Tag Archives: Butler University

Historic Irvington Halloween Festival…

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Indy is just full of fun communities to call home, since this past spring when I helped my friend Kate buy her new home in Irvington, I’ve found myself spending more time in the area and exploring the many restaurants and shops in the are and am even considering a move to the area in the future!  Kate kept mentioning the Halloween Festival and I finally had to find out what it was all about…this is from their website:

For over 60 years, the Historic Irvington Halloween Festival has brought together thousands of residents, dozens of neighborhood organizations, and countless Eastside businesses in a fun-filled celebration of our heritage and community. The festival and its associated events are designed to bring awareness to the community, to bring commerce to local business and sponsors, and to provide fun for the children of Irvington and Indianapolis. The celebration now encompasses a week of events including a 5 mile run, a scholarship pageant, musicians, contests, Halloween-themed movies, storytelling, ghost tours, live theater, roller derby, a haunted puppet show and dozens of other events.

The Irvington Halloween Festival is organized by the Historic Irvington Community Council, a 501(c)3 organization that provides a voice to the city on Irvington issues such as public services, zoning and works to improve the community and the lives of its residents.

A Brief History of Irvington

Irvington was founded by Jacob Julian and Sylvester Johnson, who developed 300 acres into residential plots four miles east of Indianapolis. Named after 19th century writer Washington Irving, Irvington was annexed by the city of Indianapolis in 1902. Western Christian University (now Butler University) relocated to Irvington in 1873 and stayed there until 1928.

The neighborhood is situated on Washington Street, which is the route of the historic National Road, a National Scenic Byway. US 40 was formerly routed along the road. Through the early 1900s, a commuter rail/trolley system ran from Irvington to downtown Indianapolis along US 40. Ideally located just 10 minutes East of downtown Indianapolis, Irvington is a strong and growing community of quaint and magnificent homes located on tree-lined historic streets. Successful restaurants, coffee shops, retailers and parks all contribute to Irvington’s charm. The Irvington community is founded on strong ties to its historic past and is a great place to raise a family.

So if you are looking for something fun to do this week, check this out!

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Vicki Reed

Want to move to Irvington?

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I have a client very interested in moving to Irvington – this area is ever evolving and very walkable which is on a lot of people’s wish lists these days!  Housing is reasonably priced, including some really good deals on 1700 square feet townhomes in a Coop neighborhood – I know, you say a “coop” my thoughts automatically goes to New York and those expensive apartments on Central Park!  If you google “co-ops in Indiana“, you get grain and bean coop or food coop.  This will be a learning experience that I will happy share with you as we move through the process…but now back to Irvington.

Irvington was originally a suburban town in 1870 but was annexed into the City of Indianapolis in the early 1900’s.  The original plat of Irvington includes a winding picturesque street plan, very different from Indianapolis’ grid layout.  Irvington today has more lineal blocks of brick streets than any neighborhood in the city, and its naturalistic plan is considered Indianapolis’ largest and most developed example of Victorian Romantic landscape design.

In 1873, the area was selected as the new location for Northwestern Christian University, later renamed Butler University.  From 1875-1928, Butler developed a campus in Irvington, which subsequently promoted a college town atmosphere throughout the community. Although most of the campus buildings are gone, except the Bona Thompson Memorial Library, the intellectual spirit is still reflected in Irvington’s many association and groups.

Want to move to Irvington?  Click here to check out available homes everything from $8,000 to $260,000, sign up on my website and let’s get started!

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Vicki Reed