Historic Districts

In 1977 a group of neighborhood residents began renovation efforts and founded the Fletcher Place Historic Preservation Association. They immediately began efforts that resulted in the neighborhood eventually being composed of two historic districts: The Fletcher Place Historic District and the Holy Rosary Danish Church Historic District (a/k/a Fletcher Place II). Virginia Avenue serves as the border between the two nationally registered historic districts.

The Fletcher Place Historic District became listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. That same year, with the support of the neighborhood association, the Indianapolis Historic Preservation Commission began working on the preparation to make give the district local historic protection. In 1980, this process was completed and the district officially fell under historic preservation. The district is composed of mostly Italianate and Queen Anne style cottages, and it also contains significant historic structures including the Caito bungalow (famous for the murals painted on its inside walls), the William Forsyth home (home of Hoosier Group painter William Forsyth), and a house that is attributed to architect Francis Costigan. Other notable structures include the Union Laundry Lofts, originally known as the Union Co-operative Laundry built 1911, the Calvin Fletcher School built 1857, and the former Fletcher Place United Methodist Church built 1872. To view the preservation plan, click here.

The Holy Rosary Danish Church District became listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986. Excerpts from the historic marker commemorated in 2000 for the district describe it as such: Early residents were Germans, Irish, Scots, and Welsh. Danes resided in area circa 1870 – 1890. By 1910, ninety percent of area residents were Italian immigrants. The Area became Indiana’s largest continuously occupied Italian neighborhood. Sicilians opened nearby produce businesses. The district, containing mainly working class cottages, includes Trinity Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church built 1872, Horace Mann Public School built 1874, and Holy Rosary Catholic Church built 1911 – 1925.