Meridian Street (Indianapolis)
 North Meridian Street (left) as seen from the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument observation deck | |
| Owner |
|
|---|---|
| Location | Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. |
| South end | County Line Road |
| North end | 96th Street |
Meridian Street is the primary north–south street in Indianapolis, Indiana.
US 31 formerly ran along North Meridian Street for much of its length in the city of Indianapolis, before being re-routed to a segment of Interstate 465. Meridian Street serves as the axis separating east addresses from west addresses, and intersects Monument Circle and Washington Street in downtown. North of downtown, Meridian continues through several prominent city neighborhoods, such as the Midtown commercial district, the Old Northside, Herron-Morton, Butler–Tarkington, Meridian-Kessler, and Arden, and the towns of Meridian Hills and Williams Creek.
Meridian Street also passes through several historic districts: the North Meridian Street Historic District, the Old Northside Historic District, the Shortridge–Meridian Street Apartments Historic District, the Washington Street–Monument Circle Historic District, and the Indianapolis Union Station-Wholesale District.
In 1919, property owners on Meridian Street from Monument Circle to the Central Canal proposed converting the street into a boulevard and putting it under the jurisdiction of the parks board to preserve its residential character. However, the increased demand for commercial property for an expanding downtown led to the proposal being defeated as property owners in the southern portion of the proposed boulevard sold their property to business interests. Nevertheless, in the early 1920s the portion of the street from Fall Creek to the canal was transferred to the parks board and a 25-foot (7.6 m) setback for new construction was imposed.[1] In conjunction with the original proposal, an unsuccessful attempt was made to change the name of the street to Lincoln Boulevard in order to honor Abraham Lincoln in the same way that Washington Street honored George Washington.[1]
North of 40th Street to 57th Street, Meridian Street is considered to be among the most prestigious residential streets in Indiana.[2] Some of the most impressive residential architecture in the United States can be found here, in a variety of architectural styles. The current Governor's Mansion can be found here, as well as the house that served as Governor's Mansion prior to the current house.[3] The North Meridian Street Historic District is among the most affluent urban neighborhoods in the U.S., with a mean household income of $102,599 in 2017.[4]
North of Indianapolis, Meridian Street continues into the suburbs of Carmel and Westfield.
Notable addresses
[edit]- Balmoral Court
- Barnes and Thornburg Building
- Birch Bayh Federal Building and United States Courthouse
- The Blacherne
- The Buckingham
- Central Library
- The Children's Museum of Indianapolis
- Circle Centre Mall
- Coulter Flats
- George Stumpf House
- Indiana Governor's Residence
- Indiana World War Memorial Plaza
- The Indianapolis Star
- IU Health North Medical Center
- Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana
- Joseph J. Cole Jr. House
- Marott Hotel
- Monument Circle
- Morrison Block
- Saint James Court Apartments
- Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral
- Salesforce Tower
- Schnull–Rauch House
- Scottish Rite Cathedral
- Second Presbyterian Church
- Shortridge High School
- Slippery Noodle Inn
- Spink Arms Hotel
- H. P. Wasson & Company Building
- William N. Thompson House
References
[edit]- ^ a b Cierzniak, Libby (October 18, 2014). "Indianapolis Collected: A Road By Any Other Name". Historic Indianapolis | All Things Indianapolis History. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
- ^ "About the Meridian Street Foundation". The Meridian Street Foundation. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
- ^ "Governor's Residence History". State of Indiana. Archived from the original on August 28, 2019. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
- ^ "High Income Urban Neighborhoods", higley1000.com, Higley 1000, retrieved September 17, 2017
