North Meridian Street Historic District marker

Meridian Street is the primary north–south

street A street is a public thoroughfare in a built environment. It is a public parcel of land adjoining buildings in an urban context, on which people may freely assemble, interact, and move about. A street can be as simple as a level patch of dirt, ...

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

US 31 U.S. Route 31 or U.S. Highway 31 (US 31) is a major north–south U.S. highway connecting southern Alabama to northern Michigan. Its southern terminus is at an intersection with US 90/ US 98 in Spanish Fort, Alabama. It ...

formerly ran along North Meridian Street for much of its length in the city of Indianapolis, before being re-routed to a segment of

Interstate 465 Interstate 465 (I-465), also known as the USS ''Indianapolis'' Memorial Highway, is the beltway circling Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It is roughly rectangular in shape and has a perimeter of approximately . It lies almost complet ...

. Meridian Street serves as the axis separating east addresses from west addresses, and intersects

Monument Circle The Indiana State Soldiers and Sailors Monument is a tall neoclassical monument built on Monument Circle, a circular, brick-paved street that intersects Meridian and Market streets in the center of downtown Indianapolis, Indiana. In the years s ...

and Washington Street in

downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...

. North of downtown, Meridian continues through several prominent city neighborhoods, such as the Midtown commercial district, the Old Northside, Herron-Morton, Butler–Tarkington, Meridian-Kessler, and

Arden Arden may refer to: Places ;Australia *Arden, an area in North Melbourne, Victoria near the Arden Street Oval ;Canada * Arden, Ontario ;Denmark * Arden, Denmark, a town **Arden Municipality, a former municipality, including the town of Arden ; ...

, as well as the towns of

Meridian Hills Meridian Hills is a community in Washington Township, Marion County, Indiana, about six and a half miles north of downtown Indianapolis and slightly southwest of the neighboring community of Williams Creek. It had a population of 1,616 at the 20 ...

and Williams Creek. Meridian Street also passes through several historic districts: the

North Meridian Street Historic District North Meridian Street Historic District is a national historic district located at Indianapolis, Indiana. It encompasses 169 contributing buildings in a high style residential section of Indianapolis. The district developed between about 1900 ...

, the

Old Northside Historic District Old Northside is a residential neighborhood near downtown in Indianapolis, Indiana. It is bordered by 16th Street on the north, Pennsylvania Street on the west, Interstate I-65 on the south, and Bellefontaine Street on the east. The Monon Trai ...

, the Shortridge–Meridian Street Apartments Historic District, the

Washington Street–Monument Circle Historic District Washington Street–Monument Circle Historic District is a national historic district located at Indianapolis, Indiana. The district encompasses 40 contributing buildings and 2 contributing structures in the central business district of Indian ...

, and the

Indianapolis Union Station-Wholesale District The Wholesale District is one of seven designated Indianapolis Cultural Districts, cultural districts in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. Located in the south-central quadrant of downtown Indianapolis' Mile Square, the district contains the ...

. In 1919, property owners on Meridian Street from

to the

Central Canal The central canal (also known as spinal foramen or ependymal canal) is the cerebrospinal fluid-filled space that runs through the spinal cord. The central canal lies below and is connected to the ventricular system of the brain, from which it r ...

proposed converting the street into a boulevard and putting it under the jurisdiction of the parks board to preserve its residential character. However, the increased demand for commercial property for an expanding downtown led to the proposal being defeated as property owners in the southern portion of the proposed boulevard sold their property to business interests. Nevertheless, in the early 1920s the portion of the street from Fall Creek to the canal was transferred to the parks board and a setback for new construction was imposed. In conjunction with the original proposal, an unsuccessful attempt was made to change the name of the street to Lincoln Boulevard in order to honor

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

in the same way that Washington Street honored

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

. North of 40th Street to 57th Street, Meridian Street is considered to be among the most prestigious residential streets in Indiana. Some of the most impressive residential architecture in the United States can be found here, in a variety of architectural styles. The current Governor's Mansion can be found here, as well as the house that served as Governor's Mansion prior to the current house. The

is among the most affluent urban neighborhoods in the U.S., with a mean

household income Household income is a measure of the combined incomes of all people sharing a particular household or place of residence. It includes every form of income, e.g., salaries and wages, retirement income, near cash government transfers like food stamp ...

of $102,599 in 2017. North of Indianapolis, Meridian Street continues into the suburbs of

Carmel Carmel may refer to: * Carmel (biblical settlement), an ancient Israelite town in Judea * Mount Carmel, a coastal mountain range in Israel overlooking the Mediterranean Sea * Carmelites, a Roman Catholic mendicant religious order Carmel may also ...

and Westfield.

Notable addresses

* Balmoral Court * Barnes and Thornburg Building *

Birch Bayh Federal Building and United States Courthouse The Birch Bayh Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse, formerly known as the U.S. Courthouse and Post Office and as the Federal Building, is a courthouse of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, located in Indianapol ...

The Blacherne The Blacherne is a historic apartment building located at Indianapolis, Indiana. It was built in 1895, and is a large seven-story, 6 bay by 15 bay, red pressed brick building on a limestone foundation. It features two circular projecting bays ...

* The Buckingham * Central Library *

The Children's Museum of Indianapolis The Children's Museum of Indianapolis is the world's largest children's museum. It is located at 3000 North Meridian Street, Indianapolis, Indiana in the United Northwest Area neighborhood of the city. The museum is accredited by the American Al ...

Circle Centre Mall Circle Centre Mall is an indoor shopping mall located in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. Circle Centre Mall was opened to the public on September 8, 1995, and incorporates existing downtown structures such as the former L. S. Ayres flagship ...

Coulter Flats Coulter Flats also known as The Coulter, is a historic apartment building in Indianapolis, Indiana. It was built in 1907, and is a three-story, six bay by six bay, Tudor Revival / Jacobean Revival style brick building with terra cotta ornamentati ...

* George Stumpf House *

Indiana Governor's Residence The Indiana Governor's Residence is the official home of the family of the governor of Indiana and is located in Indianapolis, Indiana. In use since 1973, it is the sixth official residence of Indiana's governors. The current tenant is Governor ...

Indiana World War Memorial Plaza The Indiana World War Memorial Plaza is an urban feature and war memorial located in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, originally built to honor the veterans of World War I. and (PDF) It was conceived in 1919 as a location for the na ...

*''

The Indianapolis Star ''The Indianapolis Star'' (also known as ''IndyStar'') is a morning daily newspaper that began publishing on June 6, 1903, in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It has been the only major daily paper in the city since 1999, when the ''Indianap ...

'' *

IU Health North Medical Center Indiana University Health North Hospital (originally named Clarian North Medical Center) is a full-service hospital for adults and children. Opened in December 2005, the 170-bed hospital and attached medical office building offer maternity, pedi ...

Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana Ivy Tech Community College (Ivy Tech) is a public community college system in the U.S. state of Indiana. It is the state's public community college system and it has more than 40 locations. It is also the state's largest public postsecondary in ...

* Joseph J. Cole Jr. House * Marott Hotel *

* Morrison Block *

Saint James Court Apartments The Saint James Court Apartments is a luxury apartment building designed by Ferry & Clas and built in 1903 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In 2008, the site was added to the National Register of Historic Places. History Alfred C. Clas originally designed ...

* Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral *

Salesforce Tower Salesforce Tower, formerly known as Transbay Tower, is a 61-story skyscraper at 415 Mission Street, between First and Fremont Street, in the South of Market district of downtown San Francisco. Its main tenant is Salesforce, a cloud-based so ...

* Schnull–Rauch House * Scottish Rite Cathedral * Second Presbyterian Church *

Shortridge High School Shortridge High School is a public high school located in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. Shortridge is the home of the International Baccalaureate and arts and humanities programs of the Indianapolis Public Schools district.(IPS). Originall ...

Slippery Noodle Inn The Slippery Noodle Inn is a large blues bar and restaurant with two performance stages in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana. It also has the distinction of being the oldest continuously operating bar in the state of Indiana,Bird, pg. 320 having ope ...

* Spink Arms Hotel * H. P. Wasson & Company Building * William N. Thompson House

References

{{commons cat, Meridian Street, Indianapolis Streets in Indianapolis