Ligonier Historic District is a national

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...

located in Ligonier,

Noble County, Indiana Noble County is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 47,457. The county seat is Albion. The county is divided into 13 townships which provide local services. Noble County comprises th ...

. The district encompasses 253 contributing buildings and two contributing objects in Ligonier. It was developed between about 1835 and 1937, and includes notable examples of

Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style combined its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century It ...

, Queen Anne,

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

Classical Revival Neoclassicism, also spelled Neo-classicism, emerged as a Western cultural movement in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiquity. Neoclassic ...

, and

Bungalow A bungalow is a small house or cottage that is typically single or one and a half storey, if a smaller upper storey exists it is frequently set in the roof and Roof window, windows that come out from the roof, and may be surrounded by wide ve ...

American Craftsman American Craftsman is an American domestic architectural style, inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement, which included interior design, landscape design, applied arts, and decorative arts, beginning in the last years of the 19th century. ...

style architecture. Located in the district are the separately listed Ahavas Shalom Reform Temple and Jacob Straus House. Other notable buildings include the Dr. Enos Fenton Residence (c. 1855), Silas Shobe Residence (c. 1870), Eli Gerber Residence (1874), Oscar Parks Residence (1892), Solomon Mier Residence (1906), Simon Schloss Residence (1912), Gentry Hotel (1870), Straus Brothers Block (1888), Zimmerman Block (1870, 1906), former Universalist Church (1856), First Presbyterian Church (1890), Ligonier Public Library (1908), Ligonier City Building (1914), U.S. Post Office (1935), Lyon and Greenleaf Flour Mill (1886), and former Mier Carriage Factory (1891). ''Note:'' This includes
Site map
and Accompanying photographs. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1987.

History

The Ligonier Historic District is one of the most intact groups of historic and architectural buildings in Ligonier. The district developed during 1835 to 1937. It was first called Perry's Prairie, a natural clearing settled by white inhabitants in 1833. Ligonier was platted in 1835. The town was overshadowed by Rochester, another settlement on the

Elkhart River The Elkhart River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed May 19, 2011 tributary of the St. Joseph River in northern Indiana in the United States. It is almost entirely ...

, to the southeast in 1836. Ligonier was located on a state road and north of another, which allowed it to soon outpace the town of Rochester. In 1854 the construction of a railroad, completed in 1857, through the town, led to five additions to the city's street plan, which more than doubled the population by start of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

.Craig Leonard, Historic Preservation Consultant, City of Ligonier, Historic District Comm. Ligonier Historic District; National Register of Historic Places, Inventory Nomination Form, United States Department off the Interior, National Park Service; October 23, 1987 Greater growth came after the war, spurred by the direct rail connections to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

and

Toledo Toledo most commonly refers to: * Toledo, Spain, a city in Spain * Province of Toledo, Spain * Toledo, Ohio, a city in the United States Toledo may also refer to: Places Belize * Toledo District * Toledo Settlement Bolivia * Toledo, Or ...

. At the end of the nineteenth century the Jewish community had become a significant influence in the town. The itinerant peddlers Frederick William Straus and Solomon Mier arrived in 1854 following the construction of the railroad. Each became local merchants and then founded the two major banks. The Banking House of Solomon Mier (1862) later became the Mier Bank. Frederick Straus opened the Citizens Bank (1868) with his brothers Jacob and Mathias. The community grew as more settlers arrived in

northern Indiana Northern Indiana is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the northern third of the U.S. state of Indiana and borders the states of Illinois to the west, Michigan to the north, and Ohio to the east. Spanning the state's northe ...

from Germany via the Pennsylvania and Ohio German communities of Jews, Mennonites and Amish. The Jewish community of

Noble A noble is a member of the nobility. Noble may also refer to: Places Antarctica * Noble Glacier, King George Island * Noble Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land * Noble Peak, Wiencke Island * Noble Rocks, Graham Land Australia * Noble Island, Gr ...

and Dekalb counties was a dispersed community amongst the other German Mennonite settlers by 1858. The community was large enough that they organized the Congregation Ahavas Shalom (Lovers of Peace). Initially they met in Auburn, the seat of DeKalb County. Ligonier was more tolerant of the community's presence and participation in social and political life. Congregation Ahavas Shalom soon began holding its meetings in the Jewish homes of Ligonier. The first permanent building was a wooden structure, in 1871. By 1889, the Ahavas Shalom Temple was dedicated with a membership of some 60 Jewish families, or a quarter (27%) of the town's population (some 600 persons of approximately 2,200) Ligonier's Jews were among all of the city's merchants, bankers, and professionals. Solomon Mier's banking interests expanded to

Fort Wayne Fort Wayne is a city in Allen County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 at the 2020 United S ...

, as the Citizens Trust Company. He also financed the construction of trolley lines across Noble County. The Straus brothers' (Straus Quality Farms) brokerage business, begun in 1860, became the largest in the United States, with offices in thirteen Midwestern states. The Straus brothers also established banks in six states and Ontario, Canada. The Jewish community's successes saw later generations move to larger cities, like

South Bend South Bend is a city in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. It lies along the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. It is the List of cities in ...

, Fort Wayne, and Toledo. By

1904 Events January * January 7 – The distress signal ''CQD'' is established, only to be replaced 2 years later by ''SOS''. * January 8 – The Blackstone Library is dedicated, marking the beginning of the Chicago Public Library system. * ...

, the community was so small that the temple was supported by a rabbi who traveled there weekly from South Bend. By

1920 Events January * January 1 ** Polish–Soviet War: The Russian Red Army increases its troops along the Polish border from 4 divisions to 20. ** Kauniainen in Finland, completely surrounded by the city of Espoo, secedes from Espoo as its ow ...

, the number of Jewish families in Ligonier had dwindled to 24. The Jewish Social Club closed in

1915 Events Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix. January *January – British physicist Sir Joseph Larmor publishes his observations on "The Influence of Local Atmospheric Cooling on Astronomical Refraction". *January 1 * ...

; the

B'nai B'rith B'nai B'rith International ( ; from ) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit Jewish service organization and was formerly a cultural association for German Jewish immigrants to the United States. B'nai B'rith states that it is committed to the se ...

Lodge (1878) closed in (1936). After 1932, services were held in the temple only on High Holy Days.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places in Indiana Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Indiana Queen Anne architecture in Indiana Italianate architecture in Indiana Gothic Revival architecture in Indiana Neoclassical architecture in Indiana Bungalow architecture in Indiana Historic districts in Noble County, Indiana National Register of Historic Places in Noble County, Indiana Jewish-American history Jews and Judaism in Indiana