McCulloch Park - I See Dead People

When I was a little kid, there were times when we hung out at McCulloch Park.

It is right by GE and also - on the bus line. I know at some point, the Three Rivers Festival parade even marched by the area because we sat there and watched the parade that year.

Anyway...

One of the rumors that kids used to pass on from one generation to another was that there were still a bunch of people, buried in the park and that when it rained, their bodies would float up to the top.

Although your initial reaction as a kid would be fibber!, I would be lying if I didn't tell you that the first time I was informed of this rumor, I had a couple of difficult nights of sleeping.

In my dreams, I kept on seeing myself in McCulloch Park, playing on the grass, then the rain breaks out, and as I run to the gazebo to take shelter, I start tripping all over the bodies that have washed up from the ground.

I know - pretty creepy.

Over time, I just dismissed the rumor. Even forgot about it.

Until today.

Side note: For the record - we all know that Indiana Governor, Samuel Bigger, is still buried there and allegedly, he was the only one.

While I was out on Ancestry.com, I came across this:



A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE KAMMEIER FAMILY -- written by Ernst C. Kammeier

After being in America about two weeks, misfortune befell the family. The father became sick and died. That surely was a hard blow for the mother, who was left alone with three little children in a strange country. Fortunately the family was among good friends and neighbors who helped them as much as they could.

Henry Kammeier I was buried in the City cemetery on Broadway. This cemetery later was converted into a park and is called McCullouch Park in honor of Hugh McCullouch, a prominent citizen and banker of Ft. Wayne, who was Secretary of the Treasury of the United States under Pres­ident Lincoln, and who is said to have devised and inaugurated the modern banking system in the United States.

When the cemetery was converted into a city park about the year 1885, quite a number of bodies were removed to other burial grounds but that of Henry Kammeier was not disturbed and is still resting there. The grave is located in the southwest corner of the park near Broadway St. under a large elm tree.

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SO...I guess part of the rumor passed on from one generation to another was true - there ARE still dead people buried in McCulloch Park.

Reflections On My Trip Home - Why I Still Have BIG Love for Fort Wayne

Why I Still Have BIG Love For Fort Wayne

* Not in any particular order and certainly - not an exhaustive list.

• It still doesn't take very long to go from one side of town to another - get on Clinton, Lafayette, Jefferson, State Street, Coliseum - and boom - you're there in no time at all. Let me tell you - living in Central Indiana - it is a major effort to get from one side of town to another, regardless of the route you take.

• I never once felt unsafe regardless of the neighborhood I stopped to take photos in.

• Every single person I ran into (stranger and otherwise) - NICE. SMILED. Didn't think I was a complete freak. And you know, that's something (for me) which has usually been the case (80/20) rule. Fort Wayne is a friendly (without being creepy friendly) city.

• Families are alive and well and do things that make me smile - bike ride, go to the parks, eat together, etc...

• While I was at Indian Village, the fifth grade convocation was going on. It was absolutely beautiful watching the parents - watching their children. Great love. Great pride. Now, if the school board could just have the same attitude...

• I was pleasantly surprised by small things (and new things to me) I had never seen. Example - sparkly squared lights downtown around the Hilton (the sidewalk lights).

• I was pleasantly surprised by BIG things (and new to me things) I had never seen. Example - the Wells Street bridge (that entire area - which has been completely overhauled since I lived in this area). This was a major (foot) route for me and my grandparents. I remember how fragile the wood was - walking across. We had to stay in the middle because the walkways on the side of the bridge were way too dangerous. Approaching the bridge, it used to be quite overgrown with weeds. But now - look at this. It is beautiful and gorgeous but in a very subtle way.

• Which is why this is its own bullet point - for the most part - Fort Wayne does a great job of making things personal and subtle and not gaudy and not flashy.

• Every single retail, food, service related establishment that I frequented - people were nice. Genuinely nice.

I wish I could have taken a picture of every positive moment - however - it just wasn't possible.

Throughout the two days I was here - I took over five hundred shots.

Aside from the photos - I have much more to say about my trip this weekend to the Fort. Some things - I'm disappointed with. Some things - I'm curious about. But more on those later. Right now, I'm goin' back to Indy to enjoy the rest of the weekend with my husband and son.