It’s not too late to tell the story

Editor’s note: This column is being republished from Dec. 28, 2005. Jack had a gift for telling stories, from those written in the newspaper to those he penned just for his children and grandchildren each Christmas. Let this column be a reminder to make sure the stories of those in your life don’t slip away.

No one likes to learn that a story has slipped through the cracks, even if it slipped away decades ago.

That’s what happened with Walter Scholer.

As far as I can tell, during his lifetime Scholer’s story was never adequately reported by The Commercial Review or any other news medium.

Oh, there were stories here and there. The alumni publications at Purdue University made a gallant effort late in Scholer’s life. But in his home community, Walter Scholer remains a largely unknown figure.

Ralph May would like to change that.

Ralph is a perennial sparkplug at the Jay County Historical Society, and because Scholer grew up in Ralph’s Madison Township he’s become something of a cause for May. He wants to make sure that Walter Scholer doesn’t fade into the mists of local history but continues to be remembered.

Who was Walter Scholer?

Even folks well-grounded enough in Jay County history to fill you in on TV entertainer Jack Imel, pro football player Pete Brewster, or dancer/choreographer Twyla Tharp may draw a blank when you mention the name.

That’s probably because Scholer wasn’t working in the limelight.

He was an architect.

But he wasn’t just any architect.

He was one of the most prolific architects in Indiana history, and he designed countless public buildings.

After growing up in Jay County and attending Columbia University, Scholer first worked for architectural firms in Indianapolis before joining partnership in Lafayette. Soon, he left the partnership and established his own Lafayette-based company.

It was there that he did some of his most remarkable work.

Ever heard of Ross-Ade Stadium at Purdue University? Scholer designed it.

How about Mackey Arena? You guessed it, a Scholer design.

In fact, he was responsible for designing and building more than 75 structures at Purdue, including Cary Quad, Elliott Hall of Music, McCutcheon Hall, and many more.

Back in 1920, when those buildings didn’t exist, Scholer was tapped to develop a 50-year master plan for Purdue, laying out the campus and designing a number of buildings.

It was a visionary move, and when huge amounts of federal funding became available via the Public Works Administration in the Depression, Purdue was able to put in place much of its campus in one frenzy of construction. At one point, six Scholer-designed buildings were under construction simultaneously.

But Scholer’s architectural design work wasn’t limited to Purdue. His firm designed a number of structures on the Ball State University campus as well. Emens Auditorium was designed by Scholer’s firm, though he was in his 70s by then.

And Bracken House, now the home of the president of Ball State, was designed by Scholer for the Bracken family in the 1930s.

Locally, Scholer designed three buildings, two of which are gone now.

The first was the old Madison School, which met the wrecking ball in the late 1960s or early 1970s. The second was the 1925 Portland High School, which was misguidedly razed a few years ago to make room for a more modern section of East Jay Middle School.

The third? It’s the Weiler Building in downtown Portland, and the good news is that it’s about to get a new lease on life. Work on cleaning and securing the building will begin early next year, and a capital fund drive will soon be under way to transform the former department store structure into a new home for John Jay Center for Learning.

It’s one of Scholer’s most beautiful buildings from that period, much less utilitarian than the Purdue structures designed at the same time.

And it’s only fitting that the county has a jewel in its crown designed by one of its own.