Bendix Woods County Park | |
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![]() Aerial photo of the track | |
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Type | County park |
Location | Olive Township, St. Joseph County, Indiana |
Coordinates | 41°40′11″N86°29′18″W / 41.66972°N 86.48833°W |
Area | 195 acres (0.79 km2) |
Operated by | St. Joseph County Parks and Recreation Department |
Open | All year; Closed Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day [1] |
Studebaker Clubhouse and Tree Sign | |
![]() Studebaker "D" in Bendix Woods Park, November 2013 | |
Location | 32132 State Road 2, south of New Carlisle, Olive Township, St. Joseph County, Indiana |
Area | 21.1 acres (8.5 ha) |
Built | 1926 | , 1938
Architect | Young, Ernest W. |
Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
NRHP reference No. | 85002430 [2] |
Added to NRHP | September 18, 1985 |
Bendix Woods County Park is a park in Olive Township, St. Joseph County, Indiana, south of New Carlisle. The park is under the control of the St. Joseph County Parks and Recreation Department.
The name Bendix Woods originates from the Bendix Corporation which donated the land to the county for the creation of a park. The park's historical significance, however, dates to its establishment by the Studebaker Corporation, formerly of nearby South Bend, Indiana, as the first model test facility for an American automobile company.
Studebaker developed the 840 acres (3.4 km2) of land in 1926 as the first-ever controlled automotive-testing grounds for its product lines, beating Packard, Studebaker's future business partner, by one year. Studebaker heavily promoted the grounds as a "million-dollar outdoor testing laboratory" in advertisements. The test track that ran through the grounds simulated a variety of terrains and road conditions. Studebaker landscaped the park by keeping natural features—and planted a huge grove of trees which spell out "STUDEBAKER" when viewed from above. [3]
Following the collapse of Studebaker's U.S. production facilities in 1963, the land was acquired by Bendix Corporation which used the grounds for corporate purposes. In 1996 Bosch purchased the property; in 2015 Navistar acquired it from Bosch and renamed it "Navistar Proving Grounds". [4] [5]
The park was also home to a toboggan roller-coaster that was never opened after its owners were thrown off when making a trial run. [6]
The Studebaker Clubhouse is a historic clubhouse. It was built in 1926, and is a two-story, U-shaped, Colonial Revival style brick building. The front facade features a one-story frame porch supported by Tuscan order columns. The building was remodeled in 1947, 1961, and 1966–1967. It was built as a place for the approximately 100 proving ground employees to eat, relax in off hours, stay in bad weather, and board if they so desired. It currently houses the park's Nature Center and offices. [7]
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985 along with the Tree Sign. [2]
In 1938 the company planted 8,000 pine trees in a pattern that, viewed from above, spelled "STUDEBAKER". [8] [9] [10] [7]
In late December 2004, the "STUDEBAKER" tree planting, recognized as one of the world's largest living advertisements and on the National Register of Historic Places, was severely damaged in a Christmas week ice storm. [11] However, it continues to stand; in 2011 a grant was awarded for its long-term management and preservation, [9] and a management plan was completed in 2012. [10] Dead and diseased trees were removed in 2013 and 2014, and volunteers planted replacement saplings between April 15 and April 19, 2015. [12] [13]
Mishawaka is a city on the St. Joseph River, in Penn Township, St. Joseph County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 51,063 as of the 2020 census. Its nickname is "the Princess City". Mishawaka is a principal city of the South Bend–Mishawaka, IN-MI, Metropolitan Statistical Area.
South Bend is a city in and the county seat of St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, on the St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. At the 2020 census, the city had a total of 103,453 residents and is the fourth-largest city in Indiana. The metropolitan area had a population of 324,501 in 2020, while its combined statistical area had 812,199. The city is located just south of Indiana's border with Michigan.
Studebaker was an American wagon and automobile manufacturer based in South Bend, Indiana, with a building at 1600 Broadway, Times Square, Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 1852 and incorporated in 1868 as the Studebaker Brothers Manufacturing Company, the firm was originally a coachbuilder, manufacturing wagons, buggies, carriages and harnesses.
Indiana Dunes National Park is a United States national park located in northwestern Indiana managed by the National Park Service. It was authorized by Congress in 1966 as the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore and was redesignated as the nation's 61st national park on February 15, 2019. The park runs for about 20 miles (32 km) along the southern shore of Lake Michigan and covers 15,349 acres (6,212 ha). Along the lakefront, the eastern area is roughly the lake shore south to U.S. 12 or U.S. 20 between Michigan City, Indiana, on the east and the Cleveland-Cliffs steel plant on the west. This areas conservation scheme is enhanced by the older Indiana Dunes State Park. To the west of the steel plant lies West Beach and a small extension south of the steel mill continues west along Salt Creek to Indiana 249. The western area is roughly the shoreline south to U.S. 12 between the Burns Ditch west to Broadway in downtown Gary, Indiana. In addition, there are several outlying areas, including Pinhook Bog, in LaPorte County to the east; the Heron Rookery in Porter County, the center of the park; and the Calumet Prairie State Nature Preserve and the Hobart Prairie Grove, both in Lake County, the western end of the park.
Michiana is a region in northern Indiana and southwestern Michigan centered on the city of South Bend, Indiana. The Chamber of Commerce of St. Joseph County, Indiana defines Michiana as St. Joseph County and "counties that contribute at least 500 inbound commuting workers to St. Joseph County daily." Those counties include Elkhart, La Porte, Marshall, St. Joseph, and Starke in Indiana, and Berrien and Cass in Michigan. As of the 2010 census, those seven counties had a population of 856,377.
Pokagon State Park is an Indiana state park in the northeastern part of the state, near the village of Fremont and 5 miles (8 km) north of Angola. It was named for the 19th-century Potawatomi chief, Leopold Pokagon, and his widely known son, Simon Pokagon, at Richard Lieber's suggestion. The 1,260-acre (5.1 km2) park has an inn, camping facilities, and a staff of full-time naturalists. Pokagon receives nearly 640,000 visitors annually.
The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Fort Wayne, Indiana, is the primary cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, headed by Most Rev. Kevin Carl Rhoades. The parish was established in 1836, making it the oldest in Fort Wayne. The church was erected in 1860.
The Erskine was an American automobile brand produced by the Studebaker Corporation of South Bend, Indiana, United States, from 1926 to 1930. The marque was named after Albert Russel Erskine (1871–1933), Studebaker's president at the time.
The South Bend Tribune is a daily newspaper and news website which is based in South Bend, Indiana. It is distributed in South Bend, Mishawaka, north central Indiana, and southwestern Michigan. It has been named as a "Blue Ribbon Newspaper" by the Hoosier State Press Association. It is the third largest daily broadsheet newspaper in the state of Indiana by circulation.
The Packard Proving Grounds, was a proving ground established in Shelby Charter Township, Michigan in 1927 by the Packard Motor Car Company of Detroit. It is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Clement Studebaker was an American wagon and carriage manufacturer. With his brother Henry, he co-founded the H & C Studebaker Company, precursor of the Studebaker Corporation, which built Pennsylvania-German Conestoga wagons and carriages during his lifetime, and automobiles after his death, in South Bend, Indiana.
Olive Township is one of thirteen townships in St. Joseph County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of the 2000 census, its population was 3,914.
This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in St. Joseph County, Indiana.
Friends of Seagate Inc. was founded in the late 1980s by Kafi Benz as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in Sarasota, Florida. The historic preservation group lead local efforts protect historic property in the Sarasota-Bradenton area from commercial development. The group later expanded its scope to include environmental conservation. Its most notable project was the preservation of Seagate, the former home of Cincinnati, Ohio, industrialist Powel Crosley Jr. and his wife, Gwendolyn, and its later owners, Mabel and Freeman Horton. In 2002 the organization tried to secure Rus-in- Ur'be, an undeveloped parcel of land in the center of the Indian Beach Sapphire Shores neighborhood, as a local park; however, as of 2014, real estate developers intend to build condominium units at the site.
Tippecanoe Place is a house on West Washington Street in South Bend, Indiana, United States. Built in 1889, it was the residence of Clement Studebaker, a co-founder of the Studebaker vehicle manufacturing firm. Studebaker lived in the house from 1889 until his 1901 death. The house is one of the few surviving reminders of the Studebaker automotive empire, which was the only major coach manufacturing business to successfully transition to the manufacture of automobiles. In 1973, the Richardsonian Romanesque mansion was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was further recognized by being designated a National Historic Landmark in 1977. It is located in South Bend's West Washington Historic District.
The Howard Park Historic District is a national historic district located at South Bend, St. Joseph County, Indiana. It encompasses 27.6-acres and includes 51 contributing buildings, 2 additional contributing structures, and 1 further contributing site. It developed between about 1880 and 1947, and includes notable examples of Queen Anne, Colonial Revival, Renaissance Revival, Prairie School, and Bungalow / American Craftsman style architecture and works by architects Austin & Shambleau. Notable buildings include the Sunnyside Apartments (1922), Studebaker / Johnson House (1907), Zion Evangelical Church, the Works Progress Administration built Howard Park Administrative Building (1940), and Lister / Plotkin House (1882).
Morey-Lampert House or Rose-Morey-Lamport House is a historic home located at South Bend, Indiana, United States. It is located in the West Washington Historic District.
The J. M. S. Building is a historic office building located at 108 North Main Street, South Bend, St. Joseph County, Indiana.
West LaSalle Avenue Historic District is a national historic district located at South Bend, St. Joseph County, Indiana. It encompasses 33 contributing buildings and 2 contributing structures in a predominantly residential section of South Bend. It developed between about 1870 and 1930, and includes notable examples of Italianate, Queen Anne, Late Gothic Revival, and Beaux-Arts style architecture and works by architects Austin & Shambleau. Notable buildings include the St. Peter's Church (1927), Frank Eby House (1904), Lydia Klinger House (1900), Woodworth House, Woolman House (1880), Goetz House (1892), Studebaker House, Kuppler House (1885), and the Gunderman House.
The South Bend City Cemetery is a historic cemetery in South Bend, Indiana.
All County Parks are closed Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day
A devastating ice storm in December of 2004 severely damaged many of the trees though reports of the sign's deterioration seem to have sparked renewed interest in its preservation.
Efforts continue to save what's been called the world's longest-living outdoor sign. On Wednesday, volunteers gathered to plant more trees in an effort to restore the Studebaker tree sign at Bendix Woods County Park.