: Aerial photograph of Monument Circle, ca. 1948. [3-193A] Pierre and Wright Architectural Records Collection, Drawings and Documents Archive, Archives and Special Collection, Ball State University.

Delaware County Transportation Study Available in the Archive

A recent article in The Muncie Star Press entitled, "Is Muncie finally ready to take pride in McGalliard?" highlights the numerous recommendations for improvement to SR 332 / McGalliard Road, a main artery into Muncie, that have been made by Ball State University's College of Architecture and Planning since the college began in the 1960s.

One particular study cited in the article, The Gateways of Delaware County: A Study of the Major Vehicular Routes of Delaware County and Muncie, Indiana published in 1991, assessed the cluttered and undefined state of SR 332 / McGalliard Road and offered suggestions to improve circulation and create a sense of place.

The Gateways of Delaware County study is available for research in the Drawings and Documents Archive, located in the College of Architecture and Planning.

Images: The Gateways of Delaware County: A Study of the Major Vehicular Routes of Delaware County and Muncie, Indiana, 1991. College of Architecture and Planning Collection, Drawings and Documents Archive, Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries.

Midcentury Modern + Preservation

Duncan Campbell, chair of Ball State University's associate professor of architecture and director of the graduate program in historic preservation, has been invited to give a presentation for Bloomington's Preservation Commission's inaugural Rosemary P. Miller Lecture on Historic Preservation, taking place this Friday, March 4th. Campell will be speaking on designer Elaine Doenges' midcentury modern houses built in Bloomington, Indiana.

Campbell's talk will be Friday, March 4th at 7 pm in Bloomington's City Hall. For more information, visit the Preservation Commission's website.

Bush Stadium

Bush Stadium, originally called Perry Stadium when it was built by the architectural firm Pierre & Wright, photographed during its construction in the 1930s. Below the photograph is an article from Copper & Brass Bulletin describing the massive lead-coated copper marquee above the entrance to the stadium. Both are from the Fran E. Schroeder Architectural Records Collection.

Images: Bush Stadium Construction Photograph, 34-188, Fran E. Schroeder Architectural Records Collection, Drawings + Documents Archive, Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries.

Lead-coated Copper marquee protects entrance to new sports stadium at Indianapolis, 34-188, Fran E. Schroeder Architectural Records Collection, Drawings + Documents Archive, Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries.

Architects + Photographers

For anyone who doubts the power of photography to interpret architecture, I offer two examples. The first is our Trowbridge and Beals Photograph Collection, which showcases the work of two outstanding early 20th century architectural photographers and is now available online in Ball State University Libraries' Digital Media Repository.

Raymond W. Trowbridge (1886-1936) and Jessie Tarbox Beals (1870-1942) came to photography from different careers--he was an architect and she was a teacher--but both became well known in this burgeoning field.

The second example?

The film Visual Acoustics: The Modernism of Julius Shulman.

Eliel Saarinen in Indianapolis

Eliel Saarinen, architect of the First Christian Church in Columbus, Indiana, among other extraordinary Modernist buildings, is shown here judging a competition at the 1928 Indiana Society of Architects show, which took place at the John Herron Art Institute.

On the walls are architects Pierre & Wright's prize-winning display showing Oxford Gables Apartments and other commissions. Pierre & Wright won honorary gold certificates for best apartment building (Oxford Gables, 320 E. 38th Street) and best commercial building (27th and Meridian Streets).

At the time he received the award, Edward Pierre and his wife Louise lived in the Oxford Gables apartment building, in #207. Not only did he design and live in the building, but along with Wright they invested in the $287,800 project. It was one of the only documented times where the firm financially invested in a project they designed.

Also of note, the architectural firm of Johnson, Miller, Miller & Yeager from Terre Haute, whose collection we also have in the Drawings + Documents Archive, won honorary gold certificate for their design of the B'nai Abraham Temple in Terre Haute, Indiana.

The photograph of Saarinen and an article about the show that most likely appeared in the Indianapolis Star are found tucked into the scrapbook in the Pierre and Wright Architectural Records Collection that dates from the 1920s. The collection also contains some of the large-scale photographs seen in the picture.

Image: Scrapbook, Pierre & Wright Architectural Records Collection, Ball State University Libraries, Archives and Special Collections, Drawings and Documents Archive.

New Collection in the Archive

The Drawings + Documents Archive is proud to announce the latest collection of architectural records open to researchers, the Charles M. Sappenfield Architectural Records Collection. Known to many at Ball State University's College of Architecture and Planning simply as Charlie, Sappenfield is not only the founding dean of the college but also a highly-acclaimed architect.

Many of his residences in North Carolina won awards for their clean, modernist designs and innovative use of materials. He moved to Indiana when Ball State University hired him to establish its new architecture program and, while his focus fell toward teaching and civic engagement, he continued to design outstanding homes and businesses.

The collection represents his work on housing for the aging, one of Sappenfield's lifelong pursuits from his time as a Fulbright scholar in Copenhagen to his later work in Indiana. The Archive maintains his collection of thousands of architectural drawings and business records, from the 1950s-90s. His papers as dean of the college are currently being processed and will be available soon in the University Archives at Ball State University's Alexander M. Bracken Library.

Image: Charles M. Sappenfield, Sketch for Dave residence, North Carolina, 1963, Charles M. Sappenfield Architectural Records, Ball State University Libraries Drawings + Documents Archive.

School 78, Indianapolis

We're excited to see the article in the Indianapolis Star describing the Indianapolis Public School Board's approval on Tuesday to make School 78, 3734 E. Vermont Street, the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department's East District headquarters.

Designed by architects Edward Pierre and George C. Wright in 1925, the building is a great example of early 20th-century school architecture and the Police Department and IPS should be commended for saving it. Why are we so excited about this particular school? The archive maintains the original ink on linen plans, which we've been using in class visits this fall since news arrived about its potential sale. Groups of students have been encouraged all semester to envision its possibility for adaptive reuse and came up with a range of possibilities--from a charter school to a corporate office. A police department headquarters wasn't exactly on the list, but it should make a perfect fit.

Image: IPS School 78, detail of cartouche, 1925, Pierre & Wright Architectural Records Collection, Ball State University Libraries, Drawings + Documents Archive.

Camels on Monument Circle

These drawings for two of the four life-size camel statues were made by architect Edward Pierre for the Nativity scene installed at Monument Circle for the holidays.

Image: Camels, ca. 1940s, Pierre and Wright Architectural Records Collection, Ball State University Libraries, Drawings + Documents Archive.

Yuletide Greetings, 1962

Joseph Cezar showcased his new Indianapolis Arts League building at 3103 N. Pennsylvania Street in Indianapolis for his 1962 holiday card. The small structure made a big impact due to its modernist design amongst a neighborhood of early 20th century residences. The Arts League outgrew this building 15 years later and moved north to Broad Ripple where they became the Indianapolis Arts Center.

Today, the building is an unfortunate shell of its original stylish and confident design. Here is a recent picture of it in Google Maps:

Images: Holiday card, 1962, Joseph O. Cezar Architectural Records Collection, Ball State University Libraries, Drawings + Documents Archive.

3103 N. Pennsylvania Street, Indianapolis, Ind., Accessed via Google Maps

Seasons greetings

In addition to being an architect, Charles Sappenfield, better known to everyone as Charlie, was the first dean of the College of Architecture and Planning at Ball State University. He left a thriving practice in North Carolina to create an entirely new program at what was then, a fairly small university in the Midwest. His legacy as a dean is considerable and continues to be felt in the college today, from the design of the building to the professors he hired who are still teaching in its classrooms.

The archive recently received and is currently processing his collection of material related to his architectural practice, from the early 1960s to the late 1980s.

To say he fully embraced Modernism is an understatement and his clients knew that. We've found photographs of houses in project folders that have written on the back, "We like this, but it needs modernization". We've also found mid-century product catalogs and fabric samples from Knoll and Herman Miller. And, of course, we've found the holiday cards. Enjoy the Modernist Noel.

Image: Noel card, Carles Sappenfield Architectural Records Collection, Ball State University Libraries, Drawings + Documents Archive.

Seasons greetings

It's often easy to forget that architects run their own business and have all the same marketing concerns that any small business owner would have. What better way to advertise your business, thank clients who have hired you in the past, and remind them that you're still around than to send out personally-designed Christmas cards. Not to mention that it gives the architects a chance to flex design skills in an entirely artistic way without worrying about pesky issues like load-bearing walls and where to install the HVAC system.


We find these cards in most of the collections here in the archive. Some depict local landmarks or important commissions the architect built that year. Others are solely focused on design, like a few that we found today while processing a new collection. We'll show those in an upcoming post.

Image: Holiday card, 1952, Joseph O. Cezar Architectural Records Collection, Ball State University Libraries, Drawings + Documents Archive.

Monument Circle at the Holidays, 1950s

Architect Edward Pierre (1890-1971) was one of the civic-minded businessmen who spearheaded the effort to decorate the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument during the holidays as a way to spread cheer and bring people downtown to shop. He first came up with the idea during the 1930s, but the financial constraints at that time prohibited the expense of decorations. It wasn't until 1945, after World War II ended, that he was able to realize his vision of the Circle decorated for the holidays.

This is only one example of Edward Pierre's interest in beautifying and improving the city through architecture and civic engagement. After Pierre died in 1971, then-mayor Richard Lugar described the architect as "one of the most significant and imaginative thinkers in regard to the beauty of Indianapolis". Every year we're reminded why.

Images: Yule Tidings on the Circle, Indianapolis Star Magazine, December 6, 1953. Pierre & Wright Architectural Records Collection, Ball State University Libraries, Drawings + Documents Archive

Meadowbrook Apartments

To accommodate the need for low-income housing in Indianapolis in the late 1940s, the city hired architects Joseph Lloyd Allen (1897-1975) and John Kelley (1902-1991) to design a 50-acre housing project located at the corner of 38th Street and Rural Avenue. The firm of Allen & Kelley created the streamlined Meadowbrooks Apartments--with 620 units in a total of 36 buildings spread across the site. Each building was two stories, with glass block windows and a unique, modern front door inset with three small windows. The firm lists the project cost at six million dollars.

Photographs from an Indianapolis Star newspaper story depict a couple receiving the keys to their new apartment and exploring the interior.


Images: Meadowbrook Apartments presentation drawing, Allen & Kelley Architectural Records Collection, Ball State University Libraries, Drawings + Documents Archive.
Meadowbrook Apartments photographs, Allen & Kelley Architectural Records Collection, Ball State University Libraries, Drawings + Documents Archive.

Formica

No doubt you've spent an inordinate amount of time in the kitchen lately. If any thoughts were given to your hard-working kitchen counter at Thanksgiving time, they were probably of the "I need more counter space" or "which of my relatives spilled red wine and didn't clean it up?" variety. Chances are you didn't give much thought to the history of one of the country's most popular solid surfaces for counters: Formica.

In our Trade Catalog Collection and in the Kibele and Garrard Architectural Records Collection we have some very interesting examples of Formica from the early to late 20th century.
It was created in 1910 by David J. O'Conor, an engineer at Westinghouse in Pittsburgh, who impregnated sheets of paper with the new invention liquid Bakelite. He had created a durable surface with insulating properties. A few years later, in 1913, O'Conor and Herbert A. Faber, another engineer, left Westinghouse in order to form their own company in Cincinnati to focus on this new invention.


Wondering about the name? Faber is credited with that: because it could stand in place for mica, an insulator that was becoming increasingly expensive at the time, the product officially became Formica. And it went on to cover kitchen counters around the world.


Images:
Formica samples, 1920s-30s, Kibele and Garrard Architectural Records Collection, Drawings + Documents Archive, Ball State University Libraries.
Formica trade catalog, TC 146, 1960s, Trade Catalog Collection, Drawings + Documents Archive, Ball State University Libraries

Frank Lloyd Wright: Architectural Alchemist lecture November 18th

Frank Lloyd Wright: Architectural Alchemist
Thursday, November 18, 2010
5 pm reception & 5:30 pm lecture at ISU's Center for Performing and Fine Arts

A lecture by Dr. Sidney Robinson, faculty, Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture and Preservation Program Coordinator, Taliesin Preservation, Inc.

The power of Frank Lloyd Wright's creativity is demonstrated by the wide range of sources on which he based his architecture. He exercised his remarkable interpretive ability on Louis Sullivan's ornament, Japanese prints, music, and his own ornament. Wright's interpretation of non-architectural sources is the clearest evidence of his goal to make architecture integral and inclusive. We must take clues from this wide-ranging practice and continue these multiple dimensions in preserving his legacy.

This program is co-sponsored by Indiana Landmarks, the Swope Art Museum and Indiana State University, and is planned in conjunction with The Samara House: A Usonian Design by Frank Lloyd Wright, an exhibition at the Swope which runs through December 31, 2010.

Happy Halloween

Some say wisdom, I say spooky.

Meant for a stained-glass window in a Hagerstown, Indiana residence designed by the architectural firm Pierre & Wright in the 1930s, this owl was supposed to connote wisdom. Here at the archive, we feel the owl might be better suited for scaring small children out trick-or-treating this weekend.

CAP Alumni Win INSLA Design Award

Last Friday, theIndiana Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (INASLA) presented the local landscape architectural firm of Rundell Ernstberger Associates with the Award of Excellence for its work on The Nature Conservancy’s Indianapolis headquarters, the Efroymson Conservation Center.

The INASLA Professional Design Program was created to recognize professional excellence and outstanding examples of landscape architecture by Indiana landscape architects. The awards honor works that represent the forefront of the profession of landscape architecture and embody high levels of creativity and imagination.

“We are thrilled for Rundell Ernstberger,” said Mary McConnell, state director for The Nature Conservancy’s Indiana Chapter. “Throughout the design process, Rundell Ernstberger’s work was guided by the Conservancy’s goal of achieving LEED Platinum certification, our mission of protecting biodiversity, and our limited budget. They coordinated very closely with all members of our design and construction team to find creative and unconventional solutions. We couldn’t be happier with our new home.”

“The Efroymson Conservation Center was a great opportunity to work with The Nature Conservancy to achieve their ambitious goals,” said Brian McNerney, Associate for Rundell Ernstberger. “The Conservancy wanted to emphasize their site as a model to inspire others to follow. We have shown that with good planning, teamwork, and creativity, a truly sustainable site development with native gardens is possible in a dense urban area.

McNerney added that the Efroymson Conservation Center is also a signature project for the City of Indianapolis for its innovative stormwater management design.

The site design for the Efroymson Conservation Center includes many features that highlight Runsdell Ernstberger’s successful design solution, from the parking lot with its permeable pavement to the green spaces, gardens, and green roofs that cover nearly half of the site, using unique native Indiana species not normally seen in urban environments.

Rundell Ernstberger was also part of the Efroymson Conservation Center’s award-winning stormwater management system, in which a combination of permeable pavements, a bio-swale, green roofs, and native gardens translate to zero stormwater run-off . This stormwater management system eliminated the need to connect to the City’s combined sewer system (with substantial cost savings for both the Conservancy and the City of Indianapolis).

George Rogers Clark Memorial, Vincennes

This is a 1930s era photograph depicting leveling the concrete foundation for the George Rogers Clark Memorial in Vincennes, Indiana, located along the Wabash River at the southern end of the state. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt later dedicated the completed memorial June 14, 1936.

If your memory of high school history class is a little rusty, George Rogers Clark defeated the British on a cold February day in 1779. According to the National Parks Service website for the memorial:

The British flag would not be raised above Fort Sackville Feb. 25, 1779. At 10 a.m., the garrison surrendered to American Col. George Rogers Clark. His American army, aided by French residents of the Illinois country, had marched through freezing floodwaters to gain this victory. The fort’s capture assured United States claims to the frontier, an area nearly as large as the original 13 states.

Although it depicts something a bit more mundane than capturing a fort, this photograph has us all enthralled with the small details--the engaged audience for the workmen, the process of leveling the concrete, and even the workman's coat hanging on a wooden post in the center of what will later become a beautiful monument. Go ahead and click on it to see it for yourself.