Images of New Albany Indiana
Historic Architecture
Main Street

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Images: New Albany: Main Street


Israel House

The Israel House at 142 West Main bears a plaque that says "During the 1840-60 period this hotel and restaurant was the congregating place for men of commerce and industry. In addition to river captains and their families notable visitors were: Gen. Winfield Scott, Daniel Webster, Andrew Jackson, Martin Van Buren, Wm. H. Harrison, Benj. Harrison, Zachary Taylor and many others. A huge bell called the community to every function from meals to war." I don't know how many buildings in Indiana have hosted five U.S. Presidents, but my guess is that the number is small. The plaque states that Israel House dates from 1830, though a walking tour brochure called "Historic Architecture in Downtown New Albany, Indiana" lists a date of 1842.


Woodward Hall

Woodward Hall is at 128-130 West Main. It dates from 1852. According to the brochure "Historic Architecture in Downtown New Albany, Indiana", the third floor contained New Albany's first public hall, which hosted Indiana's first exhibition of Uncle Tom's Cabin. The hall also saw use as a Civil War hospital.


118-120 West Main


116 West Main Street


Sapinsky Block

The Sapinsky Block dates from 1896. The street address is 101 East Main. Originally constructed by a clothier, the block has housed a furniture store since around the end of the First World War. The current occupant (since the forties) is Schmitt Furniture, which also occupies a number of adjacent buildings.


Scribner House

102 East Main Street. The Scribner House dates from 1814 and is the oldest remaining house in New Albany, and probably one of the oldest remaining structures in the state.


State Bank of Indiana

The State Bank of Indiana dates from 1837; street address is 203 East Main. A sign in front of the building states "Second state bank was established in 1834 by General Assembly with ten branch banks; one of the most successful banks at the time in the U.S. This Greek Revival structure, built 1837, housed New Albany Branch, serving Floyd, Harrison, Washington, Crawford, and Clark counties until expiration of the bank charter in 1857."


J. Bader Block

207-209 East Main Street. It dates from 1865.


224 East Main. 1881.


Town Clock Church

300 East Main Street. Town Clock Church dates from 1849-1852. A plaque on the building reads as follows: "This Church was built by the 2d Presbyterian congregation and in 1889 sold to the 2d Baptist Church. It is one of the outstanding church buildings in Indiana. The clock was a landmark for river pilots. The organ, a museum piece, was built in Holland around 1820. Stories of this church during the Civil War are legend; it was an open secret that this was a station in the Underground Railroad. The small openings and rooms in the dirt floor basement remain just as they were when fugitive slaves hid safely during their journey North.


417 East Main. Note the bricked-in door.


Isaac Smith House

The Isaac Smith House dates from 1839-1841. The street address is 513 East Main. A Historic New Albany plaque in front of the house reads as follows: "Isaac P. Smith, early contractor and master builder, obtained the land from the original Scribner Grant, and built the home for his family who retained ownership throughout the years. The original iron fence was donated to the scrap drive during World War I by Katherine H. C. Wade, daughter of the builder. The 14 room brick house was heated by eight fireplaces."


Samuel Montgomery House

The Italianate Samuel Montgomery House dates from 1850. It's a duplex, with addresses of 516 and 518 East Main.


Box Tree Inn

612 East Main Street. It dates from around 1850.


703 East Main


Culbertson Widows Home

704 East Main Street. The Culbertson Widows Home dates from 1873. The historical marker in front of the house reads as follows: "Culbertson Widows' Home. William S. Culbertson, wealthy merchant, opened home November 18, 1873, to provide food, clothing, and shelter for town's destitute widows. Home had gas lighting, upstairs closet, and up-to-date kitchen. Residents' lives were structured according to strict rules. Culbertson's will provided support for the home after his death in 1892. Board of Trustees for home was formed 1922; it turned the home into a boardinghouse with a monthly fee in 1947. Because of changing city regulations, the Board closed the home 1971. James Banes was builder of the Italianate structure, which is included in the Mansion Row Historic District, listed in the National Register of Historic Places, 1983."


Moore-Tabler House

815 East Main Street. It dates from around 1850.


Samuel Culbertson House

904 East Main Street. 1886.


Solomon Malbon House

907 East Main Street. The Federal/Greek Revival building dates from around 1850. Malbon was a steamboat captain who also became mayor of New Albany.


Culbertson Mansion

914 East Main Street. The Culbertson Mansion is now an Indiana State Historic Site. The Second Empire-style structure dates from 1867-1869.


Victor Pepin House

1003 East Main Street. The Victor Pepin House dates from 1851-1852. The Main Street Preservation Association states that the home is "based on a pattern-book design by noted Philadelphia architect Samuel Sloan."


Phineas Kent House

1015 East Main Street. It dates from 1854-1855. When I took this picture it was the parish house of St. Paul's Episcopal Church.


Knoefel House

1103 East Main Street. The Queen Anne-style Knoefel House dates from 1896.


Michael Kerr House

1109 East Main Street. Kerr was elected Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives in 1875. The structure dates from 1864.


Aglae Croxall House

Most of the Aglae Croxall House dates from 1855, though the porch is a 1920 addition. The Federal/Greek Revival structure is at 1119 East Main.


James Marshel House

1209 East Main Street. The Italianate James Marshel House dates from 1863.