May 8
In 1876, the City of Greenfield was incorporated.
In 1942, Indiana received federal go-ahead on building six miles of dual-lane pavement between Greenfield and Cleveland over the route of old U.S. 40.
In 1986, Captain Malcolm Grass was shot and killed in the line of duty. Marvin D. Castor was convicted and imprisoned in the slaying; in 2015, he was found dead in his cell.
May 9
In 1917, enumeration of Hancock County schools showed 4,399 students, a loss of 61 students from the year before.
In 1957, neighbors of a Blue River Township woman showed up to help after the sudden death of her brother, who operated the farm on which they both lived. Sixteen neighbors brought 14 tractors and spent several hours plowing 50 acres, with plans to return and plant soybeans.
May 10
In 2007, Republican mayoral candidate Richard Pasco filed a petition requesting a recount of ballots from the May 8 primary election, after losing to Brad DeReamer by nine votes. DeReamer’s victory stood and he was elected mayor of Greenfield that November, but Pasco would defeat DeReamer in the 2011 primary and later became mayor.
May 11
In 1938, electric lines were energized for some of Hancock County’s rural residents. “A little more than seven miles of line became hot,” the local construction supervisor wrote to the Rural Electrification Administration’s chief administrator in Washington, D.C. “… Looking forward to the cheerfulness, the convenience, the freedom and the economies which electricity will bring to us, we join our voices in heartfelt thanks.”
In 1910, Wabash College president Dr. George L. McIntosh addressed Greenfield High School graduates in commencement exercises at Bradley Methodist Episcopal Church.
May 12
In 1886, a cyclone hit Wilkinson, killing one person.
In 1917, the Hancock County chapter of the American Red Cross was formed.
May 13
In 1972, the Charlottesville PTO announced plans to organize a kindergarten at the school.
May 14
In 1997, house movers hoisted the Jane Ross Reeves Octagon House from a field west of Wilkinson and began the ride to downtown Shirley, close to the town’s Depot Museum and the former office of late longtime doctor Ralph Wilson.
