Albany

Julia Allegre deeded land to the Delaware School Township on July 15, 1876 (Naetzker, 1980). Shortly after, the township constructed a two-story, three-bay building of brick to serve as a schoolhouse.

For most of its existence, the town of Albany operated its own school system separate from the rest of Delaware Township. Two schoolhouses stood in 1887, located catty-cornered from each other on the northwest and southeast corners of West State Street and North Delaware Street (Griffing, 1887). Though both schools were abandoned after the 1889 construction of a new, graded schoolhouse three block wests (Town, n.d.), both are still standing.

In 1899 -ten years after the larger school’s closure- a two-story brick dwelling with an open, wooden front porch and a small, frame addition to the north was shown on a fire insurance map (Sanborn, 1899). Sanborn maps from prior to 1899 don’t show a structure there.

Between 1905 and 1906, the Muncie-Portland Traction Company purchased the schoolhouse, adding a L-shaped addition that wrapped around the original structure, and remodeling the schoolhouse to match the style of the additions (Naetzker).

According to Sanborn maps, the old schoolhouse served as the passenger depot area (1910) to the eastern side facing Delaware Street.

The Muncie & Portland line was acquired by the Union Traction Company in 1916 and discontinued in 1930. Over the next ninety-one years the old school and interurban depot was home to a variety of businesses. In the 1940s and later it served as an auction house (Public, 1945). In 1979, it was even proposed to become Albany’s municipal building (Kurz, 1979). Today, the building is being renovated by the Beautification Committee of Albany, Incorporated.

References

Naetzker, C. (1980, May 7). The Albany Traction Terminal: A Symbol From The Past. Ball State University. print.

Griffing, B. N. (1887). Mt. Pleasant Township. An atlas of Delaware County, Indiana . map, Philadelphia, PA; Griffing, Gordon, & Company.

Town of Albany, Indiana. (n.d.). A brief history of Albany, Indiana. Albany, Indiana. Retrieved September 25, 2021, from https://albanyin.com/about-albany/.

(1899) Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Albany, Delaware County, Indiana. Sanborn Map Company. map. Retrieved from the Library of Congress.

(1910) Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Albany, Delaware County, Indiana. Sanborn Map Company. map. Retrieved from the Library of Congress.

Public Auction. (1945, October 6). The Muncie Star. p. 12.

Kurz, K. (1979, June 5). Albany Traction Station Proposed as Town Center. The Muncie Star. p. 10.