Oct. 2
In 1902, Mother of God Roman Catholic Church was dedicated in Shirley, with 103 attending the service. When the town’s gas boom faded, so did attendance; the building was razed in the late 1920s.
In 1966, the cornerstone was laid for a new Fortville Christian Church building at 9450 N. County Road 200W, where the church still meets today.
Oct. 3
In 1974, a two-ton rock, engraved to mark the spot of James Whitcomb Riley’s “Old Swimmin’ Hole,” was dedicated after the Mayor’s Breakfast of the Riley Festival.
Oct. 4
In 1909, work began on North State Street on new cement sidewalks, replacing black pitch walks that were put in some 18 years before.
Oct. 5
In 1964, a petition with about 175 signatures was filed with the county auditor; signers were asking county commissioners to grant Greenfield Plan Commission authority over a “buffer zone” just outside city limits.
Oct. 6
In 1997, Shirley Town Council established a 10 p.m. curfew, hoping to curb Halloween-related vandalism.
Oct. 7
In 1849, “Hoosier Poet” and Greenfield native James Whitcomb Riley was born.
Oct. 8
In 2001, Hancock County Commissioners said they would pay the maximum allowed by law to owners of homes they wanted to buy to make way for a new courthouse annex southeast of the courthouse.
