Delaware County, Indiana - Chapter 17: Muncie, the County Seat, 1924 (part 2 of 2)

The present (1928) city administration is assisted by the following appointive officials: Controller, Calvin Faris; engineer, John Watson; attorney, Arthur D. McKinley; health officer, Dr. U. G. Poland; chief of police, Van Benbow; chief of fire department, Archie McCabe; superintendent of parks, John Atwood; superintendent Beech Grove cemetery, Jesse G. White; street commissioner, Earl Randolph; board of public safety, J. Lloyd Kimbrough, Will F. White, E. W. Barrett; board of public works, Bert F. Bradbury, J. R. Marsh, Charles Bowden; city planning commission, Edmond C. Ball, Ray W. Clark, Frank B. Harrold (secretary), George S. Challis, Bert F. Bradbury, John Watson, J. Cooper Props, Frank W. Budd and Charles O. Schuster; park board, Charles Prutzman, Harry Wysor, John M. Stetter, William P. Gilmore and Robert Bradbury; Beech Grove cemetery board,

P. P. Bush, W. B. Hitchcock, Edward Tuhey, A. H. Kruse, N. U. Ringo; library board, Benjamin F. Moore, W. W. Brown, Merritt Heath, Gertrude Kilgore, Grace Maring, Leonard A. Paris, V. W. Jones, Walter Shirey and F. F. Kerwood; city board of health, Dr. U. G. Poland, Blanche Reed, Nina Sample; sinking fund commissioners, Karl A. Oesterle, Calvin Faris and A. H. Kruse. The present city council, in the order of the wards they represent (First to Ninth) is as follows: Roy Friedley, William Peck, Robert D. Barnes, H. S. DeVoe, John R. Hines, Leo Fell, William H. Hohn, Luke Plymale, G. A. Dawson; at large, Fred Frohmuth, Frank Barclay, Frank Budd and Edward Elliott. J. Ira Coons is captain of police and bailiff of the city court and Fred W. Puckett is chief of detectives. There are five fire engine houses, all equipped in up-to-date fashion, as follows: No. 1, corner of Madison and Jackson streets; 2, Willard and Ebright; 3, Willard and Council; 4, Twelfth and Madison; 5, University and Martin (Normal City).

The lot of the present day city fireman is quite a different one from that of the similar agent of public safety fifty years ago, as witness the following little news item from the Muncie News of May 30, 1877: "In hitching up the city horse to the hose cart last Saturday night c. h. got into a tantrum, kicked the shafts of the cart to pieces, knocked down the partition in the engine house, and otherwise demolished things. The c. h. was finally taken to his stall and the boys pulled the hose down to the fire by hand. That won't do. There was either mismanagement or the horse is thoroughly vicious."

The old city hall building at the northwest corner of Jackson and Jefferson streets, erected in the fall of 1873, is an interesting relic of the period it represents but long ago outlived its usefulness, and city offices for years have occupied rented quarters, at present in the Wysor building. The city owns the quarter square at the point occupied by the old city hall and plans now are in hand for the erection presently of a modern city hall building. The old building still houses the police station and the police court. The first plan of this old building proved undersized by about half and in 1875 an addition was erected which just about doubled its capacity. The annual report of the mayor (William F. Jones) in the spring of 1878 gave the value of this building, and fixtures, as $13,564.81 ; value of fire department, $15,189.53; street lights, $322 ; cemetery, $3,600; public library,

Twin Bridges At Baton Harris Street, Looking East, Eaton

$3,750; school property, $36,700, a total of around $73,000. "In this connection," said the mayor's report, "it is proper to remark that no account is taken of the streets and alleys, but it may be some gratification to many that we make an approximate estimate of the same. In the year 1877 we expended for that purpose, for labor and material, excluding graveling, $3,952.85, which is known to be below an average, and we estimate the average annual cost to be, say, $4,500. For thirteen years we have a total of $58,500, which is probably below the amount actually expended."

This report set out the city's liabilities at that time to be $6,943, of which amount $2,300 was owing for cemetery grounds, and concluded that "our financial condition, while perhaps not fully meeting the expectations of all, must be admitted to be in a fair and favorable situation." The concluding item on this report was: "On tax duplicate, uncollected, $10,560.17 ;"' quite a bit more than the total of the city's liabilities. The city treasurer's report as of the fiscal year ending in May, 1880, showed total collections amounting to $37,169.87, and total disbursements, $28,134.86; amount on hand, $9,035.01. This was the year in which Muncie began to show signs of pushing along in several new directions, really the date of its entrance on the new era of development which a few years later found it in a position to take advantage of the gas '"'boom" which gave a new impulse to all forms of activity hereabout, and which gradually brought about the present "Greater"? Muncie.

The growth and development of Muncie as a municipality since those days is revealed in the figures carried in the budget approved by the city council in September, 1923, on a general estimate of expenditures for the ensuing year of $325,090, the levy being based on net taxable property aggregating $57,984.810 and 6,528 taxable polls. The chief items in this budget follow: Expenses of mayor's office, $3,200; controller, $3,500; clerk, $3,300; treasurer, $3,200; city judge, $2,300; general, $15,450; law department, $3,300; board of public works, $6,200; streets and alleys, $44,100; sewers, $3,000; city engineer, $11,400; rent, $1,600; ash and garbage disposal, $15,000; miscellaneous, $74,675; commissioners of public safety, $1,300; police department, $54,400; fire department, $77,400; health commissioners, $1,900; prevention and suppression of disease, $6,200; parks, $28,- 400. There were seventy-nine items entering into this budget and the total amount sought to be collected under the 1923 levy was $438,390. The levy on polls was 50 cents and the total levy on property was .798, distributed as follows: General fund, .58; sinking fund, .10; park fund, .07; firemen's pension fund, .02; policemen's pension fund, .02; city plan commission fund, .008, to which would be added the city library, city schools, county and state tax rates.

Muncie is favored in its admirable parks and drives, particularly beautiful McCulloch park and Heekin park. The park-like effect obtained on Minnetrista drive, similar effects on the normal school grounds, at the Country Club grounds and in connection with Beech Grove cemetery and several notable residence grounds here and there in the city bespeak more glowingly than could any verbal description the esthetic impulses of the people. It was in May, 1901, that George F. McCulloch, former county clerk and then actively engaged in pushing his traction railway interests, notified the Muncie city council by letter that he would turn over to the city the tract of woodland just north of the river, then consisting of about eighty-three acres, for park purposes, and that he would give the sum of $2,500 for initial maintenance purposes, provided the people of the city would contribute an equal amount. This offer was accepted by the council on May 6 of that year and the lands were conveyed to the city, which proceeded to develop the same for park purposes, under the direction of a park commission consisting of E. B. Ball, J. R. Marsh and F. D. Haimbaugh. In 1905 the city bought a tract of land adjoining the McCulloch donation, extending the park lands to about ninetyfive acres, and later Mr. McCulloch made an additional donation, the park now covering 117 acres, improved in admirable fashion and providing for the people of the city one of the most beautiful bits of recreation ground in eastern Indiana.

One of the seasonably attractive features of this park is the really notable peony beds maintained in the park by Post R of the Travelers Protective Association and where in midsummer bloom no fewer than 100 varieties of these showy perennials, creating a mass of varicolored bloom that attracts peony lovers from far and near. It may be said that these peony beds were the special "'pets" of the late Frank D. Haimbaugh, veteran newspaper man and postmaster, long a leader in the work of the Travelers Protective Association and one of the ''fathers'"' of McCulloch park. Wherever T. P. A. men gathered Mr. Haimbaugh was known as "the peony man," for it had been his custom for years to present to the national conventions of this organization, on behalf of the Muncie post, a glowing mass of the celebrated McCulloch park peonies, for decorative uses in the convention hall, and thus among traveling men the fame of Muncie peonies has become nation wide.

When in the spring of 1911 Mr. McCulloch presented to the city an addition to the park the city council went on record by formal resolution to the effect "that said conveyance from George F. McCulloch is most thankfully accepted in the spirit in which it was executed, and that this council recognizes and fully appreciates the zealous public spirit that has always characterized him and which has so frequently actuated him in his conduct toward the city of Muncie; all of which this council desires to hold before the eyes of other citizens as worthy of their emulation."

George Foulke McCulloch was born at Lancaster, Ohio, in September, 1855, and was thus less than one year old when his parents, Dr. James and Caroline (Foulke) McCulloch, moved to Muncie in April, 1856. Here he grew to manhood and spent the greater part of the remainder of his life, ever active in all proper movements having to do with the promotion of the social, civic and industrial development of the city and of the community in general. On the base of the heroic bronze statue of the late George F. McCulloch in McCulloch park is a tablet reading as follows: "By the people of Delaware county, to perpetuate the memory of George Foulke Mc- Culloch, 1855-1915. True as a man, devoted as a friend, public spirited and self-sacrificing as a citizen."

Mr. McCulloch died at his home in Summit, N. J., March 27, 1915, and his body was brought to Muncie for burial. The Press said, editorially: "The thousands of Muncie people who did not personally know Mr. McCulloch at least know and appreciate his services to the city and state. The seeds of his planting have grown to maturity and for years to come the harvest will be gathered with grateful thoughts of the sower." Nathaniel F. Ethell's reminiscences (1913) refer to McCulloch as "the best penman and one of the most efficient county clerks that ever held the office, unexcelled as a political manager, the stanchest of friends, a clear-headed business man, a Warwick in partisan politics, a well-read lawyer, thoroughly well versed in the technicalities of the practice; pure in private life, a scrupulous payer of debts, political, social, financial - a human live wire."

In the issue of his Free Press for April 11, 1861, J. F. Duckwall, in an article under the head of "Improvements," concludes that "all we want is a move for good business houses - something in the style of the age, that would give our town the appearance of life. Can't we raise the spunk of some of our capitalists? Old fellows, doff your hunkerisms and march to the music of the age. Tear down your old shanties and put up some buildings that will be a credit to the town and an honor to your names. Permit not your graves to close over you with those ancient relics representing your memories." And thus each generation spurns the accomplishments of the former. Muncie had been platted but thirty-four years before this complaint was penned, and already its buildings were "ancient relics," fit only to be torn down.

Elsewhere, in the narrative relating to the court house, a quotation from a local review written in 1880 is cited as pointing out at that time that the old court house "illy comports with the magnificent architecture of the present day everywhere manifest in the edifices of the city."' Each generation, of course, has its own notion of what constitutes "magnificence." Muncie was a well built town at that time, as compared with many other Indiana county seat towns, but there is little evidence remaining that there was much of the "magnificent" in the architecture that during the '70s had begun to replace in the business section the old frame buildings of the Civil war and earlier periods. A comparison of dates may serve in a fashion to visualize the changes that have taken place in the "down town" section during the past forty years and more; this, of course, without any reference to the utter changes brought about by the development of the factory districts. It will be well to recall that in 1880 Muncie had a population of 5,208. In 1920, forty years later, the census enumeration gave it a population of 36,524, an increase for the preceding decennial period of 12,519, or 52.2 per cent. In 1910 the increase over 1900 was but 3,063. It thus is apparent that the city attained its highest percentage of development during the second decade of the present century. And with this naturally came its architectural development.

A casual survey of the more conspicuous of the commercial buildings in the down town section will disclose very few that were erected as early as the '70s, these including the old Masonic building on High street, the Odd Fellow building on Walnut street, the Patterson block at the southeast corner of Walnut and Main and the Kirby hotel, corner of Main and Jefferson, erected in 1871, but much later given a modern front and an additional story. During the '80s there was little conspicuous. building with the exception of the James Boyce block on Main street, erected in 1880, until the erection of the court house in 1885 gave a stimulus to other reconstruction work. In the next year (1886) Charles F. Willard erected his stone building, occupied as a bank, at the southeast corner of Walnut and Main, across the street from the courthouse, utilizing the services of the contractor who had erected the court house and employing in addition the expert service of a sculptural architect who gave to that picturesque building its interesting embellishments of artistic stone carving, including in the frontal niche the heroic statue of Mr. Willard's father, the senior Charles F. Willard, one of Muncie's most influential pioneer merchants. In the next year (1887) the Anthony block, a conspicuous building of red sandstone at the northwest corner of Walnut and Jackson streets, was erected. Muncie was beginning to put on "city airs." That was the year the gas "boom" came on.

Not as an all-inclusive list, by any means, but simply for purposes of future comparison, the following list of some of the later buildings in the down town section, with dates of erection, is given: 1892, Wysor Grand Opera House and Heath-Iron building; 1894, Goddard; 1896, Shirk; 1898, Parsons; 1901, Commercial Club, Johnson, Cohen; 1902, Public Library ; 1903, McNaughton; 1904, Knights of Pythias; 1905, the Wysor building, the Masonic temple and the Goddard building; 1906, Canopic; 1907, Federal building and postoffice; 1908, Mitchell building ; 1910, Delaware hotel; 1913, Young Men's Christian Association, Merchants National Bank building; 1916, Surber building; 1919, C. R. Heath building and Roberts building; 1920, Roberts hotel; 1921, club house of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; 1923, New Masonic temple (under construction). In the matter of church buildings also the conspicuous development has taken place since the late '80s. Among the down town churches, for example, it is noted that the High Street Methodist Episcopal church was erected in 1888, the First Baptist church in 1889, the First Presbyterian church in 1892, the Jackson Street Christian church in 1894, the Catholic church in 1895, the Universalist church in 1899, and the Friends Memorial church in 1907. The old residence section of the city has been practically rebuilt since the comment of 1880 above noted. Muncie, in common with most of the other Indiana manufacturing towns, is essentially a new city.

The Streets Of The City

The streets of Muncie are numbered east and west from Walnut street and north and south from Main street, this making the southeast corner of the public square the city's pivotal point. Street nomenclature always is an interesting study, and as a matter of future reference the following list of streets is given here: Adams, Ash, Batavia, Beacon, Bidwell, Birch, Blaine, Boyce, Boyceton, Centennial, Center, Charles, Cherry, Clerk, Clark, Cleveland, Columbia, Council, Cromer, Daly, Dover, Dudley, Ebright, Eby, Elliott, Elm, Emerson, Franklin, Gharky, Gilbert, Gilman, Grant, Hackley, High, Highland, Howard, Hoyt, Ivy, Jackson, Jefferson, Jersey, Kilgore, Kinney, Kirby, Koontz, Liberty, Lincoln, Luick, Lynn, McCulloch, Macedonia, Madison, Main, Maple, Market, May, Meeker, Memorial Drive, Meridian, Minnetresta (boulevard), Mock, Monroe, Mound, 'Mulberry, Myrtle, Neely, News Court, North, North View, Oakland, Ohio, Ohmer, Orchard, Penn, Pennsylvania, Perkins, Pershing Drive, Pierce, Plum, Port, Powers, Proud, Race, Ribble, Riverside, Rochester, Rose, St. Joseph, Sampson, Seymour, Short, Shipley, Streeter, Tennessee, Utica, Vermont, Victor, Vine, Wall, Walling, Walnut, Wood, Washington, Water, West, Wheeling, Whiteley, Willard, Wilson, Windsor, Wolf and Wysor. In Riverside the streets are Alameda, Ashland, Beechwood, Greenwood, Indiana, King, Light, Linden, Locust, Meeks, Pauline, Queen, Reserve and University, while in Normal City those besides the continuing streets that run through from the city proper are Briton, Calvert, Celia, Cole, College, Dill, Dix, Ethel, Godman, Hutchinson, McKinley, Manning, Martin, Nichols, Ravell, Reeves, Sutton, Tolly, Tillotson and Van Vliet. The numbered streets in the city run from First to Twenty-fourth. The campaign of street paving inaugurated in the city years ago has been consistently maintained and all the chief streets of the city are in excellent condition. The first asphalt paving was in the summer of 1894, when the streets in the central business district thus were paved.

The Muncie Postoffice

Reference has been made elsewhere to the apparent difficulties the founders of the settlement labored under in definitely fixing the spelling of the place name of the new county town here in Delaware county. While by common consent it presently came to be known as Muncietown, it is interesting to know that the first postoffice was established as Munseytown. In the collections of the late Frank D. Haimbaugh, late postmaster at Muncie, there are four time-stained bonds of early postmasters of old Muncietown, these including the bond of William VanMatre, first postmaster of the county town as well as first clerk of the court; the bond of Dr. Dickinson Burt, the second postmaster; the bond of Samuel W. Harlan, the fourth postmaster, and the bond of Amariah Cubberly, the fifth postmaster. The commission of Charles F. Willard, the third postmaster, issued on May 6, 1835, is framed and hanging on the wall of the postmaster's office, a treasured relic of the old days of the Muncie postoffice.

It is apparent that when the county seat was established at the trading post here at the bend of the river such settlers as had located in this vicinity had been getting their mail at Winchester or Richmond and a postoffice was not immediately established at the new county town. Indeed, it was not until in the spring of the next year, April 10, 1828, that a commission was issued to the clerk of the court, William VanMatre, to act as postmaster. The VanMatre bond, above mentioned, was not filled out until the 29th of April following. This bond, which is in the sum of $300, is signed by VanMatre and his two bondsmen, David Baggs, the village blacksmith, and John E. Hodge, the local justice of the peace, in the presence of Peter Nolin, the county's first sheriff. The official certificate that the above bondsmen "are good and sufficient securities, severally, to the amount of the penalty above annexed," is signed by one of the bondsmen, Hodge, in his official capacity of justice of the peace. As stated above, the name of the postoffice here in this formal bond is made "Munseytown."

The bond of the second postmaster, Dickinson Burt, also carries, Munseytown as the name of the postoffice. Doctor Burt was commissioned postmaster on August 29, 1829, but his bond was not made out until September 21, following. This bond also was for the sum of $300, "for the payment whereof well and truly to be made" Joseph Bennett and Goldsmith C. Gilbert bound themselves, Squire Hodge in this case also certifying that they were good for the amount of the bond. The scrawl in the blank assigned to the witness to these signatures seems to be that of James Patterson. Charles F. Willard succeeded Doctor Burt as postmaster in the spring of 1835 and then on April 6, 1837, Samuel W. Harlan, who had succeeded VanMatre as county clerk, was commissioned postmaster, his bond being made out on the following 28th. In this bond the name of the postoffice is made Muncietown. This bond also is for the sum of $300 and is signed by David Gharky and Minis Turner, two of the best known men in the settlement at that time; witnessed by John White and Job Swain and certified by John Marshall, justice of the peace. An interesting feature of this bond is the unmistakable spelling of Mr. Turner's given name in his signature as "Minis," a variation from the form "Minus" so familiar to all older residents hereabout that creates a suspicion that he then was perhaps not quite fixed in his mind as to how to spell the classical "Minos," which was probably the name given him. That he later adopted the spelling ''Minus" of course is clear, for it is thus that his name ever will be recalled in this community, though curiosity sometimes has been expressed concerning the source of the name. Mr. Turner was just past his majority when he came here in 1829. He died in March, 1886.

Harlan remained postmaster a little less than two months and was succeeded by Amariah Cubberly, whose commission was dated June 2, 1837, but whose bond was not filed until the following July. This bond, also for $300, was signed by the postmaster simply A. Cubberly, whose fellow bondsmen were the millers, John Jack and James L. Russey; was witnessed by G. W. Garst and William C. Willard, both of whom were local physicians, and certified by John Marshall, justice of the peace. Cubberly held the office but a few months, being succeeded on October 20, 18387, by Edward S. Keasbey, the hatter, who was continued in office for nearly ten years and was thus postmaster at the time the name of the postoffice was changed from Muncietown to Muncie in 1845. The next postmaster was John Ethell, who had come here from Virginia in 1839 and who was the father of Nathaniel F. Ethell, who later became one of the leading figures in the newspaper field here. Mr. Ethell's commission was dated April 28, 1847, but it appears that he held the office less than a month, for on May 14, 1847, John Brady, a former associate judge and later the first mayor of the town, was commissioned postmaster. Judge Brady held the office for more than thirteen years, being succeeded on March 30, 1861, by Robert Richey, who continued as postmaster during almost the whole period of the Civil war, being succeeded on January 12, 1865, by Samuel J. Watson, who held the office something more than a year, being succeded on August 10, 1866, by Henry C. Marsh. For more than eight years Mr. Marsh held the postoffice, his successor being John C. Eiler, who was commissioned on February 3, 1875. Mr. Hiler also held the office for about eight years and on February 7, 1883, was succeeded by Robert I. ('Corporal Bob") Patterson, who continued in office a bit more than four years. His successor was John E. Banta, appointed on February 14, 1887, who on February 9, 1891, was succeeded by Frank Ellis and he in turn by Edward Tuhey, January 15, 1895; David Cammack, March 3, 1899, and David A. Lambert, March 10, 1903. Lambert served for four years and on March 13, 1907, was succeeded by Carl Robe White, present second assistant secretary of the Department of Labor, Washington, who on February 10, 1912, was succeeded by Robert L. Williamson, a Muncie newspaper man now engaged in the brokerage business at Indianapolis, who four years later was succeeded by the late Frank D. Haimbaugh, a veteran newspaper man, whose commission was dated March 1, 1916. Mr. Haimbaugh's commission was renewed at the end of four years to run to June 5, 1924, and he thus was in the eighth year of his service as postmaster at Muncie at the time of his sudden death on the evening of January 2, 1924. William H. Williams, chairman of the Delaware county Republican central committee and superintendent of the county infirmary, was appointed acting postmaster in succession to Mr. Haimbaugh.

Development Of Postoffice Business

Until the government finally bought the tract at the southwest corner of High and Charles street and erected thereon an adequate postoffice building the Muncie postoffice had been accommodated in rented quarters at one place and another about town, generally dependent upon the whim or the convenience of the postmaster for the time, and prior to its removal into the present federal building in 1907 had been quartered in a room at 415 South Walnut street. It is probable that William VanMatre, the first postmaster, carried on the distribution of the local mail in the room in which the affairs of the county clerk's office were carried on. An older narrative says that Doctor Burt, the second postmaster, had the postoffice in his residence on North Mulberry street. When Charles F. Willard, the pioneer merchant, became postmaster, he moved the postoffice into his store room, which was the common practice in former days, the job of postmaster being chiefly desirable as a means of attracting trade to the store in which the mail was distributed.

When Amariah Cubberly was made postmaster he was running a tavern on Main street and the postoffice was carried on in this place. When Keasbey, the hatter, was made postmaster, he naturally enough moved the postoffice into his hat store, which then was situated at the northwest corner of Main and Mulberry streets, and later moved into a building at the southeast corner of Main and Jefferson streets, where he also had his hat factory. It was while Keasbey was postmaster, according to the reminiscences of Thomas 8S. Neely, that "a number of us clubbed together and had boxes made and put into the office at our own expense; these were the first boxes put into the office, the postmaster, previous to this, having had very rude arrangements for handling the mails." When Judge Brady was made postmaster he moved the office into his harness shop at the northeast corner of Walnut and Washington streets, where he had charge of the mails for fourteen years. It was on this same corner twenty-five years later, in 1872, that Gen. Tom Brady, son of the Judge and then owner of the Times, erected a building for his newspaper plant and Henry C. Marsh, then postmaster, moved the postoffice into the corner room, where it was continued for many years, or until in February, 1888, when it was moved to the alley room in the Anthony block, facing Jackson street, where it remained until in February, 1896, when during the incumbency of Edward Tuhey, postmaster, it was moved into a new building at 415 South Walnut street, where modern equipment was installed.

In 1885 the receipts of the Muncie postoffice were about $6,500. In 1892, when the gas "boom" was getting a good start, the receipts had increased to near $20,000. In the late '90s the establishment of the rural mail delivery service helped to increase the receipts of the office. It was on October 28, 1897, that the Muncie News had an editorial setting out that "the postoffice department has been experimenting in the matter of free delivery of mails in rural districts and results are so favorable that it does seem possible for the system to be adopted at no distant day." On the following November 4 the News carried a news item to the effect that "rural free delivery service will go into effect next Monday." Perry S. Heath, a former Muncie newspaper man, then was the first assistant postmaster general and had much to do with the creation of the system of rural mail delivery now so general over the country. It was not unnatural that he should desire to have the benefits of this system carried into his old home county and the first four routes put in operation here (to Daleville, Selma, Albany and Wheeling) were a part of the experimental service inaugurated by him. On July 24, 1898, the News carried a story to the effect that rural free delivery routes were being extended and placed on a permanent basis and that the former "star" route from Muncie to Middletown had been changed to a rural route. On August 1, 1899, the News chronicled the fact that the experimental rural service had become permanent, the Muncie-Middletown route,

Samuel B. Scott carrier, covering a distance of twenty-eight miles. This was the beginning of a service that now of course covers the county.

An item in the News as of April, 1902, stated that the receipts of the Muncie postoffice for the year ending March 31 were $50,478.58. This was beginning to look like business. In the next month (May, 1902) the Congress made an appropriation of $80,000 for a postoffice building at Muncie. In the following November the site at High and Charles streets was selected for the federal building, the four lots being taken over at a cost of $20,000, of which the sum of $5,000 was to be subscribed by citizens. The report as of April 1, 1904, showed the receipts of the Muncie postoffice for the year just ended to have been $62,780.49. In the next year the receipts had increased to $71,874.71, and by the time the new postoffice building was occupied in the spring of 1907 had risen to right around $75,000, with additional receipts in the money order department aggregating about $60,000. The current report (1923) reveals receipts in the postal fund aggregating $220,000; money order department, $1,000,000.

January 1, 1889, was another marker in the growth and development of the Muncie postoffice. On this date free carrier service was inaugurated the patrons of the office. Three carriers were inducted into the service of carrying the mail to citizens of the growing town. Lafayette McCormick, Daniel Kelly and Mark Bratton had the distinction of being the first mail carriers for the city. Since that day wonderful growth has been witnessed in the business of the office. The year 1923 saw twenty-five carriers in the service, these with the ten rural carriers serving in excess of 20,000 patrons. There is a Muncie postoffice in Illinois and one in Kansas. Kentucky, Nevada and Pennsylvania each have a Muncy.