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HomeMy WebLinkAboutEstablishing an Historic Landmark for Ireland rd ORDINANCE No. 8217-91 Passed by the Common Council of the City of South Bend, Indiana_ October 28, 91 r9 Attest: -� °°� -`�-"`' City Cit Clerk IRENE K. GAMMON Attest: v = �� _ President of Common Council Presented by me to the Mayor of the City of South Bend, Indiana_ October 29, 91 I9 —- City Clerk IRENE K. GAMMON Approved and signed by me _.. I r9 I �-- Mayor • • ORDINANCE NO. Ya / AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE ZONING ORDINANCE, AND ESTABLISHING AN HISTORIC LANDMARK FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT Ireland Road, IN THE CITY OF SOUTH BEND, INDIANA. WHEREAS, the Historic Preservation Commission of South Bend and St . Joseph County has petitioned for the designation of the following described real estate as an Historic Landmark under Ordinance No. 5565-73 , as amended, to wit : 264 ' x 162 ' on Ireland Road beginning 870 ' east of the N.W . corner of the S.E. 1/4, Section 25-37-2E. The improvements located upon said land can be commonly described as Rohrer Cemetery hereinafter referred to as the "PROPERTY. " WHEREAS, the Historic Preservation Commission of South Bend and St . Joseph County has recommended the designation of the PROPERTY as an Historic Landmark. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SOUTH BEND, INDIANA: SECTION 1 . That the above described PROPERTY be, and it is hereby designated and established as an Historic Landmark under Ordinance No. 5565-73 , as amended. SECTION 2 . That this ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage by the Common Council , approval by the Mayor and legal publication. Member of,- he Common Council AREA PLAN COMMISSION RICHARD S. JOHNSON OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, IN Executive Director Room 1140 County-City Building South Bend, Indiana 46601 (219) 284-9571 October 8, 1991 Mrs. Irene Gammon, City Clerk 4th Floor, County-City Building South Bend, IN 46601 RE: Proposed designation for a 264' X 162' property located on Ireland Road beginning 870' east of the NW corner of the SE 1/4, Section 25-37-2E Dear Mrs. Gammon: The Staff of the Area Plan Commission has reviewed the Historic Preservation Commission's proposed designation of the above property as an historic landmark with respect to the relationship of said property to any capital improvements proposed for nearby rights-of-way, easements or properties. We find no proposed improvements that will conflict with this structure; and, therefore, we return a favorable recommendation to the Historic Preservation Commission and the Common Council . Sincerely, / Scott Kugler Planner SK CC: Historic Conservation Commission Serving: South Bend, Lakeville, New Carlisle, North Liberty, Roseland & St. Joseph County, IN • 1 ROHRER CEMETERY: SIGNIFICANCE AND HISTORY Fred M. Holycross Historic Preservation Commission of South Bend and St . Joseph County September 26, 1991 CONTENTS Page # : 1 Introduction 1 Historic Significance 2 Historical Development 3 Biographical Sketches 3 . The Rohrer Family 4 The Miller Family 4 The Lock Family 5 The Hildebrand Family 5 The Stull Family 6 The Ulbricht Family 6 Various Others 8 Notes • Introduction Rohrer Cemetery is located in Centre Township within the city limits of South Bend. It is on the south side of Ireland Road between South Michigan and Miami Street--across the street from Erskine Golf Course and east of the Lester Sumrall Evangelistic complex. The cemetery is in fair condition; the site was relatively well maintained when last viewed in August of 1991 . Historic artifacts remaining here include: intact , broken and partial stone grave markers , various markers of other kinds, a decorative wrought-iron fence surrounding a family plot and poured concrete dividers surrounding several family plots . Historic decorative plantings--trees , shrubbery, flowers--also remain on the site. The cemetery is separated from the road by a concrete retaining wall in good repair. There are sixty-one surviving burial markers on the site, predominantly made of stone. Research also suggests that at least fifteen other burials took place here. Of the seventy-six known burials, twenty-nine (38%) are those of children or adolescents . Rohrer cemetery could conceivably be threatened by expansion of the Sumrall complex to the west or the widening of Ireland Road--an extremely busy thoroughfare likely to become busier in the future. The site's southern and eastern borders are adjacent to residences that seem to be of little threat to the site. In addition to the possible threat to the site from development, over time, damage from nature' s weathering and man's vandalism compromise the usefulness of Rohrer Cemetery as a historical record. Landmark status would be one way to ensure protection of a valuable piece of local heritage. Historic Significance Rohrer Cemetery is one of approximately fifteen remaining nineteenth-century, pioneer burial sites in the county. It is significant as a collection of artifacts that can serve as a source of understanding of the development of local culture and history--especially in relation to early settlement . It also should be seen in the context of larger historical questions--it is one piece of the puzzle for understanding the broader fabric of American life. All cemeteries contain data concerning religious beliefs, ethnic differences and other cultural behaviors important to a fuller understanding of American historical development . In addition, Rohrer Cemetery is a place where families have entrusted the final remains of their relatives . It is imperative that a proper concern is shown for the final resting place of local citizens ' ancestors . The protection of cemeteries becomes a question of respecting the broad range of religious beliefs and practices of those who have laid their kin to rest in them. • • Historical Development Rohrer Cemetery is a typical pioneer cemetery, chosen as a place of burial when the need arose. It was established in the fall of 1845 by Centre Township farmer and politician Joseph Rohrer. Rohrer donated an acre of his land that year to St. Joseph County for "the exclusive use [as] a Burying Ground forever. "[1] Joseph and his wife, Mary, were pioneers in this section of the county. They arrived in Centre Township around 1829 with their large family consisting of both young children and adults with spouses . The Rohrers soon purchased considerable amounts of land in the county. They bought the parcel in which the cemetery was later located, consisting of 160 acres , for $300 .00 in 1833 . The property, due east of what was then the Michigan Road, became the Rohrer family farm. [2] Illness and death were always a threat to families pioneering in this section of the Midwest--the Rohrer family was extremely unfortunate in this regard. In the early 1840 's an epidemic disease, possibly typhoid, struck--from the spring of 1841 to the summer of 1845 Joseph and Mary buried seven children on this section of their property. This concentration of burials prompted the Rohrers to formalize the spot as an official county burial place. Joseph Rohrer died of the same malady in the fall of 1845, leaving Mary as owner of the family farm. [3] Rohrer Cemetery then became the final resting place for other Centre Township pioneer families in addition to relatives of the Rohrer family--especially those who settled near this northern part of the township. Prominent names in addition to the Rohrers included: the Millers , Lock[e]s , Ulbrichts , Hildebrands and Henry Stull . Remaining grave markers reveal that the cemetery was utilized almost entirely in the nineteenth century; the majority of remaining markers date from the 1840 's to the 1870 's . After 1870 burials decreased significantly. [4] In the spring of 1882 the commissioners of St . Joseph County transferred the site to the jurisdiction of the Rohrer Cemetery Association, a body responsible for upkeep and the sale of plots . Six years later the association was legally incorporated. The organization then plotted 147 grave spaces for sale to the public. The four original directors elected to manage the affairs of the association were William Stull , Samuel Leeper, Christian Hildebrand and Adam Frick. Other members were primarily Centre Township notables and/or descendants of interred individuals including: C.F. Rohrer, William C. Miller, George W. Lock, David Rohrer Leeper and Sylvester Keen. [5] Only five burials are known to have occurred after the turn of the century. The association and cemetery stockholders made efforts to generate interest in the cemetery, holding meetings in 1914 and 1915 to solicit funds for maintenance and to reorganize the plots for sale. Descendants of buried persons also donated money for upkeep but by 1915 only thirty of the 147 burial sites plotted earlier had been sold at prices ranging from $10 .00 to • $15 .00 . The cemetery became defunct . Sometime during the Depression the local chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution surveyed the site to determine how many markers remained--ten markers identified by the project are no longer extant . Another. Depression-era project--an enumeration of veterans ' burials in 1938--reported two Civil War veterans in Rohrer Cemetery. However, this data is incorrect . The burials in question, those of John Hildebrand and John Miller, were proven not to be of Civil War veterans by researcher Irvin S. Moore. [6] Biographical Sketches Following are biographical sketches of several notable families with members interred in Rohrer Cemetery. Biographical data on many of the people buried in Rohrer Cemetery is sketchy as the majority of people buried at Rohrer were farmers or laborers, leaving little information about their lives in the historical record. In addition, as noted above, thirty-eight percent of the burials were those of children or adolescents, further reducing the amount of available information. Future research--especially oral histories from the descendants of Centre Township pioneer families--could be employed to flesh out the histories of those buried here. The Rohrer Family Joseph Rohrer is significant as both a pioneer of Centre Township and as one of St . Joseph County's first three commissioners. Joseph became engaged in local politics early on--by 1830 he was a "petit juror" on the county Board of Justices . In 1831 he was elected with David Miller and Aaron Stanton as the first trio of commissioners in St. Joseph County. [7 ] In The History of St. Joseph County the Rohrers are described as having first "liv[ed] in a shed. . . outside the town plat" after their arrival . However, it was not long before they developed a successful farming operation. Mary and Joseph Rohrer are reported to have raised a total of sixteen children including: Elizabeth, Anna, David, John, Joseph, William C. , Laura A. , Horace W. , David [T. ] , Mary, Sarah, Susannah, Rachel , Barbara and twin boys who died in infancy. [8] Adult Rohrers and spouses who arrived with their parents in the 1830 ' s included David and his wife, Elizabeth (Bowman) , and Elizabeth and her husband Samuel Leeper. Later Rohrer spouses buried in Rohrer Cemetery include John M. Miller, husband of Sarah, and Charlotte (Pickett) , wife of John Rohrer . Of the seven Rohrer children who initially died in the epidemic of the 1940 ' s , three--Rachel , Barbara and Susannah--were teens. The other four--Mary Ann, Elizabeth, David and John--were adults . At the time of their deaths , John and David were successful farmers in their own right . Elizabeth's spouse was a • . farmer and she was the mother of two. Another daughter, Mary Pickett , died of the same cause soon after her father in February of 1846. Her husband, Edwin, went on to become County Commissioner in 1851 . Elizabeth and Samuel Leeper's son, David Rohrer Leeper, continued his grandfather's political aspirations on a larger scale. He was first elected to the Indiana State Legislature and in 1878 was elected State Senator from St . Joseph and Starke Counties . In 1892 he became mayor of South Bend--a post he held until 1894. [9] Mary (May) Rohrer died December 28, 1859. Her obituary in the St . Joseph Valley Register noted her passing as "the last member of the family of one of the earliest settlers of the county. " The family farm stayed in the possession of Charlotte T. Rohrer, (known as "Aunt Hat") the wife of John Rohrer, until her death in 1899 . She was the last person with the Rohrer name to buried in the pioneer burial site. [10] The Miller Family John and Catherine (Wenger) Miller settled on a 157 acre homestead just east of the cemetery site, on the southeast corner of what later became Miami and Ireland Roads . They arrived in the township in 1847 from Ohio where they had lived since 1831 . John was of German extraction. He was born in East Hanover, Lebanon County, Ohio in 1807 . Catherine was born in Pennsylvania in 1813 and was the sister of Elder C. and Martin Wenger, also early pioneers in St . Joseph County. She and John were married in Pennsylvania; they raised ten children--three sons and seven daughters . The Millers were early supporters and members of the first German Baptist Church in St . Joseph County. John remained on the land he homesteaded and improved for farming until his death in 1876 when he was interred in Rohrer Cemetery. Catherine was laid to rest eight years later, leaving the family farm to a son, William C. Miller, who was elected as Centre Township Supervisor in 1866 and was a minister of the German Baptist Church. He later named the property "The Sunny Banks Farm. " Other Millers buried in Rohrer include three year old Margaret (1852) and six year old Alta (1880) . [11] The Lock Family Philip and Jemima (Tipton) Lock were originally from Pennsylvania; both were born there in the 1780 ' s . The couple moved to Ohio in 1818 to establish a farm but as was typical of many Americans of their time, they moved on, and arrived in St . Joseph County in 1844. They purchased land just east of the Michigan Road and began developing a farming operation. Phillip's family on his father's side were English immigrants who first settled in New Jersey. His maternal ancestors were Germans transplanted to Pennsylvania. Both sides are described in an early history as being among "the wealthiest tillers of the soil . " The Locks raised ten children--five daughters and five sons . Two sons, John and Thomas, remained in Ohio; Joshua Miller settled in Iowa; William came to South Bend with his parents and eventually became a farmer in Union Township. Another son, George W. Lock, also settled locally, becoming a prominent farmer in Portage Township. His operation consisted of 134 acres on the old Michigan Road, two miles northwest of the city, a farm devoted to the raising of wheat, corn, potatoes and fruit . He later became a township trustee and supervisor. Of the five Lock daughters only Matilda remained in the area. She eventually married (Vandenhoof) and settled in Clay Township. Katuria Lock emigrated to Canada. Three others died at early ages--Sarah Jane (infant) , Emily (14 years) , and Hannah (20 years) . Only Phillip and Jemima Lock were buried in Rohrer Cemetery. Phillip passed away in 1866 at the age of eighty-two. Jemima died at the age of ninety-one in 1872 . [12] The Hildebrand Family John and Nancy Hildebrand arrived in Centre Township in 1848 and settled to the southwest of the cemetery site. They brought their sons, Henry and Benjamin, with them from Ansenburg, Ohio. John was born in Pennsylvania in 1788 . Nancy (Shively) was born in 1792 . Nancy Hildebrand was interred in the Rohrer grounds in 1865 . John was buried in Rohrer Cemetery at the age of eighty-eight in 1877 . A later son, Christian, remained on the family farm with his spouse, Mary (Hartman) , and their child, Lucinda, after the deaths of his parents . [13] The Stull Family Pioneers Henry and Rebecca (Hughes) Stull 's farm was just northwest of Rohrer Cemetery, straddling the old Michigan Road. Stull first came to the area in 1829 on a prospecting expedition and found the area to his liking. He moved his family from their farm near Jennings County, Indiana and bought some land to begin farming anew. The Stulls had eleven children, of which nine--three sons and six daughters--grew to maturity. Henry and his sons participated in plans to build an emergency fort at Southhold during the "Black Hawk Scare" of 1832 . The Stulls also have been noted as supplying the lumber for the county' s first school from their land in Centre Township. Henry was born in Fayette City, Pennsylvania in 1788 . His spouse, who was instrumental in the organization of the first local Methodist Church in 1831 , was a native of Charleston, South Carolina, born in 1799 . Henry died at the age of eighty-seven in 1875 and was buried at Rohrer; it is unknown where other Stulls were interred. • The couples son, William Hughes Stull , began adult life as a carpenter and then took over the homestead after his parents ' death, further expanding and improving it . He was born on the Jennings county farm in 1826 . He was first wed in 1850 to Saphronia Day, who died in 1862 . He then married Nora Rohrer, daughter of John and Charlotte, in 1864 . William Stull became involved in local politics and worked for the Democratic party in his area. In 1886 he was elected as a state legislator from his district , a position he held for three terms . He died in 1899 leaving a wife and three daughters . [14] The Ulbricht Family August Ulbricht is characterized in his obituary of 1894 as "a well-known St. Joseph County stone-mason and contractor. " He. was a long-time resident of the "Rupel settlement" west of the Rohrer cemetery site His death notice designated the Rupel Cemetery as the place chosen for his remains , however, Rohrer Cemetery still has a large family monument devoted to August and other members of his family. Ulbricht family members memorialized and/or buried here include: Sarah Elizabeth (died 1876, six years) ; William (died 1883, 20 years) ; Delbert Monroe (died 1885 , three years) ; Frederick August (died 1894, 66 years) ; Bessie (died 1900 , 14 years) ; Mary (died 1903, 63 years) ; and Caroline (death date unknown, 30 years) . It is possible that earlier remains, including August's, were disinterred and relocated here in the early twentieth century. [15] Various Others For the remainder of the people buried in Rohrer Cemetery, little remains but an occasional obituary. Eight Keen family members were buried here. Delilah Keen's unusually descriptive death notice appeared in the July 19, 1880 South Bend Tribune with the subtitle "A Son Horrified at Finding His Mother Dead This Morning. " The notice mentions her husband, Michael S. Keen, who died in 1863 at fifty years of age and was buried in Rohrer. Mrs . Keen' s remains are described as being found by her son, Sylvester, when he went to her room in the middle of the night to warn her of an impending storm. Other Keens buried here include: Michael S. (died 1849, 1 year) ; Emaline (died 1862 , 2 years) ; Francis Marion (died 1863 , 9 years) ; Rolvin (died 1867 , 27 years) ; Pearl Estella (died 1883 , 1 month) ; and Leonard (death date unknown, 27 years) . [16] Three members of the Hartman family were interred here: Malisa Ann (date unknown, 2 years) ; Elizabeth (date unknown, 68 years) ; George (died 1863 , 63 years) ; Franklin W. (died 1864, 6 year) ; John H. (died 1865, 40 years) ; and another Elizabeth in 1895 . The second Elizabeth's obituary describes her as being the last member of the family at the time of her death at the age of sixty-five. [17] • The last known burial in Rohrer Cemetery was that of Raymond 0. Frick. Nothing is known of Frick except his last address , 324 N. Notre Dame Ave. , and that he was originally from Marshall County, born on October 20 , 1888 . He died at the age of thirty leaving a spouse, Maud [sic] , and four children, Otto, Lawrence, Elizabeth and Howard. He is probably related to Adam Frick, one of the original directors of the Rohrer Cemetery Association. [18] ./ . . • ~ NOTES 1 . St . Joseph County Deed Book L: 140 (Sept . 14, 1846) . 2 . The land purchased by Joseph Rohrer was the S.E. 1/4 of Section 25, Township 3, Range East . St . Joseph County Deed Index 1 : 390 (May 13 , 1833) . 3 . The "kind of malady, " the illness that decimated the family, is mentioned in Mary (May) Rohrer's obituary in: St . Joseph Valley Register (Indiana) : 1-5-1860(obit . ) . Epidemic disease was common in St . Joseph County in the early years as is typical in any frontier community. The year 1838 saw an outbreak of malaria; typhoid and cholera were also not unheard of before proper sanitation was practiced and water systems were developed. Local disease and epidemic, however poorly understood, is discussed in: . History of St . Joseph County, Indiana (Chicago: Charles C. Chapman and ' Co. , 1880) : 397-407 . Mary (Showers) Rohrer received the farm from her husband's estate in November, 1845 : Abstract of Wills, Vol . 2-3 : 1830-1870 (South Bend: 1968) : 16. 4 Grave marker data is from Toni Cook, Rohrer Cemetery (n.p. ;n.d. , c. 1990) . Ms . Cook compiled this data from her "corrected" inventory of existing grave markers in April , 1990 . The cemetery was also inventoried in 1979 by Jeanne Everett . Ms. Cook has also consulted D.A.R. records, county death records, the Graves Registration. Project (W.P.A. , 1938) and newspaper obituaries in compiling her data. The breakdown of the seventy-six known burials by decade is: 1840 's : eleven (14%) ; 1850 's : eight (11%) ; 1860 ' s : twenty-one (28%) ; 1870 's : twelve (16%) ; 1880 ' s : seven (9%) ; 1890 's : three (4%) ; Twentieth century: five (7%) ; Dates unknown: nine (12%) . 5. Deed Book 76: 83 (March 8, 1882; recorded in 1887) . St . Joseph County Miscellaneous Record Book C: 175 . Prudence Groff Michael has provided a brief description of the cemetery's history in "Notes of Interest on Rohrer Cemetery" in South Bend Genealogical Society Quarterly 1:1 (Spring, 1976) . 6. Veterans Graves Registration Project : W. P.A. Vol . 4 (n.p. : Sept . , 1938) : leaves not numbered, 15 pages from end of book. The first record of the supposed Civil War veterans can be found on microfilm: (Genealogical Society, Salt Lake City, Utah--Project #IND 07120 , Roll #48 , Item #30) , Locality: St . Joseph County Historical Society Museum, South Bend, In. : Veterans Burials-Rohrer Cemetery. 7 . John B. Stoll , ed. "An account of St. Joseph County From Its Organization, " in Logan Esarey, History of Indiana From Its Exploration to 1922 Vol . III (Dayton: Dayton Historical Publishing, 1923) : 41 . 8 . History of St . Joseph County: 611 , 663 . , An Illustrated Historical Atlas of St . Joseph County, Indiana (Chicago: Higgins Belden and Co. , 1875) 32 . 9 . . Pictorial and Biographical Memoirs of Elkhart and St . Joseph Counties , Indiana (Chicago: Goodspeed Brothers , 1893) , 332-336. 10 . Register (1-5-1860) . Illustrated Historical Atlas : 32 . History of St . Joseph County: 673 . 11 . John Miller' s obituary can be found in: Register (8-17-1876) . ; Catherine Miller's obituary in: Register (2-27-1884) . Howard: 1080 . 12 . George W. Lock's farm is pictured, along with family biographical information, in: Illustrated Historical Atlas : 29. A sketchy ancestor chart is include in: Ancestor Charts, Vol . 2 (South Bend: S.B. Area Genealogical Society, 1976) : 133a,133e, 436e. 13 . Ancestor Charts, Vol . 2 : 130; Ancestor Charts , Vol . 3 : 307b, 307e. 14 . The Stull 's participation in the fort project is mentioned in: Genealogical Society Quarterly 1 : 2 (Summer, 1976) : 30 . The original source of this data is uncertain; the Black Hawk Scare is described in Howard: 132 . Family data is taken from: Ancestor Charts , Vol . 4 : 419. South Bend Tribune 3-25-1875(obit . ) . Howard: 600-601. History of St . Joseph County: 673 . 15 . August Ulbricht 's obituary can be found in The South Bend Daily Tribune 6-11-1894 . 16 . South Bend Tribune "Died All Alone," 7-19-1880. 17 . South Bend Tribune 3-16-1895(obit . ) . 18 . South Bend Tribune 10-23-1918(obit . ) . • fiammtttrt Erpnrt In Up Coltman flonnrit of Hr (City of'nn#1i itnd: Your Committee of the Whole to whom was referred BILL NO. 63-91 SECOND READING ON A BILL AMENDING THE ZONING ORDINANCE AND ESTABLISHING A HISTORIC LANDMARK FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT IRELAND ROAD, IN THE CITY OF SOUTH BEND, INDIANA. Respectfully report that they have examined the matter and that in their opinion This bill should be recommended to the Council favorable. Loretta Duda Chairman FREE PRESS GPIES5Is PUBLISHING CO.