Indianapolis' Mass Ave, Indiana

– John McGivern: I’m in the capital of Indiana.

A city with a very famous speedway and a knack for reinventing itself.

– Announcer: We thank the underwriters of John McGivern’s Main Streets because without them, we couldn’t make this show.

[upbeat music] – There’s always something shining bright in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin.

– My father taught me that to make great bakery, you have to do it the right way.

O&H Danish Bakery, where kringle traditions begin.

[gentle music] – Yes, Greendale is beautiful on the outside.

But it’s what’s inside that counts.

Who doesn’t love opening a door to beautiful treasures?

Whether you’re a collector, in need of the perfect gift, or would like something special for yourself.

Come on in!

You just gotta see Greendale.

– Visit Oconomowoc.

Lakes, festivals, shopping, dining.

The heart of lake country.

– Your community’s best selfie spot is Your-Type!

– The Wisconsin Northwoods are calling.

One word, one place.

Minocqua.

– Announcer: John McGivern’s Main Streets is grateful for additional financial support from Horicon Bank: The Natural Choice, West Bend Insurance Company: The Silver Lining, our nonprofit, the Friends of Main Streets, and from the Friends of PBS Wisconsin.

Thanks, underwriters.

‘Cause these are our Main Streets Something ’bout a hometown speaks to me There’s nowhere else I’d rather be The heart and soul of community’s right here On these Main Streets – Indianapolis is the capital of Indiana and its largest city.

In fact, Indianapolis is one of the largest cities in the entire Midwest, with a population of 887,000 people.

Indianapolis is smack dab in the middle of the state, where three freeways meet.

In this episode, we are going to focus on the east side, Massachusetts Avenue.

Or as locals call it, Mass Ave. – Emmy Fink: We have a fun twist on the history of Indianapolis with its many nicknames.

But we need some props.

– Yes.

– Did you bring my postcards?

– I did.

Here we go!

Indy.

– All right, perfect.

Short for Indianapolis.

Which is named after the state, which is named after the Indians because Native Americans have lived here for centuries.

– That’s the first.

– Yup.

Oh, next one.

– Indianapolis, the Circle City.

– Yes!

So back in 1821, they designed it with a circle in the center, right.

– John: Monument Circle, right?

– Emmy: You’ve got it, yes.

– Hold please.

The racing capital of the world, because it’s home to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

– Yes, and of course, we all know the Indy 500, but they also have a NASCAR race, the Brick 400.

– Is that right?

– Yes.

– Hold on, I love this one.

Crossroads of America.

– I mean, Indiana is so centrally located, right?

So it makes sense that it really became a transportation hub once the railroads came.

Business was booming, but like a lot of cities in the Rust Belt, decades later, guess what, it was hard times.

Plants were closing, jobs were lost, big employers left town.

But this is how they earned their next nickname.

Diamond in the Rust.

– Diamond in the Rust!

It makes sense.

– Isn’t that cute?

– Yeah.

– Because they always found a way to bounce back.

– John: What we’re gonna focus on is the northeast area, Massachusetts Avenue, which used to be a really big manufacturing center.

Now it’s become great and fun and cool.

Do you wanna go?

– Great, fun, and cool, yes!

– Come on!

– Yes!

– Do you ever meet anyone and think, “He’s got the best job in the whole world.”

And what do you do for a living?

– Sampson Levingston: I lead walk and talks.

So walking history tours all over the great city of Indianapolis.

And it’s my favorite thing to do in the world.

– John: And this is your full-time job?

– Sampson: Yeah, that’s what I do.

I do, like, 10, 12 different neighborhoods here in Indianapolis.

You know, all over the city.

– Where are we right this minute?

– Right now, we’re on Massachusetts Ave.

So this is all interconnected by our Cultural Trail.

Indianapolis, about 15 years ago, decided let’s try to prioritize the pedestrian and reconnect downtown Indianapolis.

And the Cultural Trail does just that.

And I think that’s one of the things that really helped bring this downtown district back.

– It feels very cool down here, doesn’t it?

– No, it is, it is.

This is where the cool people are, so welcome.

– Can we talk about her?

– Yeah.

– Who is that?

– We talk about Ann Dancing.

She’s been on the Cultural Trail for almost 20 years now.

Ann Dancing is dancing at four different paces all around.

It depends where you catch her, John, it really does.

– Now you’re scaring me.

Most of these are original buildings?

– Yes, you can tell from looking at which ones are a little bit newer.

But Indianapolis is really proud of what we’ve created down here.

Okay, all these neighborhoods are walkable.

And we’re starting to realize the value in that, the connectivity in that.

And we’re starting to create more and more of these walkable neighborhoods.

History connects us in Indianapolis, and so I love when I’m learning.

– And it’s important to talk about that history, because that history led to what’s today.

What is this?

– The Murat Shriners Temple.

The largest in the country.

This one went up in 1909.

– John: And it’s still active?

– Yes, still active, still shows there almost every single weekend.

And so it’s a big part of our city.

I never wanna leave.

I never wanna go anywhere else.

I love this place.

I love learning about this place.

I love learning about its people.

I think it’s the greatest city in the world.

– And a perfect job for you.

– Yes, it is.

Every day, I get to learn more about my city and my community and myself.

– You’re terrific.

– Thank you, man.

Thank you, thank you.

– On Mass Avenue, you’re bound to run into famous locals.

And let me tell you something, they are larger than life.

Kurt Vonnegut, author of Cat’s Cradle, Slaughterhouse-Five.

Born and raised in Indy.

Mari Evans, who was an author and a poet who came to fame in the 1960s and ’70s.

And her work emphasized African-American culture and social justice.

And Reggie Miller, who played for the Indiana Pacers for 18 years.

He was one of the greatest shooters in the history of the NBA.

Yeah, and no wonder.

He’s 60 feet tall!

We’re at a company called Volumod.

And it’s a great story.

Modular home refers to exactly what?

– Ryan Scott: Basically a product that’s built in modules, sections.

– John: How long does it take you to build a house?

– Ryan: We’re able to produce a module from framing the floor to a finished product in about 13 working days.

– Thirteen working days, that’s kind of remarkable, isn’t it?

– It is crazy, isn’t it?

– Yeah.

And let’s talk mission.

– Jennifer Smith: Yes, our real mission is to restore hope.

We want to increase affordable housing in Indiana, which is a huge crisis nationwide.

– So Fred, they wanted me to talk to you because they think you know what you’re doing.

Isn’t that good?

– Fred Hatton: Well, that’s good.

I’m fair for a square.

[both laughing] – Good!

What do you do here?

– Fred: I do the electrical.

I do the panels, I do the switches.

The receptacles.

– Let’s also talk mission of workforce.

– Jennifer: We believe in the power of transformation.

– Really, our pride and joy is our second chance program.

That includes people that have been incarcerated.

That includes people that are recovering from addiction.

And it also includes veterans.

If you’ve got a record, you can’t find a place to live, you can’t find a job.

And so a lot of times, that leads ’em right back to where they’re at.

– They interviewed me for this job while I was in prison.

– John: While you were in prison?

– Fred: Yes.

And so actually, when I came out, I came home to a job.

– We have wraparound services, so we offer, like, counseling and coaching.

And we say, “Well, what do you need coming out of incarceration?”

– When you get ready to find yourself in a position to get out of prison, you’ve gotta have a plan and you’ve gotta have a support group.

– John: A support.

– A support system.

– Yeah.

– Yeah, you’ve gotta have support.

– We’re unashamedly a Christian-based organization.

We feel like its our duty to give back to the community.

We’ve got some phenomenal success stories.

Volumod was really their last chance.

– Coming from where I come from, you learn to have an appreciation for a company like this who’s willing to take a chance.

And I value that.

I mean, it makes you just wanna come to work.

– We have found another nickname for Indianapolis.

Nap Town.

So back in the ’20s, this area was a really big jazz scene.

And Black musicians shortened Indianapolis to Nap Town.

The locals are reclaiming it, as you can see here at Nap or Nothing.

So, grab a T-shirt, grab a hat.

Just get back to it, because there’s no time for a nap.

– I’m in the oldest continuously operating shoe store in the country.

I think I wanna try these on.

What do you think?

Come on.

I bet we can find help, because this place is known for its service.

You’ve been in this location for how long, this shoe store?

– Stephanie Stout: Since 1886.

– Say it one more time.

– 1886, it’s unbelievable.

We opened in this location.

We’ve never moved, never closed.

And we are still here.

– Congratulations.

– Thank you.

– John: Why is this such a great place to shop for shoes?

– Stephanie: We kind of cater to everyone.

Just so many widths and sizes and styles.

Being measured and fitted is really important.

– Has the art of measuring changed?

– No.

– No.

– It’s still, it’s the Brannock device.

It hasn’t changed.

Okay, if you could put your right foot on there.

All the way to the back and stand up for me real straight and tall.

So this is the one that you were admiring?

– Oh, how’d you know?

– Lucky guess, I guess.

– Are my feet the same size?

– They actually were really close to each other, yeah.

– They’re kind of perfect with my outfit.

They feel really good, too.

– They look nice, John.

– Thank you.

– This is a 22 wide.

– Oh!

– And this was a prototype for Shaquille O’Neal when he was first in the NBA.

– I feel tiny!

Customer-wise, do you have generations of people who are like, this is where I shop?

– Absolutely.

A lot of people still remember the baskets.

– John: The baskets?

– Stephanie: Yes.

– And how’s it work?

– I’ve made the sale.

So you’ve given me your cash.

– Okay.

– I’ve given you a token that matches this.

We’re putting the cash in here.

– John: This is the actual cash box.

– This is the cash box.

Now we are sending it up to the office staff so they can check it and wrap it and make your change.

– John: And when were they put in?

– Stephanie: 1920s.

A lot of people still enjoy it.

– I’ve never been in a place that had a shop bird.

[bird squawking] – In the basement, we have all the handwritten receipts.

$68 in a size 12 B.

– Aisle after aisle.

– Yes.

Just full of thousands of pairs of shoes.

– What are your hopes for the future?

– It’s definitely a legacy business, and we just hope to keep it going as long as we can.

With your best shoe, you are your best you.

[laughing] – From 1974 to 1999, the Marketplace Arena stood downtown and it looked like this.

One of the world’s greatest performers gave his last performance right here.

Who was he?

[playful music] – No one knew it at the time, but Indy was the last chance to see the King, Elvis Presley.

He performed here on June 26, 1977, but died less than two months later.

So right behind me was where the Market Square Arena used to be.

It is now a Whole Foods.

So I’m gonna go inside and I’m gonna get a peanut butter and banana sandwich, which was Elvis’ favorite.

– Okay, what is this missing?

No, not me.

I.

Get it?

We’re in the lobby of this beautiful hotel called Bottleworks Hotel.

– Josh Rodgers: We’re definitely in a 1931 Coca-Cola bottling plant.

It’s written on the exterior of the building.

– John: And it was the largest one in the U.S. in the late 1940s?

– Yeah, in the late 1940s, early ’50s.

And at one point, they were bottling, I believe, somewhere upwards of two million bottles.

– John: And how long was Coke here?

– Josh: Up through the early ’60s.

They then sold it and Indianapolis Public School System owned this property up until 2017.

– John: The vision to turn into what it is.

– Josh: Yeah, in any of these sorts of situations, there’s two roads, right?

Like you either tear it down, or you honor what’s here.

And they’ve done a great job, I think, of kind of doing both.

They’re craftsmen, the folks who helped bring this back to life.

– John: How long have you been doing this?

– Josh: I’ve been here at Bottleworks since we opened in 2020.

And I’ve been the general manager now for a little over two years.

– Good job.

– Thank you.

– This is gorgeous, isn’t it?

– Yeah, it’s stunning.

Again, it’s all been here since 1931.

– John: How many rooms do you have?

– Josh: We have 139 rooms.

And 84 of those are on the original second floor.

And then we have another 55 on the third floor.

– John: The doors?

– This is where we give a little bit of respect to the Coca-Cola name on these, yeah.

This is automobile paint.

If we ever fix or work on these, we send ’em to a body shop.

– Really?

– Yeah.

All of our rooms are decorated in a similar fashion.

The focus is just being comfortable and welcoming and warm, you know.

– John: What a great complex this is.

– Josh: This Coca-Cola bottling plant district is 12 acres.

– John: And what is happening in what you call The Garage?

– Josh: So that was truly the garage for all of the trucks.

– John: Mm-hmm.

– Josh: And then recently, it’s become something quite different.

There’s over 21 different food and drink vendors in there and tangent with the hotel itself, I mean, it makes the district a space that you don’t need to leave.

– There are large employers, and there are large employers.

This is Lilly.

We all know Lilly.

It started here in 1876 with three employees.

Today, it employs over 12,000 people in Indianapolis.

Lilly is well-known in this community for supporting the community.

So if you’re exploring Indianapolis, take a look around.

You will see signs that say, “Supported by Lilly.”

What is this restaurant, what do you serve?

– Taelor Carmine: So we are a Thai craft cocktail bar and traditional Thai food.

– What does that include?

– So traditional Thai food is something that we all grew up enjoy eating together and cooking together.

It’s authentic and traditional, and it’s enjoyable by my family and hopefully the Indy community.

– John: Right.

– Taelor: But it’s always been my dream and my family’s dreams to have a place like this.

– John: Is there family involved?

– Taelor: My mom and my grandmother.

My mom cooks in the kitchen every day.

She cook a lot of the same thing that my grandmother cooked.

So our menu pretty much focus on traditional.

– Your grandma’s stuff.

– Recipe.

– Your room is beautiful.

– Thank you.

– This is a beautiful restaurant.

– Taelor: We have a really nice indoor dining and also a very nice outdoor dining as well.

– How did you make your way to Indianapolis?

How did this become home?

– I was here since 1999.

Moved to the U.S. with my mom, and then I’ve been here ever since.

– Yeah, you were a baby.

– This is my home.

This is my home now.

– You have craft cocktails?

– Dalton Lineback: Yes.

– John: So when somebody calls it a craft drink, how is that different than any other drink?

– I would say craft is just much more intentional.

We are not just throwing ingredients in a tin.

You know, there’s lots of research and development.

It’s gonna get some pineapple juice.

Some jasmine honey coconut cream.

It’s important that people are coming here and being able to get something that they’re gonna enjoy, that’s gonna be fun.

[shakers rattling] [John laughing] – Look at that!

Yum!

So you make bartending seem like an art.

– It is.

– It is.

– Hi.

The drunken noodles.

And this dish is usually served pretty spicy.

– I like spicy.

– Taelor: Well… – Not crazy spicy, though.

This is getting interesting.

[laughing] This, just so you know, is my favorite part.

– And this is our pad thai.

Probably the most popular dish from Thailand here in the States.

– Yeah.

– And you know, in Thailand, we definitely like to do communal style.

That’s how we do it in Thailand is just, share everything.

– Terrific pad thai.

Thank you so much for opening your doors to us.

– Taelor: Thank you so much for coming, John.

– John: Congratulations.

– The east side of Indy has these cozy little neighborhoods and then all of a sudden, you come across this grand brick building and you’re thinking, “Wow, what is that?”

When it was built back in 1864, it was one of only three federal arsenals where they housed weapons from the Civil War and the Spanish-American War.

Well, ever since 1912, guess what?

It has been a high school, Arsenal Tech.

And it sits right here on 76 acres of land.

I think it looks more like a college, wouldn’t you say?

It’s just awesome.

Think about it, there has been more than 100 graduating classes through those doors.

I mean, I’d say they put the old arsenal to good use.

– What’s Indy Fused Glass?

– Lisa Pelo: Indy Fused Glass has been in the building about seven years.

We think it’s a great complement to our nonprofit Glass Arts Indiana studio.

We’re promoting all versions of creating with glass.

So Indy Fused is all about learning how to fuse glass into composition.

The gallery is where our artist members can sell their work.

– And the other studio?

– Glass Arts Indiana, we’re a nonprofit and we teach furnace working.

So it’s got a big tub of hot glass running at 2,100 degrees and we teach you how to create with molten glass.

– How great is that?

What am I making?

– Justin Kern: A flower.

– A flower?

– Yep, so the three big rules are always level.

Always turning.

And then keeping our hands in the shiny area.

This is the furnace.

This is where all the glass is.

It’s currently set to 2,100 degrees.

– Geez!

[Justin laughing] – So always set your pipe on that back corner, and eventually, you’ll see the glass winding up on the pipe.

– Okay.

– So we’ll come back here, we’ll cool the rod.

And then I’m gonna move over to this table.

So that’s step one.

So we’ll come over here in the reheating chamber so that we can put on the stem color.

We’ll just kinda lay the glass in there and give it a good roll.

We’ll melt all that back in.

Then we’ll come back over here and we’re just gonna go nice and level on the table.

All right, that’s probably good and cooled.

So we’ll head back over to the furnace.

– I need another glob of glass.

– Yep, exactly.

So we’re just gonna coat the whole thing again.

– Yikes!

– Nice and level, keep it turning.

And then you go straight up and down.

And then letting it land on the red mix.

– John: Oh, that’s what we do.

– And then we’ll go cool the rod.

– Okay.

Turning?

– Justin: Always.

– John: Okay, don’t yell at me.

[Justin chuckling] – We’re gonna start heating in the petal color.

– Okay.

– And then I’ll have you take a seat at the bench.

You’ll be sitting with the tweezers.

– I can do nothing with my right hand.

Nothing!

Are there no lefthanded glass works?

– No, well, we– – She said no!

– We force you to be right-handed.

– Oh, I’d be so good with this hand.

[Lisa laughing] – All right, hot glass, here you go.

– So, we’re gonna start off just by doing little pinches.

– Oh, I’m weak in this hand, too!

Oh, Lord!

– All right.

And then once we pinch all the way around the edge, then we’ll start pulling and stretching out that flower.

Nice and even.

All the way around.

Now we’re gonna start kind of pulling away from us.

Kind of flaring.

And at the very end, we’ll do a big pull.

And then I’ll have you head back here.

And then give it a light little tap right there.

There you go.

– John: Nice!

– Justin: And that’s it, easy peasy.

– John: Good job, that was really good.

You’re a great teacher, too.

– Justin: Thank you.

– Lisa: What’s nice about glass, you never learn everything.

There’s always something new to work in with your glass.

– John McGivern, glass artist.

I made this.

I haven’t made a dent here at the CCIC.

There are over 150 tenants.

One of the most famous artists here from Indianapolis is Martha Nahrwold.

She takes ink and she drips it in water, and then she transfers that ink to paper, and she has her own style of impressionism.

It’s really beautiful.

There is a high-end furniture store where they make the furniture.

And there’s painters and there’s jewelers.

And you’ve gotta visit the second floor.

That’s where they have a gallery that changes the exhibits all the time.

And a lot of businesses have their offices here, like the 500 Festival.

They organize the community to celebrate the Indy 500.

So, there’s only 140 businesses to go.

Indiana honors veterans at Monument Circle as well as right here at the Indiana World War Memorial.

As well as other places around town.

In fact, Washington, D.C. is the only city that has more memorials to veterans.

Indianapolis and Washington, D.C. also have something else in common.

What is that?

[playful music] – Engineer Alexander Ralston designed the layouts for both Indy and D.C. And the similarities are right here on the streets.

So Indy has angled main avenues just like D.C., and then in both places, they named a lot of their streets after states.

So Delaware, Ohio, New York.

I haven’t seen a Wisconsin yet, but of course, they have Massachusetts.

You know, there is so much that’s new on Mass Ave, which is why it makes buildings like this so special.

This is the Athenaeum.

– Talk about historic, this place is gorgeous.

– Absolutely stunning.

It was established by the Turners in 1894.

Not like a Mr. and Mrs. Turner, the Turners.

– We know the Turners because there’s Turner Hall in our hometown of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

It was a movement started by German immigrants.

– Emmy: They were all about promoting balance.

Their mantra was, “a sound mind in a sound body.”

Which, I love that.

And they were actually gymnasts.

That’s how they got their name.

They were flipping and turning.

– Sound mind, sound body.

Sound body sounds like exercise to me.

– Yes, yes.

– So, why don’t you take that part.

I’m gonna take the sound mind, because you know me.

– You are of sound mind.

Now this side of the building was all about physical fitness, and the Turners stayed fit with things like pommel horse, bowling, gymnastics, and fencing.

And these were their weights.

Let me tell ya, I don’t know how they stayed fit because there’s nothing to these guys.

– It’s important to exercise the mind as well.

So this place was all about free thinking.

There were lectures and debates and presentations.

Today, local groups use this for shows and they use it for art exhibits.

Talk about a beer garden.

How great is this place?

– I love this place!

– And you know, this place is usually just packed out.

– Why is it not?

– Because it’s 9:00 A.M., that’s why.

– Maybe just a touch too early to drink.

So we’re in the basement.

This is the Rathskeller.

It is the oldest continually operated restaurant in Indianapolis.

Look how beautiful.

– Emmy, come here.

– Yeah.

– Look at this.

This is the stammtisch.

– What is a stammtisch?

– Original, been here 125 years, this table.

Stammtisch is loosely translated to the regulars’ table.

They come here.

– Emmy: They get the special table.

– That is a kielbasa.

Bratwurst, we know our bratwurst.

– Mm-hmm.

– That is a bockwurst.

– Bockwurst.

– And that’s a knackwurst.

– Knackwurst!

– And that is what people come here for.

That mustard right there is the spiciest mustard.

People love it.

You’re gonna have the knackwurst.

– I am.

– I’m gonna have the bockwurst.

Are you gonna do the spicy?

– I’m doing the spicy.

– Okay, hold.

– Okay, ready?

– One.

– Two.

– Two, three, cheers.

[upbeat brass music] – I love it.

Do you like it?

– Yeah, I do.

– Emmy: Do you need water?

– A little water.

– Emmy: John, where’d you go?

[energetic music] – We sure have seen a lot.

– We’ve done a lot.

– And we have only covered the northeast side of Indianapolis.

– It’s a good thing we narrowed it down, ’cause this is not Nap Town.

This is like, stay awake and go see more stuff.

– So, let’s go see the west side.

– No, not this season!

– John: Oh, next season?

– Emmy: Yes!

– John: Perfect!

There’s nowhere else I’d rather be The heart and soul of community’s right here – All right, sweet, are we rolling?

What are we doing?

– No.

– Let’s go!

– Kick, turn, a stomp, stomp.

[John laughing] – This may not happen.

Just so you know.

– Okay, ready?

[energetic music] – Announcer: We thank the underwriters of John McGivern’s Main Streets because without them, we couldn’t make this show.

[upbeat music] – There’s always something shining bright in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin.

– My father taught me that to make great bakery, you have to do it the right way.

O&H Danish Bakery, where kringle traditions begin.

[gentle music] – Yes, Greendale is beautiful on the outside.

But it’s what’s inside that counts.

Who doesn’t love opening a door to beautiful treasures?

Whether you’re a collector, in need of the perfect gift, or would like something special for yourself.

Come on in!

You just gotta see Greendale.

– Visit Oconomowoc.

Lakes, festivals, shopping, dining.

The heart of lake country.

– Your community’s best selfie spot is Your-Type!

– The Wisconsin Northwoods are calling.

One word, one place.

Minocqua.

– Announcer: John McGivern’s Main Streets is grateful for additional financial support from Horicon Bank: The Natural Choice, West Bend Insurance Company: The Silver Lining, our nonprofit, the Friends of Main Streets, and from the Friends of PBS Wisconsin.

Thanks, underwriters.

– Sway those hips.

Yeah, you’ve got it down, I like it.