The barndo is not that far from downtown, but I rarely even pass through. Most of the time, we go north instead of south for groceries, doctor appointments and more. We did pass through the other night though, just before dark. The moon was already set in the sky, and the street with lit with a golden glow.
The historic building has yet to be rehabbed.
The dilapidated building on the corner in the center of town is an Indiana landmark. Built in 1891, it was originally an apothecary and pharmacy with the Odd Fellows Lodge on the upper floor. I remember when the library was housed there before construction on their new building was completed and dedicated in 1992.
In 2015, Indiana Landmarks took on the building. They used the funds set aside by the Town for demolition to fix the roof, rebuild the windows and make other repairs. In 2022, it was then sold to a Scott County couple who said they planned to rehab the upstairs as apartments and lease the first floor as a restaurant.
3 years later and there’s certainly no restaurant.
I can’t claim there aren’t apartments upstairs because I don’t know. I can promise you there isn’t a restaurant downstairs. I assume the proceeds from the sale bypassed local government, leaving the old building still standing… still dilapidated… and was invested by Indiana Landmarks to further their mission somewhere outside of good ole’ C’ville. 😏
No matter the conditions of the buildings, my hometown community is so much better than what’s outlined in Wikipedia.
Now you know: The Crothersville Library had a book brigade in 1992 to move materials from one end of the block to the new building on the other end of the block. “We couldn’t have done it without our community volunteers!”