History
Thousands of cars pass through the intersection of Meridian Street, Meridian Hills Boulevard, and 71st Street every day. For decades, passersby have been perplexed by the wooded property in the northwest quadrant of that corner.
Thomas Jackson bought the land from the federal government in 1834. The owner was identified as J. C. Mahan in the 1855 Marion County Atlas. The owner was identified as John H. Ditman in the 1889 Indianapolis and Marion County Atlas.
By the 1940 Census, three of the four adult children of Lafayette Andrew Jackson (1863-1931), the founder of the Standard Grocery Store business, lived on the property. Jackson's daughter Charlotte and her husband Carl Baldwin, as well as Jackson's sons Chester and Howard, were among those who lived there.
At the time of his death, L. A. Jackson owned 226 grocery stores. Lafayette's children took over the chain after his unexpected death at the age of 68. Chester, the older son, became president of Standard Grocery in 1931. In 1952, he married Marguerite "Marjorie" O'Connell. A few blocks away, on a big corner property at 6490 Spring Mill Road, the couple built their own home.
Carl and Charlotte (Jackson) Baldwin remained at the house until their deaths in 1951 and 1959, respectively. 7102 N. Meridian Street was listed as "No Return" in Indianapolis city directories in the early 1960s, indicating that it was either vacant or tenant-occupied at the time.
The property was then deeded to Charlotte Baldwin’s nephew (and Lafayette A. Jackson’s grandson), Edward J. Wiest. Edward’s father, Edward H. Wiest, was the husband of Lafayette Jackson’s fourth child, daughter Marguerite. Upon the death of the younger Edward Wiest, the property was then deeded to his sister, Elizabeth (Wiest) Johnson (Mrs. Sylvester Johnson III). She is the chairperson of the annual Traders Point Hunt Charity Horse Show. Currently, the property is owned by Meridian Pointe LLC.
*Freeland, S. B. (2013, April 16). HI Mailbag: North Meridian Street and Meridian Hills Boulevard. Historic Indianapolis. https://historicindianapolis.com/hi-mailbag-meridian-street-and-meridian-hills-boulevard/
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