Griffith Depot and Historical Park – Griffith History Museums

March 23, 2026March 17, 2026 victoriavm Blog Posts, Griffith Depot and Historical Park, Griffith History, Society Saga

Our Society Saga – Part Two

Where DOES one put a depot? Written by Karen Kulinski

When last we were together, it was the late 1970’s. A small band of Griffith townsfolk had decided to save the Grand Trunk Depot from demolition, the last of three train stations that once stood near the Broad Street railroad crossing.

One of the first things they did was ask other town organizations to join them. Two major ones, Griffith Community Spirit and the Griffith Junior Woman’s Club, heeded the call.

They also approached the Town Board for help, and Trustee Merle Colby became the man on point.

Of major concern to the group was raising the funds to move the Depot, and the group approached local business for contributions or for in-kind items or services.

But equally concerning was, if the group was able to save the Depot, where would they put it?

Martha Gatlin recalled, “We felt it was important to keep the Depot visible to drivers who were stopped for one of the many trains that came through Griffith on the then-eleven tracks. And to keep the building close to the town’s operational rail lines.”

Many years later, this decision ended up being a major factor in the Society’s favor when we applied for the Depot to be put on the National Register Of Historic Places and the Indiana Register of Historic Sites and Structures.

But finding such a site back then wasn’t easy for the group. Finally, Howard Anderson discovered a small patch of vacant land on the corner of Avenue A and Broad Street.

Further investigation at the courthouse revealed no one had a claim on the land, nor did anyone have a deed to it.

“We immediately claimed it!” Martha stated, “And the stage was set to move the Depot onto it.”

Some years later, it was discovered that the property was once part of a street named Travis Avenue. For some unknown reason, the street ended up going in a different direction, leaving the open space behind. The street also ended up with a different name — Avenue A.

Whatever the reason for this happening, it sure was a bit of serendipity working for us early on.

In January, 1980, the last remaining Griffith depot was safely moved to that empty spot of land right next to the railroad tracks.

The original use for the Depot was as a storage place for Community Spirit’s Christmas decorations. Before long, a more noble use for the Depot would be decided on.

And so would begin a new history for that heretofore unwanted Depot and the abandoned patch of land.

Also part of the group dedicated to saving the Depot but not mentioned in this article were Kathy Anderson, Donna Gonzalez and Ray Anderson (no relation to Kathy.)

Read more 👉
Society Sagas: https://ghsinc.org/category/society-saga/
Tales of the Tower: https://ghsinc.org/category/the-tower/
Tales of the Town: https://ghsinc.org/category/tales-of-the-town/
History Notes: https://ghsinc.org/category/history-notes/

December 23, 2025March 2, 2026 victoriavm Activities, Blog Posts, Depot & Train Museums, Franklin Center Museum, Fundraiser, Griffith Depot and Historical Park, Santa in the Caboose, Sundays at the Depot, Support the History Museums, Parks, & Rail-Cam, Volunteer

Thanks for a great Santa in Caboose!

🎄Happy Holidays and a very Merry Christmas from the Griffith Historical Society!
🎅Thank you to everyone who braved the cold and came out to Santa in the Caboose!! From our volunteers to those of you who visited and left a donation, we couldn’t do it without you!
🚂As a non-profit, volunteer-run organization, all of your donations go directly to the upkeep of the Train & Depot Museums and the Town History Museum at the Franklin Center. We appreciate you and your support!

November 20, 2025November 18, 2025 victoriavm Activities, Depot & Train Museums, Fundraiser, Griffith Depot and Historical Park, Santa in the Caboose, Sundays at the Depot, Support the History Museums, Parks, & Rail-Cam, Volunteer

Santa in the Caboose 2025

Mark your calendars for this year’s
🎅 𝐒𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐀 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐒𝐄! 🚃
➜ 𝑺𝒂𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒅𝒂𝒚, 𝑫𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 13: 10 𝒂.𝒎. 𝒕𝒐 3 𝒑.𝒎.
➜ 𝑺𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒚, 𝑫𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 14: 𝒏𝒐𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒐 3 𝒑.𝒎.
💸 Give a donation to see Santa (our 28th annual!) and support the upkeep (and heating!) of the Historical Park!
📸 Take as many personal photos & videos as you’d like!
🍪 Be sure to shop our Holiday Bake Sale and holiday stocking stuffers as well!
*𝘞𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥, 𝘸𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘪𝘻𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘸 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘤𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘦. 𝘞𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘵𝘰𝘴, 𝘴𝘰 𝘱𝘶𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘴𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘳 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘢 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴!

Want to volunteer for the event? Email us at [email protected]!

September 21, 2025 victoriavm Depot & Train Museums, Griffith Depot and Historical Park, Monarch Waystation, Sundays at the Depot

News From the Griffith Junction Butterfly Stop!

The Superfantastical Monarch Journey

The monarch butterflies fluttering about aren’t just casual flutterers. They are the last to be born in 2025, and they are ‘super monarchs.’

Right now, they are busy sipping up nectar they, so as to build up fat reserves in their bodies. You see, these particular butterflies were born to do a seemly impossible job.

They, and millions of other super monarchs, fly 1200 miles to a fir tree forest in central Mexico between August and November. And the continuation of their existence in the northeastern states depends upon their safe arrival.

These butterflies do have some ‘super powers’ to help them accomplish their task.

– Because of this journey, a super monarch will live far longer than the 2 to 5 weeks normal monarch butterflies do.
– These butterflies are born with larger wings and are capable of flying 50 to 100 miles in a single day, weather permitting.
– It is believed they were born with an internal sun compass or magnetic compass to guide them to Central America.
– They can fly at speeds of 5 to 25 miles an hour for 4-6 hours a day, gliding on currents of warm air called thermals, to conserve energy when possible.

At the end of each day of their journey, the butterflies will seek out nectar from the flowers to fuel their next-day trip. Once that is accomplished, they will spend the night in trees, clustered together for protection.

It will take the monarchs who leave from Indiana 5 to 7 weeks to make the trip to that Mexican forest Oyamel fir tree forest.

Once there, they, and millions of other super monarchs, will blanket the fir trees for warmth and to conserve energy. Thereafter, they will enter a state of dormancy, allowing them to survive the winter.

We wish all these spectacular insects a safe trip.

🦋Join us in May 2026 to celebrate these incredible creatures at our 2nd Annual Butterfly Day at the Griffith Historical Park, featuring our Monarch Waystation, the Griffith Junction Butterfly Stop.

(If you come visit our Monarch Waystation at the Depot, we ask that you do so respectfully. Please don’t touch the plants, insects, or disturb the habitat in any way. Thank you!)

photos by Jeanette Bobos and Ken Krick

September 17, 2025 victoriavm Activities, Barrel Train, Central Market, Depot & Train Museums, Franklin Center Museum, Fundraiser, Griffith Depot and Historical Park, Sundays at the Depot, Support the History Museums, Parks, & Rail-Cam, Town History Museum, Volunteer

This weekend!

It’s a busy weekend for the Historical Society!!
🚂Friday – LAST Barrel Train at Central Market for the Season!
🚂Saturday – Barrel Train at Safety Day at Central Park!
🏛️Saturday – The TOWN HISTORY Museum at the Franklin Center will be open!
🛤️Sunday – Visit the Depot and Train Museums! Tour guides will be available. Parents of Beiriger 3rd Graders – come see what your kids learned this week!

September 15, 2025March 2, 2026 victoriavm Blog Posts, Depot & Train Museums, Fundraiser, Griffith Depot and Historical Park, Griffith History, History Notes, Society Saga, Support the History Museums, Parks, & Rail-Cam, Tales of the Town, The Tower

𝐎𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐔𝐩𝐨𝐧 𝐚 𝐓𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 – 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟒

𝙊𝙪𝙧 𝙎𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙩𝙮 𝙎𝙖𝙜𝙖 – 𝙎𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙏𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧
𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩𝐞𝐝 𝐮𝐬 𝐬𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫!

It was 25 years ago, and we are still grateful to everyone who donated time and money to help us preserve the Tower and save it from demolition.

Thanks to the businesses and banks that allowed us to put donation jars on their counters, and thanks to all the Griffith residents who put money in the jars! Thanks to all the Historical Society members, who volunteered every step of the way, and of course, thank you to all the people and businesses who donated money towards this gigantic project!

It was really a town-wide effort, and is a monument to the spirit of Griffith!

August 9, 2025March 2, 2026 victoriavm Blog Posts, Depot & Train Museums, Griffith Depot and Historical Park, Griffith History, Support the History Museums, Parks, & Rail-Cam, Tales of the Town, The Tower

𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄’𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘

The man who said those words almost every night on the radio was a man named Paul Harvey. When he took notice of Joe Miller, he was the most-listened-to radio broadcaster in America, heard by 25 million people every day.

From his studios in Chicago, Illinois, Harvey would every day diligently sift through news reports available to newspapers and radio broadcasters. He was looking for compelling stories that might have been overlooked by other media outlets.

In early January, 1947, he found such a story, and it happened just 25 miles away in Griffith, Indiana.

Harvey’s programs were carried by 1,200 radio stations, plus an additional 400 stations of American Forces Radio. Famous well into the 1980’s, he had a popular syndicated newspaper column and a TV program.

Here’s the rest of Joe’s story, Paul Harvey’s tribute to Griffith’s own, Joe Miller, was broadcast on January 8, 1947.

August 7, 2025March 2, 2026 victoriavm Blog Posts, Depot & Train Museums, Griffith Depot and Historical Park, Griffith History, Support the History Museums, Parks, & Rail-Cam, Tales of the Town, The Tower

𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐝𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫

𝙅𝙤𝙚 𝙈𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙧’𝙨 𝙎𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮

𝗙𝗶𝗿𝗲!

A fear that is universal to all of us, but must have run deeper for men like Joe Miller, who worked in Griffith’s 30-ft-tall Elgin Joliet and Eastern Railway interlocking tower.

You can imagine Joe’s terror that evening in early January, 1947, when smoke began pouring from the tower’s automatic switching controls. With more than 20 years a towerman, he immediately tried to put the fire out himself.

When that failed, and with no other way to alert the nearest depot, he ran down the tower stairs, knowing he was losing time with every step.

When the firemen arrived, all volunteers, Joe returned with them to the tower room despite Fire Chief Robert McFarland’s efforts to restrain him.

“I have go up there,” he told the Chief. “I’m the only one who knows how to shut off the controls that will flag oncoming trains to stop.”
So, Joe Miller went back into the smoky tower room again and did what he had to do. He again went down that long string of stairs and was taken to the local doctor’s office.

He was coughing hard and often, and the doctor called Highland to use their Pullmotoran. But even that, an early type of ventilator to assist with breathing difficulties, didn’t help.

Sadly, the time spent in the tower room inhaling smoke and chemical fumes from burning burning electrical wires had vanquished Joe’s lungs and heart.

In the tradition of railroad men for generations, Joe Miller had done his duty, and gave his life heroically in doing so.
Newspaper articles praised his bravery and dedication to saving lives.

One newspaper ran an editorial suggesting Joe be nominated for a Carnegie Hero Award. Named after philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, it is presented “to individuals in the United States and Canada who risk death or serious physical injury to an extraordinary degree saving or attempting to save the lives of others.”

Joe Miller did not receive that award, but he did receive notice from a man that some might say was equal in fame to Mr. Carnegie.

The upper room of the Griffith Centennial Tower Museum is dedicated to Mr. Miller’s memory as the Joseph Miller Tower Room.

Come back to find out the rest of the story.

August 1, 2025March 2, 2026 victoriavm Blog Posts, Depot & Train Museums, Griffith Depot and Historical Park, Griffith History, Society Saga, Support the History Museums, Parks, & Rail-Cam, Tales of the Town, The Tower

𝐎𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐔𝐩𝐨𝐧 𝐚 𝐓𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 – 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟑

𝙊𝙪𝙧 𝙎𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙩𝙮 𝙎𝙖𝙜𝙖 – 𝙎𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙏𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧
𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬
𝘣𝘺 𝘒𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯 𝘒𝘶𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘬𝘪

You know you’re reeeeeally in need of cash when you take money from school kids. But that’s what we did 25 years ago, and we did it twice.

To be honest, we were honored to do it. Because, in both of the cases, the students wanted to give us money for the tower and they worked to do it.

Seventh-graders, in the then Griffith Junior/Senior High School, held a walkathon from the school to our Historical Park and back, earning us more than $500. And the Beiriger Elementary School students held a Penny War for us.

Come to find out every year back then, the Beiriger Student Council voted on one project to support. In the year 2000, they chose our Griffith Tower.

“We felt saving the tower was important to the town,” said Student Council president Ashley Korak, when interviewed for a newspaper article. “With so few towers left, we want to preserve ours.”

Note: When Ashley said those words, there were 177 towers still in operation in North America. Twenty-five years later, there are fewer than 50.

The Penny War worked like this: Each grade was given a big jar into which students deposited pennies into their particular jars every day for a week. All the jars were kept in the school foyer, and at the end of the week, a total $518.72 from all the jars was given to the tower.

The 5th graders donated the most pennies, with the 6th grade coming in 2nd place, and the 3rd graders taking 3rd.

Griffith Historical Society President Delores Smessaert, in the photo here, thanks all the students. “So much work needs to be done in this 76-year-old building,” she went on, “and your donation will go a long way in helping us install a new heating system.”

July 30, 2025March 2, 2026 victoriavm Blog Posts, Depot & Train Museums, Griffith Depot and Historical Park, Griffith History, Society Saga, Support the History Museums, Parks, & Rail-Cam, The Tower, Volunteer

𝐎𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐔𝐩𝐨𝐧 𝐚 𝐓𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 – 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟐

𝙊𝙪𝙧 𝙎𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙩𝙮 𝙎𝙖𝙜𝙖 – 𝙎𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙏𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧
𝘣𝘺 𝘒𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯 𝘒𝘶𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘬𝘪

How does a group of “not the youngest of people” raise thousands upon thousands of dollars in just 7 months?

First of all, we bought a banner that said HELP US SAVE AND MOVE OUR TOWER!

Then we called on the Griffith Fire Department and asked them to put up the banner for us. The idea was everyone would see our message while waiting for trains to pass at our crossing.

This was in the year 2000. The internet and social media were in their infancies. So, how did one get the word out beyond our town?

We called the newspapers, who graciously published stories and photos about our efforts.

The very next day, the president of the Griffith Saving Bank called and gave us $1,000.

We were on our way!

Next, we wrote letters to any and all local, state and federal foundations, including the Lily Endowment.

Donald Trump had a casino boat in Griffith, so we contacted him. He gave us $100.

In the end, though, most donations came right from our town.

The schools stepped up. Beiriger held a Penny War that earned over $500.

The Griffith Junior/Senior High School had a walk-a-thon from their schools to our Historical Park and back. They raised over $500 for us.

We even had the honor to be written up in a newspaper column by Bo Kane, who grew up in Griffith and had a grandmother who lived right by.

Town organizations sent donations, and stores and businesses contributed to our cause.

Many of them put out Save The Tower mugs for us, so people we didn’t even know could donate to us.

Towns people who once worked for railroads or had a railroading heritage were very generous.

And friends from out of town, the Blackhawk Railway Historical Society, procured a $5,000 National Railway Heritage Grant for us.

The support we got from everyone was overwhelming and we will be forever grateful to them.

We were especially so on July 20th, 2000, when Dillabaugh, Inc. did what seemed impossible and moved a three story bright tower.

Out onto Broad Street at 9 o’clock, across the tracks and onto our property by lunchtime, standing above the new foundation at quitting time.

And the box of soap that was on a shelf in the upper room never moved. It was still in place when the boards were later removed and the building was opened up!

A historic job done by everybody involved, well done and ahead of schedule.