The Small Town of Fairland
When and How was Fairland established?
The Early Years
Not many people have heard of our small town called Fairland. When your out and about and someone asks you where you are from and you respond, Fairland, there is hardly a single person out there who could tell you where that is. But Fairland has become more than just a town with a little market, it is a piece of history.
Before Fairland had all of the roads and houses, it was basically a big swamp. There were several different types of trees surrounding the town. The trees were so intertwined that the sun could not penetrate through. For more than half of the year the ground was submerged in water except for some high places. “ Fallen leaves, trunks of prostrate trees half submerged in the oozy soil prevented escape of surface water and made it almost untraversable for man or beast(Gray, 3). It was a heroic task to chop down all of these giant trees surrounding the town, but it was done. Fences were put up and the water was drained and ditches were done, it was one of the toughest hardships that was faced, along with the prowling wolves and the Indians. Indians were not a problem for long, when the Indians learned that settlers were coming they fled to the west. The man that lead the way was Jacob Whetzel. Jacob Whetzel was a former Revolutionary War soldier,scout, Indian fighter and spy(Gray 3). Whetzel and his men traveled through many well known cities that today people live in. They traveled through Anderson, Rushville, Shelbyville, and even Greenwood. Along the way men would put marks on trees so that if a man got lost, even in the night, he could find his way through all of the debris. Of course they had to make stops and build camps when the night fall came, they would gather bunches of leaves for their bed, and one night just five miles east of Sugar Creek Jacbb Whetzel shared a bottle of peach brandy with his men. The bottle of brandy was the inspiration for the Brandywine Creek today. Brandywine Township came from the subdivision of the townships, and they named the one closest to Brandywine Creek, Brandywine Township. News got out about the new virgin land. Soon settlers, and the building of transportation systems wanted to come, build, and trade. Fairland was starting to become the small town it is today.
A man named Allen Fessenbeck conducted a general store that hauled products to Cincinnati where he got his goods. Making that trip in a wagon was tough on the oxen and horses. When the construction of the Indianapolis, Cincinnati and Lafayette Railroad began in 1849 it helped Allen Fessenbeck and his general store and his animals. After Henry Jenkins, a man from Ohio, built a house out of huge yellow poplar trees, him and another man named Isaac Odell pushed for the progress for the town of Fairland. Isaac, and Henry met with the J.M Elliott Company of Shelby County to draw plans of the town. They drew up alleys,lost, and they named the streets, twelve days later the birth certificate of Fairland was entered in the Shelby county records on October 21st, 1852. With Mr. Odell being a citizen, he helped the town become what it is today. He set up a store to serve the builders of the railroads and the farmers. On January 10, 1854 a U S Post Office was awarded Fairland with Mr. Odell as postmaster(Gray 5). Isaac Odell was a popular man that the citizens loved. He was elected Justice of the Peace and became a skilled lawyer. Not only was he popular in Fairland he was popular in the whole Shelby County. He was elected to represent Shelby County in the State Legislature from 1869 to 1871. Isaac Odell died in 1879 in Mitchel Ham's Justice of the Peace court house in Fairland. It is amazing how advanced the town has become since the days the settlers came through.
Now that the town of Fairland was official, it didn't take much time before the town grew. There were soon many churches and houses being built. Before the churches were up and going many families had a form of worship called family prayers. Usually these family prayers were done early in the morning before breakfast and late in the evening before bedtime. The family prayers were generally held by the head of the household, and if a guest were staying then they would have the privilege of holding the prayer and the family would gather around the leader and if you prayed in public and the family didn't pray as if it were their last day their piety was questioned. There were many churches developed in the town of Fairland. There were about six churches, but the first was the Wray Methodist Church, the methodists was the dominant religion. The six churches were, the Wray Methodist Church, Brandywine Methodist Church, Fairland Baptist, Old Union Methodist, Fairland Methodist, and Fairland Christian. An exciting event that happened in 1935 was the Rural Sunday Hour. The Rural Sunday Hour was a weekly radio program that began on Sunday June twenty-third. The Rural Sunday Hour was actually only a half an hour that played over Indianapolis radio stations. Now that the churches were settled the building of the schools began.
Schools were developed basically by the teachers. A teacher would recruit students from around the neighborhood and charge fifty cents to a dollar and seventy-five cents. The early schools were only around a three month term and because of a state law in 1833 a teacher's pay in cash could not be more than sixty dollars for three months. The schools were made of logs. In the winter the building would get very cold and the door to the school was left open for the warm sunshine to shine in. There was also a school law that said that the floor had to be one foot from the ground and eight feet from the floor of the building. There were many school laws, one of which was that the authorized Circuit Court had to appoint examiners to look at the qualifications of the teacher, but many times the teacher was more intelligent than the examiner so not very many teachers were eliminated. “In 1848 a revolution in education began in Indiana. The legislature asked the question, “Do the people of Indiana want to tax themselves for free, state-supported schools? Shelby County said YES. Many other counties voted NO; however, by a slight edge the referendum passed. The year 1852 marked the beginning of the free schools in Indiana” (Gray 9). It is said that in 1850 Brandywine Township had a population of 772. Only 188 of the population attended school and 107 could not read of write. There was around 145 families. The only teacher listed in that time was William Alexander, a twenty-six year old from North Carolina. When the town became incorporated school in 1869 school reports became separate from the township that had its own trustee. The Fairland school term of seventy-four days with two men teachers receiving $2.16 per day. The average daily attendance was sixty-six.(Gray 10). In 1879 the first brick school building in Fairland was complete, but was later moved that year. Graded schools were developed in 1884, and what they called a graduation contest was entered in 1887. Miss Gertrude Clark of Brandywine won the graduation contest in the Opera Hall in Shelbyville. Along with the school development, along came libraries. Each township got their own library filled with useful information. Each family could only check out two volumes at a time, and it could not be kept for more than a month. In 1855 there were 214 books in the schools library, and in 1860 there were 329 books. The libraries were rarely being used because everyone had already read the books and stopped checking books out. It was reported in 1864 that only fifty books were taken out. Schools and libraries were important factors to the foundation of the town of Fairland.
Now that the town of Fairland was official, it didn't take much time before the town grew. There were soon many churches and houses being built. Before the churches were up and going many families had a form of worship called family prayers. Usually these family prayers were done early in the morning before breakfast and late in the evening before bedtime. The family prayers were generally held by the head of the household, and if a guest were staying then they would have the privilege of holding the prayer and the family would gather around the leader and if you prayed in public and the family didn't pray as if it were their last day their piety was questioned. There were many churches developed in the town of Fairland. There were about six churches, but the first was the Wray Methodist Church, the methodists was the dominant religion. The six churches were, the Wray Methodist Church, Brandywine Methodist Church, Fairland Baptist, Old Union Methodist, Fairland Methodist, and Fairland Christian. An exciting event that happened in 1935 was the Rural Sunday Hour. The Rural Sunday Hour was a weekly radio program that began on Sunday June twenty-third. The Rural Sunday Hour was actually only a half an hour that played over Indianapolis radio stations. Now that the churches were settled the building of the schools began.
Schools were developed basically by the teachers. A teacher would recruit students from around the neighborhood and charge fifty cents to a dollar and seventy-five cents. The early schools were only around a three month term and because of a state law in 1833 a teacher's pay in cash could not be more than sixty dollars for three months. The schools were made of logs. In the winter the building would get very cold and the door to the school was left open for the warm sunshine to shine in. There was also a school law that said that the floor had to be one foot from the ground and eight feet from the floor of the building. There were many school laws, one of which was that the authorized Circuit Court had to appoint examiners to look at the qualifications of the teacher, but many times the teacher was more intelligent than the examiner so not very many teachers were eliminated. “In 1848 a revolution in education began in Indiana. The legislature asked the question, “Do the people of Indiana want to tax themselves for free, state-supported schools? Shelby County said YES. Many other counties voted NO; however, by a slight edge the referendum passed. The year 1852 marked the beginning of the free schools in Indiana” (Gray 9). It is said that in 1850 Brandywine Township had a population of 772. Only 188 of the population attended school and 107 could not read of write. There was around 145 families. The only teacher listed in that time was William Alexander, a twenty-six year old from North Carolina. When the town became incorporated school in 1869 school reports became separate from the township that had its own trustee. The Fairland school term of seventy-four days with two men teachers receiving $2.16 per day. The average daily attendance was sixty-six.(Gray 10). In 1879 the first brick school building in Fairland was complete, but was later moved that year. Graded schools were developed in 1884, and what they called a graduation contest was entered in 1887. Miss Gertrude Clark of Brandywine won the graduation contest in the Opera Hall in Shelbyville. Along with the school development, along came libraries. Each township got their own library filled with useful information. Each family could only check out two volumes at a time, and it could not be kept for more than a month. In 1855 there were 214 books in the schools library, and in 1860 there were 329 books. The libraries were rarely being used because everyone had already read the books and stopped checking books out. It was reported in 1864 that only fifty books were taken out. Schools and libraries were important factors to the foundation of the town of Fairland.
When and How was Fairland established?
The Early Years
Not many people have heard of our small town called Fairland. When your out and about and someone asks you where you are from and you respond, Fairland, there is hardly a single person out there who could tell you where that is. But Fairland has become more than just a town with a little market, it is a piece of history.
Before Fairland had all of the roads and houses, it was basically a big swamp. There were several different types of trees surrounding the town. The trees were so intertwined that the sun could not penetrate through. For more than half of the year the ground was submerged in water except for some high places. “ Fallen leaves, trunks of prostrate trees half submerged in the oozy soil prevented escape of surface water and made it almost untraversable for man or beast(Gray, 3). It was a heroic task to chop down all of these giant trees surrounding the town, but it was done. Fences were put up and the water was drained and ditches were done, it was one of the toughest hardships that was faced, along with the prowling wolves and the Indians. Indians were not a problem for long, when the Indians learned that settlers were coming they fled to the west. The man that lead the way was Jacob Whetzel. Jacob Whetzel was a former Revolutionary War soldier,scout, Indian fighter and spy(Gray 3). Whetzel and his men traveled through many well known cities that today people live in. They traveled through Anderson, Rushville, Shelbyville, and even Greenwood. Along the way men would put marks on trees so that if a man got lost, even in the night, he could find his way through all of the debris. Of course they had to make stops and build camps when the night fall came, they would gather bunches of leaves for their bed, and one night just five miles east of Sugar Creek Jacbb Whetzel shared a bottle of peach brandy with his men. The bottle of brandy was the inspiration for the Brandywine Creek today. Brandywine Township came from the subdivision of the townships, and they named the one closest to Brandywine Creek, Brandywine Township. News got out about the new virgin land. Soon settlers, and the building of transportation systems wanted to come, build, and trade. Fairland was starting to become the small town it is today.
A man named Allen Fessenbeck conducted a general store that hauled products to Cincinnati where he got his goods. Making that trip in a wagon was tough on the oxen and horses. When the construction of the Indianapolis, Cincinnati and Lafayette Railroad began in 1849 it helped Allen Fessenbeck and his general store and his animals. After Henry Jenkins, a man from Ohio, built a house out of huge yellow poplar trees, him and another man named Isaac Odell pushed for the progress for the town of Fairland. Isaac, and Henry met with the J.M Elliott Company of Shelby County to draw plans of the town. They drew up alleys,lost, and they named the streets, twelve days later the birth certificate of Fairland was entered in the Shelby county records on October 21st, 1852. With Mr. Odell being a citizen, he helped the town become what it is today. He set up a store to serve the builders of the railroads and the farmers. On January 10, 1854 a U S Post Office was awarded Fairland with Mr. Odell as postmaster(Gray 5). Isaac Odell was a popular man that the citizens loved. He was elected Justice of the Peace and became a skilled lawyer. Not only was he popular in Fairland he was popular in the whole Shelby County. He was elected to represent Shelby County in the State Legislature from 1869 to 1871. Isaac Odell died in 1879 in Mitchel Ham's Justice of the Peace court house in Fairland. It is amazing how advanced the town has become since the days the settlers came through.
Now that the town of Fairland was official, it didn't take much time before the town grew. There were soon many churches and houses being built. Before the churches were up and going many families had a form of worship called family prayers. Usually these family prayers were done early in the morning before breakfast and late in the evening before bedtime. The family prayers were generally held by the head of the household, and if a guest were staying then they would have the privilege of holding the prayer and the family would gather around the leader and if you prayed in public and the family didn't pray as if it were their last day their piety was questioned. There were many churches developed in the town of Fairland. There were about six churches, but the first was the Wray Methodist Church, the methodists was the dominant religion. The six churches were, the Wray Methodist Church, Brandywine Methodist Church, Fairland Baptist, Old Union Methodist, Fairland Methodist, and Fairland Christian. An exciting event that happened in 1935 was the Rural Sunday Hour. The Rural Sunday Hour was a weekly radio program that began on Sunday June twenty-third. The Rural Sunday Hour was actually only a half an hour that played over Indianapolis radio stations. Now that the churches were settled the building of the schools began.
Schools were developed basically by the teachers. A teacher would recruit students from around the neighborhood and charge fifty cents to a dollar and seventy-five cents. The early schools were only around a three month term and because of a state law in 1833 a teacher's pay in cash could not be more than sixty dollars for three months. The schools were made of logs. In the winter the building would get very cold and the door to the school was left open for the warm sunshine to shine in. There was also a school law that said that the floor had to be one foot from the ground and eight feet from the floor of the building. There were many school laws, one of which was that the authorized Circuit Court had to appoint examiners to look at the qualifications of the teacher, but many times the teacher was more intelligent than the examiner so not very many teachers were eliminated. “In 1848 a revolution in education began in Indiana. The legislature asked the question, “Do the people of Indiana want to tax themselves for free, state-supported schools? Shelby County said YES. Many other counties voted NO; however, by a slight edge the referendum passed. The year 1852 marked the beginning of the free schools in Indiana” (Gray 9). It is said that in 1850 Brandywine Township had a population of 772. Only 188 of the population attended school and 107 could not read of write. There was around 145 families. The only teacher listed in that time was William Alexander, a twenty-six year old from North Carolina. When the town became incorporated school in 1869 school reports became separate from the township that had its own trustee. The Fairland school term of seventy-four days with two men teachers receiving $2.16 per day. The average daily attendance was sixty-six.(Gray 10). In 1879 the first brick school building in Fairland was complete, but was later moved that year. Graded schools were developed in 1884, and what they called a graduation contest was entered in 1887. Miss Gertrude Clark of Brandywine won the graduation contest in the Opera Hall in Shelbyville. Along with the school development, along came libraries. Each township got their own library filled with useful information. Each family could only check out two volumes at a time, and it could not be kept for more than a month. In 1855 there were 214 books in the schools library, and in 1860 there were 329 books. The libraries were rarely being used because everyone had already read the books and stopped checking books out. It was reported in 1864 that only fifty books were taken out. Schools and libraries were important factors to the foundation of the town of Fairland.
Now that the town of Fairland was official, it didn't take much time before the town grew. There were soon many churches and houses being built. Before the churches were up and going many families had a form of worship called family prayers. Usually these family prayers were done early in the morning before breakfast and late in the evening before bedtime. The family prayers were generally held by the head of the household, and if a guest were staying then they would have the privilege of holding the prayer and the family would gather around the leader and if you prayed in public and the family didn't pray as if it were their last day their piety was questioned. There were many churches developed in the town of Fairland. There were about six churches, but the first was the Wray Methodist Church, the methodists was the dominant religion. The six churches were, the Wray Methodist Church, Brandywine Methodist Church, Fairland Baptist, Old Union Methodist, Fairland Methodist, and Fairland Christian. An exciting event that happened in 1935 was the Rural Sunday Hour. The Rural Sunday Hour was a weekly radio program that began on Sunday June twenty-third. The Rural Sunday Hour was actually only a half an hour that played over Indianapolis radio stations. Now that the churches were settled the building of the schools began.
Schools were developed basically by the teachers. A teacher would recruit students from around the neighborhood and charge fifty cents to a dollar and seventy-five cents. The early schools were only around a three month term and because of a state law in 1833 a teacher's pay in cash could not be more than sixty dollars for three months. The schools were made of logs. In the winter the building would get very cold and the door to the school was left open for the warm sunshine to shine in. There was also a school law that said that the floor had to be one foot from the ground and eight feet from the floor of the building. There were many school laws, one of which was that the authorized Circuit Court had to appoint examiners to look at the qualifications of the teacher, but many times the teacher was more intelligent than the examiner so not very many teachers were eliminated. “In 1848 a revolution in education began in Indiana. The legislature asked the question, “Do the people of Indiana want to tax themselves for free, state-supported schools? Shelby County said YES. Many other counties voted NO; however, by a slight edge the referendum passed. The year 1852 marked the beginning of the free schools in Indiana” (Gray 9). It is said that in 1850 Brandywine Township had a population of 772. Only 188 of the population attended school and 107 could not read of write. There was around 145 families. The only teacher listed in that time was William Alexander, a twenty-six year old from North Carolina. When the town became incorporated school in 1869 school reports became separate from the township that had its own trustee. The Fairland school term of seventy-four days with two men teachers receiving $2.16 per day. The average daily attendance was sixty-six.(Gray 10). In 1879 the first brick school building in Fairland was complete, but was later moved that year. Graded schools were developed in 1884, and what they called a graduation contest was entered in 1887. Miss Gertrude Clark of Brandywine won the graduation contest in the Opera Hall in Shelbyville. Along with the school development, along came libraries. Each township got their own library filled with useful information. Each family could only check out two volumes at a time, and it could not be kept for more than a month. In 1855 there were 214 books in the schools library, and in 1860 there were 329 books. The libraries were rarely being used because everyone had already read the books and stopped checking books out. It was reported in 1864 that only fifty books were taken out. Schools and libraries were important factors to the foundation of the town of Fairland.
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