The Dymaxion House is featured at The Henry Ford museum complex in Dearborn, Michigan. Its designer, Richard Buckminster Fuller, stopped in Greenfield in 1947 when snow interrupted his flight from Cleveland, Ohio, to Wichita, Kansas.
Courtesy of The Henry Ford
Feb. 8
In 1947, inventor and designer Richard Buckminster Fuller was in Greenfield, staying at the Riley Hotel. Weather conditions, including snow, forced him to ground the private plane carrying him back to Wichita, Kansas, from Cleveland, Ohio, where he had addressed a group of architects. Fuller was designer and creator of the circular Dymaxion House, a round house designed for mass production. It’s featured in an exhibit at The Henry Ford history museum complex in Dearborn, Michigan.
Feb. 9
In 1977, Eastern Hancock Superintendent Keith Davis announced students would return to a full day of classes the next morning. Area schools had been cutting back hours or canceling classes altogether amid a gas shortage. Even as they returned, Davis advised classrooms would be heated to 60-65 degrees, with the gym and auditorium unheated, so he encouraged students to dress warmly.
Feb. 10
In 1965 (and 1971), Jack L. New of Greenfield took office as Indiana’s state treasurer. He served from 1965-67 and 1971-79.
In 1969, Hancock County natives William Brees Jr. and Huger Phelps died in Vietnam.
Feb. 11
In 1941, John William “Will” Vawter, longtime illustrator for poet James Whitcomb Riley’s works, died. He was buried in Park Cemetery in Greenfield.
In 2009, gusts up to 60 mph blew through Hancock County. One knocked down a large tree next to State Road 9, which hit a vehicle as the tree broke in half. The driver was fine.
Feb. 12
In 1951, readers were assured that while Pfc. David Ferris of Greenfield had suffered minor frostbite while in combat in Korea, “rumors of triple amputation, which have been widely circulated … are reported as untrue by his sister, Margaret.”
Feb. 13
In 1891, poet Barton Rees Pogue was born. He grew up in Greenfield, and his family later moved to Indianapolis. He was a Methodist minister and a professor at Taylor University. He had a radio show on Cincinnati station WLW.
In 1982, Sugar Creek Township Volunteer Fire Department moved from a former schoolhouse into its new Station No. 2 at 3337 W. U.S. 40 in Philadelphia. In March 2018, the department moved from that station to a new one on Gem Road south of U.S. 40.
Feb. 14
In 1977, Southern Hancock School Board considered buying citizens band radios, or CBs, for its buses. Superintendent Gene Pruitt told board members recent harsh weather had created some situations in which drivers needed means to communicate from their buses. The board tabled the issue. “I hate to see the buses isolated,” said one board member, “but I really think CBs are kind of toys.”
