The Vidette-Messenger Centennial EditionThe 1936 special edition celebrating Porter County's centennial year . . . .
The following article has been transcribed from the August 18, 1936, issue of The Vidette-Messenger, published in Valparaiso, Indiana. This particular special edition focuses on Porter County's centennial celebration and contains a 94-page compendium of Porter County history up to that time.
Return to the index of articles from The Vidette-Messenger's Porter County Centennial special edition.
Source: The Vidette-Messenger, Valparaiso,
Porter County, Indiana; August 18, 1936; Volume 10, Section 1, Pages 8-9.
"VALPARAISO IS A PROUD CITY", WRITES UNIVERSITY GIRL
Mary Ellen LaRue Prepares Lively Paper On Highlights Of City As Part of
Schooling
By MARY ELLEN LARUE
EDITOR'S NOTE - The following "sketch" of Valparaiso was written
by Miss Mary Ellen LaRue, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph LaRue, of this city.
It was written over a year ago when Miss LaRue was a student at Franklin
College, Franklin, Indiana, as an assignment of her sociology instructors. Miss
LaRue entered Butler university, Indianapolis, last spring, and will graduate a
year hence. She was a member of the Valparaiso high school class of 1932.
Valparaiso is a
proud city. It is proud of its thoroughly American history; of its citizens, its
business and industry; of its simple arboreal beauty; of its educational renown;
in fact, it is proud of being Valparaiso, and to those who know it best it is
perfectly named as the "Vale of Paradise". Although the word is Spanish, it
furnishes no clue to the early history of the town and surrounding territory, as
the name was changed from Portersville about the time of incorporation, at the
suggestion of some Spanish sailors that such a beauty spot was truly a vale of
paradise.
Valparaiso, the county seat of Porter county, is situated in the northeast
corner of Indiana, 44 miles from Chicago, 17 miles from Gary, and 16 miles from
Lake Michigan. It is in the midst of good, fairly flat farming country, lying
just north of the rich Kankakee River valley, which forms the southern boundary
of the county. Porter county is very fortunate in its location at the south end
of Lake Michigan, where all the trunk line railroads must pass east and west.
Three of these pass through Valparaiso, as well as an electric line. The
activity of the large steel industries has a very healthful influence n the
development of the north end of Porter county, and the Indiana Dunes State Park,
which comprises over 2,000 acres of land, is known far and wide for its unusual
beauty.
The history of Valparaiso and of Porter County are naturally very closely linked
together, and that which affected one affected the other for many years, and
still does to a certain extent. The French took possession of the territory in
its first days of civilization, although the English, too, had a fairly firm
hold. The native Indians were inclined to favor the French, but in spite of this
opposition the British took possession of "Pottawattamie Land" in 1760, and
maintained peace until the Spanish invasion 18 years later. The dons did not
remain in control long, however, and after Porter County had again passed into
the hands of the British, finally, in 1769, the territory became part of the
United States.
Porter County was entered by white men probably as soon as any other part of the
state, because of its position. Missionaries, explorers and fur traders came
early to that part of the country by way of the St. Lawrence and Lake Michigan,
where they came in contact with Pottawattamie Indians. However, it was not until
about 1833 that people actually began to settle here. Their purpose in chosing
that particular spot is not told. Perhaps they felt that one day Porter County
would become a great commercial center, or perhaps they merely chose it for the
good farming land. Whatever might have been their intentions, they started a
settlement which grew steadily into a thriving community.
The first real settlers in Porter county, those of '33, had drifted westward
from Ohio and New York. They made friends with the Indians and lived peaceably.
In vivid contrast to many settlers which at that time were having so much
trouble. In '34 and '35 came more settlers, probably induced by the low price of
land. They were composed of Americans from the eastern states. The year of 1835
is recorded as the date of the founding of the town then known as Portersville.
It is interesting to note that a few miles east of the present city was located
the village of Porterville, which vied with Portersville for the county seat,
but lost by a wide margin. Since then it has gone completely out of existence.
Twenty years later, in 1865, Valparaiso was formally incorporated into a city.
Although the community of Valparaiso has grown steadily for many years, it has
never known a decline in population until very recently, when there was only a
slight decrease. Its inhabitants, being almost entirely native Americans, are
more typically American than any other nationality - nativity previously
probably being French, English, German, Scotch and Irish, mostly.
Not many years ago most of the inhabitants of the county were farmers, although
Valparaiso itself early became something of a manufacturing town. During the
last depression some of the factories shut down, or cut down on employees, but
this did not affect the residents as much as one might suppose, since a great
many are commuters to Chicago and the Calumet Industrial district. Valparaiso
has more than once been pointed out as an ideal place for the city-employed man
with a family to live, as it is close enough to commute daily, yet far away from
the noise and dirt of the metropolis.
The census of 1930 gave Valparaiso credit for 8,079 inhabitants, but this does
not include the university student body, which increases the population about
600 during the greater part of the year. More than 97 percent are native born,
the remaining few being Italian, Mexican and German who have moved out from the
cities. The city boasts of the fact that there are no colored people within it
limits. I have not yet decided whether I agree.
There is very little real wealth in Valparaiso. There are a few who might be
termed as "well-to-do", but the great majority of the people are of moderate
means, living in their own homes, and comprising the real citizens, the
builder-uppers of the community. Ten hundred and eighty-six families in
Valparaiso own their homes. As for the poor, during the past few years the
number of dependent families has deplorably increased, but in the time of good
business it is relatively small for the size of the city. The latest statistics
show that there are 204 families -- 613 persons on relief in Porter county, out
of a total population of 22,821 (1930 census).
In the surrounding countryside there are many comfortable farms. Most the of the
farmers are members of the county Farm Bureau, and although there are few who
are prosperous in an outstanding way, there are likewise few who are very poor.
There seems to be no record of the number of farmers who own their own farms.
Likewise there is no record of the sex and age population, either of the city or
of the county.
Being located as it is, Valparaiso might well be called a hub of communication.
It is situated on the Pennsylvania, Grand Trunk and Nickel Plate railroads, as
well as an electric road, the Gary Railway. The Lincoln Hiway, U. S. 30,
formsthe main street of the city, and state roads 49, 2, and 130 all converge
here. It is only natural then, that there should be two bus lines running
through, the Greyhound line and the Santa Fe Trail, which connect Valparaiso
with all points east, west and south. State road 6 runs east and west just six
miles north of town, while farther north are the Dunes and Dunes Relief roads.
The telephone company, too, has a thriving business, with a total of 1525
subscribers within the limits, which is, however, much smaller than it was
before the depression. Although Valparaiso is part of the Chicago newspaper
area, only about 35 percent of the people subscribe regularly, while 95 per cent
are subscribers to the one local daily. A very small number of people take Gary
and South Bend papers, while only the city library and less than a score of
others take Indianapolis dailies.
The post office of Valparaiso is a modern, well-equipped building. It employs a
good-sized staff, including seven foot-carriers for the city, and one parcel
post deliverer. The rural delivery covers a radius of 10 miles outside the city,
with a mileage of over 260 miles in 5 routes. Although the government has
decreased the number of employes, the mail service still functions well, with
little cause for complaint. In the post office building there are 300 boxes for
those who care to rent them.
According to the owner of the main electric store in town, 80 to 90 per cent of
the families in the city have radios, but because of its numerous influences
from the outside world, this fact does not have much social effect upon the
people. Its constant contact with cities on all sides keeps up a steady flow of
competition which has been hard for the local merchants to face, but in spite of
that Valparaiso is quite self-sufficient. A great many people do some of their
shopping in Gary and Chicago, but they do not entirely neglect their home
stores, since the store owners, having to face competition, make an effort to
provide for the demand and lower their prices.
Valparaiso is home of the Chautauqua Industrial Art Desk; produces 80 per cent
of the permanent magnets used in the United States; has one of the 6 mica
insulation plants and one of the seven Bakelite products plants in the United
States, and has the only successful bronze die-casting plant in the country.
Among other products manufactured are abrasive grinding wheels and discs, golf
clubs, ball bearings, coloring fluids, electric lamp guards, electric switches,
toys, paints, enamels and canning machinery.
Porter county is highly developed agriculturally, and the average farm income is
61 per cent above the average of the farms of the United States. While the
agriculture is highly diversified and there are many fine grain, live stock,
fruit, berry and poultry farms, it stands second in average production per cow,
the annual value of dairy products being upwards of a million dollars per year.
It is known as the Holstein center of the middle west and has many splendid
herds of this breed as well as of other leading dairy breeds.
The farms are well improved. There are more silos than in any other county in
Indiana. Soil and climate combine to favor crop production. In 1930 yields of 55
bushels of wheat per acre and 113 bushels of oats were produced. A yield of 127
1-2 bushels of corn has been officially recorded.
The trade area of the retail stores has a radius of 15 miles, and a population
of 25,500. There are more than 100 retail establishments, including two
department stores larger than those of any other Indiana city having less than
25,000 population.
Four hotels serve the city, with a total of 150 rooms, the largest and newest of
which is the Lembke Hotel, with 85 rooms.
Valparaiso has 30 miles of improved street, 54 miles of sidewalks, and
up-to-date lighting system for the street, a motorized fire department, an
active city-planning commission, and ample electric service supplied by the
Northern Indiana Public Service company at rate attractive to industry. It has a
chain of lakes surrounded by summer homes and resorts, where thousands of
Chicagoans sojourn every season. The city water supply is pumped from these
lakes and from driven wells, and is filtered and purified by the city water
company. The result is a good drinking water, and one comparatively soft.
In 1930 the National Steel Corporation and its subsidiaries purchased over 1,000
acres of land in the northern portion of Porter county. Adjacent the holding of
National Steel, the Samuel Insull interests purchased a tract of 240 acres.
A $186,000 hotel has been erected on the shores of Lake Michigan immediately
north of Tremont. Frederick H. Bartlett Company, of Chicago, have successfully
marketed Beverly Shores, a deluxe subdivision in the northeast part of Porter
county with more than five miles of lake frontage, and over 50 miles of concrete
pavement have been laid. Hundreds of homes have been built in addition, which
has spacious parks and miles of beautiful beach along the lake. Although this is
miles from Valparaiso proper, it greatly affects the economic situation of the
city, especially since the main highways run through here. Valparaiso is
commonly referred to as the "Gateway to the Dunes".
Our Paradise Vale is well blessed with churches when it comes to number, having
ten denominations which maintain a regular membership, while every few years
another sect appears, goes strong for a time and mysteriously vanishes. The
Nazarene church came and went this way a number of times but now seems here to
stay.
The Spiritualist and Pentecostal churches, as well as the church of the Seventh
Day Adventists, have had their day in Valparaiso.
Perhaps the strongest church in the city is the Roman Catholic, with a
membership of over 800, and the highest percentage of attendance of all the
churches. Next in size are the Methodist Episcopal and Presbyterian churches.
The Lutheran church was until lately also a strong one, because of the
university students, who are most of them Lutheran, but due to a break in the
church, and the formation of a new one, both are weaker. The Baptist, Christian
and Episcopal churches all have fairly good enrollments. Of late years the
number of Christian Scientists in town has increased rapidly. They have a new
building, which, though small, is a great improvement over their former method
of meeting in homes. Perhaps fewer people belong to the Mennonite church than
any, but those few are loyal, and this little group has stood for many years.
Except for the Nazarene church, and the new Trinity Lutheran church, which
convene in old residences remodeled for the purpose, the buildings will pass
inspection. Valparaiso churches are not expensive or elaborate buildings - it is
easy to see many ways to spend money on improvement, if it were to be had for
such purposes. Six of the buildings possess organs, and four have balconies
which are never used except on very rare occasions.
It is a common complaint among the "conscientious" church people that the
schools demand too much of the children's time, and that it is impossible to
make a success of young people's organizations and other church activities
concerning the younger generation because of this. They are obviously right when
they say this, but they do not seem to realize that the young people turn to the
activities offered by the school because they prefer them, and because the
church does not begin to offer the sort of thing which they need and want. Many
of the church people will not tolerate dancing, while others see no harm in it,
so there is a constant battle which never reaches a decision on that particular
subject. The same is true of card playing. Some of the churches regard cards as
an instrument of the devil, while other use bridge parties as a means of raising
money for their various funds. Too many people in the town do not attend church
at all, except perhaps at Easter and Christmas, out of this who do attend
regularly are many of them too narrow minded to tolerate any views other than
their own, or so broad minded that they really have no particular creed.
There was an attempt made some years ago to form a religious council of the
leading protestant churches in the town, in order to promote co-operation and
good feeling between the churches, but the thing failed, due to lack of
cooperation and enthusiasm on the part of the members.
One of the things of which Valparaiso is proud is its reputation in the
educational world. Not only has it been known extensively for its higher
institutions of learning, but also the high school has a very high scholastic
standing, and graduates from the Valparaiso public schools are welcomed in the
colleges and universities as coming from a splendid background. At Valparaiso
University, professors report that their best students are graduates from
Valparaiso high school.
Of the public schools in Valparaiso, there are five grade, one junior high, and
one high school. There is also a parochial grade school, under the supervision
of the Catholic church. At one time this included a high school, but now the
eighth grade graduates go to the public high school. The junior high school, in
the old high school building, which also houses the Central grade school, is
situated in the middle of the city. The other three grade schools are well
distributed over the town, where they amply provide for the needs of the pupils.
Valparaiso high school is a comparatively new building, located in the west part
of town. It is well equipped for its work, and is connected to the new Boucher
Gymnasium where the physical training classes are held. Although only those
students within the township are required to attend here, any other prefer to
pay the tuition in order to take advantage of the wider range of courses and
better equipment in the city school than attend country high school.
There are about 600 students in the high school at the present time, with a
total of 1700 in all the public schools of the city.
The people of Valparaiso are, as a whole, far more interested in the high school
and its doing than in the university, which is unusual for a university town.
However, because of its rating, the high school has many activities which appear
to the parents especially and also to many of the townspeople. The high school
band, composed of about fifty pieces, has achieved much recognition in its field
and gives concerts, even during the summer, as well as playing for home
basketball games and other occasions. During the Chicago World's Fair Valparaiso
was proud to be represented by the band in a contest, in which it competed
favorably with other schools of its size. Basketball, too, attracts huge crowds
to the new and modern gymnasium - many people preferring to see the high school
games rather than the university ones. Valparaiso boasts of one of the best high
school gymnasiums in the northern part of the state.
All parents are interested in what their children are doing in school, and the
citizens of Valparaiso are not exception. During education week the public
schools put on exhibits and invite parents to visit them, and these are very
well attended. The high school has for a number of years held regular class
sessions for one evening during this week, in order that more of the parents may
be enabled to see just what is being done. At the same time, the gym classes put
on an exhibition of drills, tumbling, etc. The annual May Festival always brings
a large audience, as it is one of the beautiful highlights of the school year.
Every child in the grade schools, and every high school student in the gym
classes takes part in this affair, and it has done much to promote an interest
in the schools. At Christmas time is the annual Christmas Festival, which is a
joint production of the music, dramatic and gym classes, and also includes a
great many school children. It is usually divided into two main parts; first,
the story of the first Christmas, and second, dancing and sons which typify the
holiday festivities. Combined with this is the giving of gifts to the poor,
sponsored by the Hi-Y and Girl Reserve groups of the high school.
Although the parents are usually interested enough in their children to attend
such things as band concerts and the festivals, many of them are too busy to
devote the time to actual co-operation with the schools. Only two of the grade
schools have parent-teacher associations, and these are small but active. In the
high school, the only organization of this type is the band mother's club, which
has done a lot in the way of raising money for uniforms, instruments and
traveling expenses for the band. However, this organization is of course
---?---.
The teachers of the city are organized, and meet regularly during the year, when
they have lectures by well-known educators, and other things of interest and
help to members. Every year, just before the schools are opened, a county
teachers' institute is held, sponsored by the Porter County Teachers' Club, and
is in session two days. Any of the people of the town or county are welcome to
attend without charge.
Valparaiso is widely known for Valparaiso university. Founded in 1873, it has
since then had an interesting and remarkable history. While the city of
Valparaiso was yet young, in 1858, the Methodist church founded the Valparaiso
Male and Female College on the present university site, then outside the limits.
After eleven years, however, the institution was compelled to close. Three years
after this Henry Baker Brown, for years president of the school, founded the
Northern Indiana Normal school, which began in the old college buildings. The
institution grew steadily, gradually increasing its enrollment and widening its
influence. It became known as the "poor man's Harvard," because of its excellent
system of "learning by doing," and at the same time earning expenses. Between
1905 and 1912 the school was at its height, having enrollment of 2551 in 1911.
It averaged 3,000 students for many years. In 1900 the name was changed to
Valparaiso College, and in 1905 became Valparaiso university. The coming of the
war, however, saw a marked decline in the school. It lost good standing, and its
student body shrank to a mere fraction of what it had been. The citizens of the
city, in an effort to save it, tried to put state legislation through that it be
made a state school; the bill passed but Governor Jackson did not sign it.
Finally the Lutheran church took it over, and gradually it is regaining some of
the former prestige. About 1920 this re-organization and reconstruction took
place, and now it is an accredited school. Its present enrollment is about 600.
It offers courses in music, science, law, engineering, and journalism - and
sixteen buildings are on the campus.
In addition to the university is Dodge's Telegraph and Radio Institute, which is
well known and broadens Valparaiso's educational service.
One of Valparaiso's best citizens was Chauncey W. Boucher, well known educator.
He was for a time a professor in Valparaiso university, and for many years
served as superintendent of the city schools. He is recorded in Who's Who for
his work in the education field. Miss Mabel Benney is another outstanding
teacher and citizen of the city. She has taught in the public schools for forty
years, all but four of them being in the high school. She was not only excellent
in her department of English, but also taught Latin and history, and has been
prominent in many cultural clubs. She is still an influential citizen.
In addition to the Valparaiso University library, the city has a Carnegie Public
Library, and until the recent Court House fire had an excellent county law
library. The total number of volumes in the three libraries (before the fire)
was 48,383. Many valuable law books were destroyed.
If there is anything that our fair city has too much of, it is organizations.
There are all kinds, from the active and civic-minded Chamber of Commerce to the
equally active "Conservation Club," but whose purpose remains a mystery.
The city has its Workingman's Association, as well as the Rotary Club, which is
composed largely of business men. Of lodges there are many, including the
Masons, I. O. O. F., Knights of Columbus, and Elks, the latter of which have a
fine temple - one of the best looking buildings in the business district, with a
corner clock that will not run. There is also a strong post of the American
Legion, and the D. A. R. and the Veterans of Foreign Wars are also well
represented. Social clubs are innumerable. One never knows when another will
come into existence, and there is no way to keep track of them. There are card
clubs, sewing circles, and clubs formed with just a general good time as an aim.
Many people belong to several of these, and there are few who do not claim
membership in at least one.
Social we may be, but we can also be cultural. The Women's Club has had a goodly
share in furthering this cause, with its departments of civics, literature, art,
music, history, and home economics. This club has the largest membership of all
the clubs in town. There is also the League of Women Voters. Purely musical is
the Cecella Club, which is a group of women who meet to further knowledge of
music and to sing as a group. The Saturday Evening Club is composes solely of
men, and is one of some influence, and similar to it is the Mathesis club,
largely made up of married couples with cultural interests and ability. An
active drama league offers several amateur plays a year.
Neighbors are not neighbors in the true sense of the word, except in a few cases
where two families have lived next door to each other for several years. The
reason for this is plain. People who have moved out from the larger cities do
not encourage neighborliness, and many of the people have close friends
scattered about in other parts of town. Since the advent of the telephone and
the automobile, however, dependence upon those within one's block is
unnecessary.
Perhaps the most prevalent type of groups in Valparaiso, and certainly the most
irritating to newcomers, are the kinship, or family groups. As one man
complained to me, "I'm afraid to tell anyone what I think of someone else,
because he'll very likely turn out to be a second cousin, at least!" The loyalty
of the members of these groups is very strong. They may fuss and fend among
themselves, but they will not tolerate any criticism from outsiders. The members
of one church are often a large percentage of them related.
A favorite excuse for an editorial is the recreational needs of Valparaiso.
Although the high school has a fine gym, it is not open to the general public,
and there are many of the working men who would be glad of an opportunity to
take advantage of a city gymnasium. In the summertime the high school baseball
and football fields are used almost every evening for softball and baseball
games, but there are no facilities in the town for indoor sports. It has been
suggested that one of the unused buildings on the county fair grounds be
converted into a place for such recreation, but nothing has been done about it
as yet. In the summer, as well as the fields for ball games, there are the high
school and university tennis courts. Those who wish to swim go either to Flint
Lake, three miles north of town, or to the beaches at Lake Michigan. Since these
lakes are so near there is no real need for a swimming pool in the city, except
perhaps in winter.
About twenty years ago Frederick Kirchhoff died and left a small plot of land in
the extreme northeast part of town for the purpose of a city park, including a
sum of money, the income of which was to be used of upkeep. It is the only park
the city has, and most of the people do not even know of its existence. It is
used by the children and old ladies of the neighborhood. After some research, I
learned that its name is Kirchhoff Park, after the donator.
The question of a city park is one which has often come before the minds of the
public, but never aroused enough interest to accomplish anything. Just outside
the city limits, close to the university campus, is a little lake and woods
known as Sager's. It is a beauty spot to be cherished, and for years it was
frequented by the students and citizens, especially on Sunday afternoons.
Several times people have tried to buy it for private purposes, but the owner
each time urged the city to take it over for a park, at much more reasonable
rates, and each time the prospective buyers were refused on the grounds that the
city wanted it. This went on for years; the owner, Chas. Sager, wrote letters to
the citizens and had them published in the paper, but somehow the populace could
not be made to see why they should buy the place when they had free access to it
as it was. Finally, 2 years ago some Chicago people leased it with option to
buy, and are using it for a nudist group. It is completely fenced off, and now,
after it is too late, the people wish that Sager's was a city park.
I have already mentioned the soft and baseball games which are popular in
summer. There are many of these teams formed, which schedule games for the
season, and play for nothing but the fun they get out of it. There are also
basketball and bowling teams in the winter, but not many, because of the few
places to play. One of the churches has a basketball floor, and the Elk's Temple
has a bowling alley.
Several of the churches have boy scout troops, and there are one or two cub
scouts troops as well. Although at one time there were four girl scout troops in
town, there is now only one. The Campfire girls of which there were five groups
have none at the present time.
Valparaiso has plenty of places to dance, both within and outside the limits.
These places are always well filled, but only by a certain type of people.
Although most the people in the town do not oppose dancing as such, they look
down upon the cheap dance halls. The high school sponsors dances in the
gymnasium, and with the exception of the minister and people of one church, the
citizens look upon this system with approval, as they feel that their children
are better off under school supervision than in cheap dance halls. Except for
the few church people whom I have mentioned, cards is regarded as a harmless,
though perhaps wasteful, recreation. When not enjoying any of these forms of
play, a favorite pastime is going on weiner roasts and steak fries to the beach,
and sleigh rides and sledding parties when there is snow. Especially the young
people enjoy these wholesome outdoor activities, and are not, as the older
people sometimes seem to thing, "going to the dogs" just because they like to
dance and play bridge.
Although there seem to be plenty of doctors and dentists in town, they manage to
keep busy a good part of the time, and most of them make a fairly good income.
There are also enough registered nurses for the demand, which is not much. The
only social worker for the city is the public school nurse, who makes many
contacts through the school children who are ill and undernourished, and this
locates the families who need help. The Red Cross and Tuberculosis societies
also do much to help in the community. The board of health looks after the
welfare of the entire city, and oversees that work is done in this line.
Because there are not many foreigners in the city, and the ---?--- on the whole
are fairly clean, the health status of the city is unusually high. In the past
year there were only three contagious diseases in the whole city. Serious
epidemics are very rare, the last one being in 1930 when Infantile Paralysis was
so prevalent all over the country. There were 12 cases at this time one of whom
died.
There is one hospital in the city run by the Christian church. It has eighteen
beds, and does not begin to meet the needs of the community. There has been talk
for many years of having a county hospital, but nothing has ever come of it. The
county has a relief administrative office, whose workers aid the city school
nurse in social relief work.
Valparaiso has an aldermanic form of government, and is rated according to the
last state legislation as a fifth class city. The two main parties are the
democratic and republican, of which the republican is ordinarily much the
stronger. With the last election, however, the democrats came into control.
Before this recent shift in power, the republicans practically ran the city, the
sheriff being the most influential and outstanding personality. Since Valparaiso
on the whole is a conservative city, there has not been much strife or
radicalism in the politics. The only time that citizens get thoroughly arouses
is when they think that something new is coming off - their main objection is to
modernization, although the citizens as individuals welcome changes for
improvement.
Until recent years Porter county had a fair every year, and now the grounds
stand unused, except for an occasional circus or carnival. This was the other
thing which failed because of lack of interest on the part of the people.
Perhaps when times get better we will some time have fairs again. The city does
not sponsor any community activities or events. What few things the city does
have are sponsored by the schools, American Legion or the local merchants. Aside
from these and the Rotary Club and Chamber of Commerce, there are no
organizations which devote much time to the interest of the community. In the
summer each year the Legion sponsors a Pet Parade, which is very popular with
the children, and at Christmas time the merchants have a Christmas party for
them. The local theatre has a free show for the kiddies. One summer the
newspaper tried to get the citizens interested in a garden contest, but this was
unsuccessful.
As I have attempted to bring out, the people of Valparaiso on the whole are very
conservative and distrustful of new ideas. For this reason they are not
outstanding leaders, since they do not get encouragement. The chairman of the
Chamber of Commerce comes as nhear to being a community leader as anyone. Under
his leadership a few reforms have been made, but most of the outstanding leaders
in the eyes of most of the populace are those who have lead in opposing such
things as buying the Sager property, instigating a new hospital, and converting
one of the unused fairground buildings into a recreational building.
Improvements come slowly in this town because of this strong conservative
element. However, the government of the city is on the whole very well
organized, and a spirit of team work and co-operation in most cases is dominant
as most of the office-holders are alike in their ideas of conservatism.
One of the greatest needs for Valparaiso, as I see it, is for the people to
"snap out of it," and learn to accept those of the new ideas which are good, and
realize a need when it is felt. The one time when the question of a hospital was
put to vote, it was overwhelmingly voted down, and there is nothing which the
community more obviously needs.
When once the older, more conservative of the people are made to see good in
improvement, a great step will have been taken in the progress of our community.
Ours is not an ideal city, by far. But, as I have stated, Valparaiso is a proud
city. It is like a proud old family, who can notice only the good things that
were and still remain, but cannot see what things are lacking. Nevertheless, it
is a grand little place, and most of us have nothing but praise for it to
strangers.
Article transcribed by Steven R. Shook