ABCs of Heritage Lake
H- Heritage Lake History
It was so fun looking at all the facts about our wonderful community. I can't begin to pull all the great information and interesting facts about our lake's history in one post. So let me start by telling you where you can find all sorts of fabulous information about the history of Heritage Lake. You want to go to HLCS.ONLINE. Click on the Highlights tab. Then click the tab that says previous issues. There you will see two tabs that will give you a lot of history. If you click the top tab that says 1971 to 2001, you will be able to read the history of Heritage Lake in a book created by Jean Mohler to document the 1st 30 years of our history (1971-2001). It is fantastic and filled with all sorts of details and pictures. I was scouring through it to see if I could find a picture of our home because it is one of the original ones. You will also see a tab with the history from 2010-2021 from all the compiled Highlights. I ENCOURAGE every person to take the time and read through those. I believe you will enjoy it!!!!
I can't do justice to all the history provided there, but I can share some interesting facts and truly hope they might inspire you to read up on the history provided on the website.
Interesting Facts:
Clear Creek Cemetery had its first burial as early as 1826. The burial records can be found at Putnam County Library in Greencastle. There was a school and a church near the cemetery. The church burned down. The school was moved and is located behind the Mendenhall home ( just before the blind curve when leaving the lake via JV ). pg. 8
There were a total of 2,986 lots in the Heritage Lake project.
The first lot sold in 1971 and the first house was built by Goldman ( Goldie) and Mary Hill in Jefferson Valley - 347 Yorktown Drive. pg.30
Heritage lake has 10 miles of shoreline, the lake covers 316 acres, and the water has an average depth of 18 ft.
The Indianapolis Star featured an article about Heritage Lake in March 1972. The headline reads "Homes at Heritage Lake Sell for $14,000". pg. 38
The tradition of helping your neighbors dates back to the early beginnings of Heritage Lake. In 1972, it was documented that neighbors rallied around a young son who was trying to finish the house his father was building after his father was killed in a car crash. pg.44
We now have the Highlights, but check out the beginning on pages 48-49. You can read the Heritage Lake Newsletter from the Spring of 1973. You will notice that our logo has stayed the same.
Today we still talk about road maintenance, if you go to page 53 you will find they were addressing it in April of 1972. The discussion seems similar to today.
Work began on the clubhouse and the original swimming pool early in 1973.
For those fishing fans, it's interesting to read the history of the fishing catches over the years. You can find information on this throughout the book. In 1975 the fishing contest gave a total of $175 in cash prizes.
The Homemaker Club was started in 1974. pg. 58
The first organizational meeting was held November 10, 1974 at North Putnam High School with approximately 250 people in attendance. pg.58
The first boat parade was held on July 1973. A water ski show featuring " the Skipper's Ski shows " of Greensburg, Indiana was held on July 5th. The 2-hour ski show was to "feature kite skiing graceful water ballet jump skiing and precision trick skiing."pg.71-72
In 1974, there were 325 boats registered.
Part of the 4th of July activities included a beauty contest which debuted July 1977. The winner was crowned Heritage Lake Queen. pg. 98
In 1977 the clubhouse attendant got a raise in salary from $2.50 to $2.75 per hour. pg.99
A preschool was started at Heritage Lake and there was an Ice Fishing Club.
Thank you to Jean Mohler and Rick Miller for pulling together all this wonderful history!! Thanks to Rick for putting it all on the HLCS.Online webpage, which makes it so easy to access and enjoy.
Please take the time to look at it. I truly believe you will enjoy looking at all the historical photos and seeing how our community began. This information documents all the facts of construction and development of this amazing lake community.
As I was reading through it from the beginning, I was recognizing family names. It really did take a village of givers to create the community we have today. Plus it takes a village of volunteers to keep all the wonderful programs running. We are lucky to be part of such a wonderful community.
If you have time, consider volunteering. It not only helps others, but is also a great way to meet others.
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