Paula Dunn

Remember Thanksgiving? You know — that day at the end of November that’s traditionally been reserved for contemplating how grateful we are for all the good things in our lives. I can understand stores wanting to get their Christmas merchandise out ahead of the holidays and I know some people like to shop pretty early,…

From Time to Thyme By Paula Dunn A while back I ran across a ghost story in the July 24, 1892 Indianapolis Journal that seemed like a perfect Halloween column. It’s a rather lengthy tale of a haunted farmhouse “nine miles north of the town of Sheridan, in Hamilton County.” During my background research, however,…

From Time to Thyme By Paula Dunn I usually run the winter weather forecast column during the first part of October, but I procrastinated this year because it was so hot then. I figured I’d stand a better chance of getting persimmon seed predictions if I waited until the weather was cooler. (Persimmons don’t usually…

Concluding the trial of D. C. Stephenson and his bodyguards, Earl Gentry and Earl Klinck. . .  With the jury finally selected, the trial began in earnest. Emotions were running so high that Hamilton County Sheriff Charles Gooding took to sitting behind the defendants to ensure their safety, something he’d never done before. Although nothing…

This is an anniversary for me. Believe it or not, as of this week I’ve been writing this column for 15 years. Fifteen years!  Even as I type those words, the reality of it is having trouble sinking in. I wasn’t sure I’d last six months, let alone 15 years. As I mentioned in one…

From Time to Thyme By Paula Dunn Now that Labor Day is behind us, I feel more comfortable writing about schools. (I don’t think I’ll ever get used to the idea of kids’ summer vacations ending in July!) A couple of interesting letters about early schools appeared in the Noblesville Daily Ledger in 1916. The…

After the quiz on Hamilton County waterways ran, Larry Cloud raised the subject of Carmel’s Flowing Well. That reminded me that, although I’ve written about the numerous mineral springs that once existed in this county, I’ve never devoted a column to the famous Carmel landmark. The Flowing Well is a little different from the county’s…

It’s been quite a while since the From Time to Thyme Virtual Museum has had any new exhibits. However, as luck would have it, I’ve run across some new artifacts to put on display . . .  so to speak.  (As you may recall, this is a “virtual” museum because all the objects in it…

Recently, my cousin, the Dancing Librarian, and I were discussing how different summer was when we were growing up in the 1960s. Unlike today’s kids, we had three whole months of freedom from school to do whatever we wanted. We could get a summer job, work on 4-H projects, hang out at the pool all…

Okay, I’ll admit it. I was stuck for a topic for this week’s column. Then, while I was brushing my teeth one morning, it hit me (not literally, thank goodness) — water! To be specific, the watercourses in Hamilton County. Have you ever paid any attention to all the creeks, streams, brooks, branches, etc. that…