Residents discover hidden city history
Ceferino “Reno” Banogon, of South Haven, brought a three-ring binder filled with his family’s Gary history as he boarded a bus Friday to tour the Midtown area of the city.
Banogon is a decedent of the Gibson family, whose patriarch, Charles Gibson, was in the late 1800s one of the first settlers to the area that ultimately became the city of Gary. Charles Gibson opened the Gibson Hotel, the first building on the city that would become the city.
“They were early pioneers of the Calumet region,” Banogon said. He began researching his family history a few years ago and wanted to learn more about the city and the places in it connected to his family.
The tour bus Banogan boarded was one of five scheduled to tour different areas of the city as part of the “This is Gary” Heritage Day Mobile Museum tours. Bus tours covered the Midtown, Tolleston, Miller, Downtown and Glen Park neighborhoods.
“This is Gary” is a celebration of the city’s past, present and limitless potential of its future conceived by Joslyn Kelly, owner of J’s Breakfast Club in collaboration with her Victory Way beautification project leading into the heart of Gary at 26th and Broadway.
Heritage Day seeks to focus on connecting residents’ stories to the physical spaces within the community via the mobile museums.
“This is exciting,” Kelly said as passengers began to trickle into the first tour. The buses made four tours throughout the day starting at Indiana University Northwest. The event culminated at the university with an evening discussion on the city’s history.
Councilwoman Linda Barnes Caldwell, D-5th, also took the tour. Her district includes parts of Midtown and Glen Park. She planned to continue the day by taking the tour of Glen Park as well.
Among the tour highlights was the St. John Baptist Church, which has been oper
ating in the city for 103 years.
“That’s my home church,” Barnes Caldwell said.
Carl Rayford, tour ambassador, shared highlights of the Midtown area in an illuminating trip focused on the places that once were and still are.
“I have been in Gary all my life and there are things I had no idea about,” Rayford said. “I had never heard of the Gibson Inn.”
A video of the highlighted locations played in the bus while Rayford shared information about the locations.
The tour passed by places like the former Froebel School at 15th Avenue and Madison Street, near the location of the Gibson Inn which opened in 1910. A state history marker installed in 2014 marks the site, which is now Froebel Park. The tour also included the site of the former Dixie Dairy, Peacock Cleaners, the Slovak Club and a drive through the area known as Gary’s Patch and Saloon district.
“A hundred years ago, Gary was the place people came and really enjoyed being in this area,” Rayford said.
Barnes Caldwell recalled the Slovak Club from her youth.
“I remember dances there,” she said.
Many of the buildings are now gone, Rayford said. Long-faded signs and dilapidated brick structures were all that remained of some, while others no longer existed.
The tour passed through Gary’s Central District, a commerce area, where Rayford said illegal syndicates would collect fees from the stores who set up shop.
Barnes Caldwell pointed out highlights on Broadway Street in Midtown including Lovell’s Barber College, where she said many of the city’s barbers got their start, as well as Gainer First National Bank. The building at the corner of 17th and Broadway originally constructed in 1915 and was first home to the Gary Federal Savings & Loan Association. Gainer was in the building next door, which was originally home to American State Bank.
“One of the things that was really great about Midtown is it was great for commerce. You could find everything you needed,” she said.
Highlights off Broadway including the Campbell Friendship House at 2100 Washington St., constructed in 1912; the Washington Manor and Meems Manor subdivisions; and Roosevelt Park with its pavilion. Roosevelt Park has been identified by Barnes Caldwell as her district’s “jewel” park and work is underway to repair the pavilion and clean up the park to make it functional again.
Along with highlighting places, the tour highlighted some of the people from the city who rose to fame. In the Midtown area that included actor Avery Brooks who starred in “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine”, “Spenser: For Hire” and “A Man Called Hawk”; singer/songwriter Deniece Williams who wrote and sang “Let’s Hear it for the Boy”; and Michael Jackson, the Jackson Five, Janet Jackson and Latoya Jackson.
Wayfinding signs were added to the Jackson family home at 2300 Jackson Street in May 2021 and visitors continue to flock to the site, especially on the anniversary of Michael Jackson’s death, June 25, and his birthday, Aug. 19.
The weeklong “This is Gary” celebration included a youth empowerment day, “Be the Change” day, Vision Ball and culminated Sunday with a Gospel Explosion concern.