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By 1832 the towns of Napoleon and Brookville had grown into two of the more
important towns in the southeastern part of the state, and it was desired
that a road be built between them. So the Napoleon/Brookville Road was
surveyed and carved out of the wilderness.
The road was authorized by an act of the Indiana State Legislature on
February 2, 1832. Moses Corey of Laughery Township and James Hornback of
Franklin County were appointed commissioners. They were to meet at Napoleon
in May of 1832 on the third Monday to survey the road. In 1932 the road
was still visible, following Maplewood Avenue and on out past
Tekulve Farms towards St. Marys.
In 1836 Teunis Amack of Peppertown bought 120 acres of land in Ripley
County along the Napoleon/Brookville Road. He built a log house, some
buildings, and dug a well. The well was to be instrumental in the founding
of the town of Batesville. His house stood just east of flour mill and it was
still standing in 1954.
By the late 1840’s the stage was set and all the elements were in place.
The new United States had acquired the Northwest Territory from the British
and had driven the American Indians from the land. The state of Indiana had
been established from a portion of this vast territory. The
Napoleon/Brookville road connected its namesake towns. Teunis Amack had
relocated out of Peppertown, built a farm by the road and had dug his well.
And a fine one it was, lined with logs and supplying plentiful water. Steam
engines had been developed and put to use powering locomotives on the new
rail lines which were springing up all over the nation. Indianapolis and
Cincinnati were thriving young cities, and the need for a rail line between
them was apparent.
Roads at the time between Indianapolis and the Ohio River were only mud
trails. A journey with a team of oxen or horses pulling a wagon with one to
two tons of freight required fourteen to sixteen days to complete a round
trip.
The Madison and Indianapolis Railroad at this time was the major line
between the southern part of the state and the state capitol. Goods arrived
at Madison by riverboat and were taken by rail to Indianapolis.
The men that ran the Madison and Indianapolis railroad were opposed to a
direct line between Indianapolis and Cincinnati and did what they could to
impede the proposed line. The M & I featured the steepest grade of rail line
in the United States as it climbed laboriously out of the deep gorge formed
by the Ohio River. One of the trails in Clifty Falls State Park follows a
portion of the old rail line, and a tunnel used by the train can be hiked
through with the aid of a flashlight. The locomotive specially developed for
this rail line is on display at the Children’s Museum in Indianapolis.
The aforementioned short line in Shelbyville in 1837 was supposed to be the
forerunner of a line which would run from Indianapolis to Cincinnati, but
financial problems caused plans to collapse before it could be built.
After many starts and stops over the ensuing decades, progress was finally
made on the building of a line when the Rushville And Lawrenceburg Railroad
officially changed its name on April 1, 1850 to the Lawrenceburg and Upper
Mississippi Railroad. This entity was now able to raise money and buy land
for a rail line from Lawrenceburg to Indianapolis. But the struggle wasn’t
over yet. Cincinnati business men were cool to the project, and much needed
capital was hard to raise. Finally the president of the rail line, George H.
Dunn wrote a letter to Nicholas Longworth, a leading businessman in
Cincinnati, and convinced him of the need for the line. Finally Cincinnati
business became interested in the project and funds were directed towards
building the rail line.
Rail stations on these early lines were needed about every four or five
miles. The first locomotives needed frequent stops to replenish both the
cordwood which was used for fuel, and water for the boilers. This also
provided better service for freight and passengers.
Railroad station sites were selected at Morris, Huntersville, and New Point.
Harvey Bates, in charge of railroad construction from Morris to New Point,
rejected Huntersville as a station site because of the steep gradient just
west of town. The early locomotives had a hard time starting up again if
they were stopped on a hill.
Teunis Amack sold his holdings to Callahan Trust Company in 1852. John
Callahan was the trustee of this company. A part of this farm was laid out
in 45 lots, which comprise the original town. Bounded by Boehringer Street
(originally North Street), Eastern Avenue (East Street), South Street, and
on the west by the Quarter Section Line. The town was laid out parallel with
the rail line. Because of this most streets run diagonal to a north/south line. The
portions of the tract which were not platted were sold to John Hartman and
Henry C. Albers. Joshua Bates, engineer and surveyor for the Callahan Trust
Co. bought the first lot - #1. He built a house on the corner facing Depot
Street and the railroad. The original rail line ran along present East Pearl
Street. Portions of the line are still visible, especially along East Pearl
Street in front of Romwebers Factory and the Ritter Plant. Batesville's
first industries were located on this rail line.
The town was created at the point where the Napoleon/ Brookville road
crossed the new rail line. It was here that Teunis Amack built a cabin and
dug a well. And the railroad officials needed the well! And so, all the
pieces come together - the road, the well, and the train!
Rail service was completed in November, 1853. The first train ran through
all the way to Indianapolis on November 1, 1853. The fare was three dollars,
and the trip took six hours with speeds between 10 and 15 miles per hour.
The railroad was called the Lawrenceburg and Upper Mississippi Railroad. By
December 1 the name had been changed to the Indianapolis and Cincinnati
Railroad.
There is some confusion as to the origin of the name "Batesville". The name
could have been drawn from the name of the construction chief, Harvey Bates.
Or the town could owe its name to the surveyor and head engineer Joshua
Bates. Popular opinion has always favored Joshua Bates, as he did buy the
first lot and lived here for a time. No one really knows for sure, though.
The railroad was immensely important to the town. All of Batesville’s early
industries located alongside it. And the immigrants who came to Batesville
rode its rails into the growing town. The author’s ancestors, Herman and
Elisa Wonning with their infant son August Henry, traveled into the town in
December, 1853, shortly after the train commenced operations. There were
many many more to follow them into the new and thriving town in the following
years.
The town drew most of its first citizens from Germany. For a more thorough discussion of the Germans coming to this
country there are two websites which are excellent sources of information:
Germans To America
A History of Immigration to the Batesville Vicinity.
Return now to the index page of this section. The history of the town is
laid out in ten year increments from 1850 - 2000.
Acknowledgements
http://www.answers.com/
Ripley County Indiana History
Builders Of A City - A History Of The City Of Batesville by Author
Minnie Wycoff
Souvenir Book of Batesville's Centennial Celebration 1952
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