Caruthers Corners Town Hall

Let’s take a little tour of the town. Historic buildings, scenic streets, trees and green parks – it’s worth the stroll. And after we show you around, we’ll introduce you to a few of the people.

• Caruthers Corners Town Hall – The “seat of government,” this two-story red-brick building is clearly the town center. The ground floor consists of a large atrium with two offices along the left wall and a large storage room toward the back. The mayor’s office and other departments are on the second floor. There is a basement with a couple more offices down there as well as a large archives room where land plaits, property deeds, tax records, and other materials are haphazardly filed.

• Town Square – A grassy 10-acre park facing the Town Hall, it features a picturesque bandstand, koi pond (Jacob Caruthers Memory Pond), bronze statues of the Town Founders, and sometimes a working Ferris wheel (5¢ a ride).

• Cozy Café – A traditional metal-fronted diner known for its watermelon pie and 50¢ Never Ending Cup of Coffee. Once a waitress here, Maddy’s sister Maisie is now the owner of this popular eatery. • Dan’s Den of Antiquities/ Crane’s Antiquities Attic/ Heirlooms Unlimited – An antique shop that has undergone a series of ownerships.

• Daisy Mouse Kindergarten – A daycare center on Sixth Avenue. Known to its quiet, elderly neighbors as a “Rug Rat Riot Squad.” • Madison Elementary School – A primary school for children six to thirteen. Needs a bit of rehab. You can still find Beau Madison’s initials carved on a desk.

• Caruthers High School – Go Cougars! A secondary school covering grades 9 through 12. The place were childhood and young adulthood collide in its traditional manner. There is a football team, a gymnastics team, a wrestling team, and a chess club. There’s talk of starting a computer club.

• Caruthers Corners Public Library – Destroyed by 2019 Northeast Indiana Tornado. A major loss.

• Kupnick’s Pharmacy – The town’s only drug store, other than a pharmacy department at Food Lion. Operated by the Kupnick family since 1945.

• Dollar General – Economical shopping is found in this low-cost emporium.

• Caruthers Corners Fire Department – A company of paid and volunteer firemen. Freddie Madison serves as Fire Chief.

• Dairy Queen – Sometimes simply referred to as “DQ.” A local soft-serve “custard” stand. • Pic A Pair Shoes – A store selling both men and women’s footwear. • Clothes Horse Boutique – A small fashion shop owned by Missy Yager. • Molly’s Candle and Soap Shop – Home accessories and bath goods that are handcrafted by Molly Dougan and a network of Amish housewives.

• Caruthers Corners Savings & Loan – A big square stone building with Corinthian columns. Founded by Lizzie Ridenour’s grandfather. Her husband Edgar was the bank’s president until he took early retirement. Lizzie remains the largest stockholder.

• Beautiful Blossoms Garden Club – A women’s organization devoted to flowers and gardening. Meets monthly. Maintains the landscaping in the Town Square.

• Caruthers Corners Industrial Park – A fenced-off business area on the edge of town next to the water tower. ZapData, US Post Office, and Home Depot have facilities there.

• Home Depot – The hardware chain that put Beau’s small Ace store out of business, forcing him to go into politics. Located on the far side of town, but with an auxiliary warehouse in the Caruthers Corners Industrial Park.

• EZ Seat Chair Factory – Owned by N.L. Purdue, this large facility manufactures Amish-style straight-back wooden chairs and rockers.

• Hoople Quilting Heritage Museum – A small museum devoted to the art of quiltmaking. Managed by Lizzie Ridenour. Supported by the Hoople Quadruplets Trust Fund.

• Caruthers Corners Historical Society – A local history museum, now a wing of Perricock Museum of History and Science. Managed by Cookie Bentley.

• Taylor Manor – A triple-story brick apartment building way out on First Avenue. Built during the boom that followed World War II.

• Melon Fields Apartments – A two-story brick apartment building on Fourth Street.

• Mrs. Fogerty’s Rooming House – A two-story wood-frame apartment building also on Fourth Street.

• Peaceful Meadows Baptist Church – The picturesque church that can be seen on the far side of the Town Square.

• St. Paul’s United Methodist Church – The largest church in town, known for its Heavenly Voice choir.

• First Mennonite Church – Once a magnificent stone edifice, it burned down in ‘82, but was rebuilt. Destroyed again by the 2018 Northeast Indiana Tornado, and no in the process of being restored.

• Yost & Yost – The only funeral home in town. Today it’s managed by Elias and Elias Yost, a somber pair in dignified black attire. The brothers took over the business from their dad. Part of the building is leased to the county coroner for autopsies and forensics examinations.

• Melon Hill – The “wrong” side of town.

• Pleasant Glade Cemetery – Today owned by a large corporation (MFP, Inc.), but it still features an Old Section where mausoleums and crypts of Founding Families are maintained. Jasper Beanie is its caretaker.

• Tom’s Taxi Co. – A small cab stand on South Main Street, barely within the city limits. It has two taxis, one on call during the day, the other on call at night. There is nobody named Tom.

Historic Homes

• Hoople Mansion – The 52-room stone monolith that was home to the Hoople Quadruplets.

• Perricock Museum of Science & History – Former mansion of Capt. Percival Perricock, the large stone edifice now houses the Science Museum and the Caruthers Corners Historical Society. The museum has a magnificent collection of Mesozoic Era fossils. And you should try to catch the exhibit of the Madison Meteorite.

• Old Ferdinand Jinks Homestead – The two-story house built by the Jinks family when the wagon train broke down in 1829. Located a mile inland from the Wabash. Suspected site where Ferdy Jinks buried his gold. Now the land belongs to Aitkens Produce, the big watermelon grower.

• Ferdinand Jinks’s Original Homeplace – A stone foundation on the banks of the Wabash that marks the site of an old building. Another suspected site of Ferdy’s buried gold.

• Hoople Cottage – A small house on the banks of the Wabash. Part of the original Jinks homeplace. One-time getaway of Herbie Hoople.

• Beasley Mansion – Built in 1832 by Old Sam Beasley, this “haunted house” was rehabbed to become Beasley Arms.

• Madison House – A gray three-story Victorian on Melon Pickers Row. Built by Beauregard Madison II. Inherited by Beauregard Madison IV. Maddy and Beau raised all their children here.

• Taylor House – A blue three-story Victorian facing the Town Square. Built in 1888 by Simon Taylor. Maddy grew up in this lovely old house. Tilly and Mark lived here for a time too.

Explore Beyond the Town Limits

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Town History in a Nutshell

Maps of Caruthers Corners
(and Its Environs)