CHANGES AT THE CROSSROADS

 When I moved away from Terre Haute, IN to begin my career, the Terre Haute House was a 40 year old hotel. Two blocks north from my high school and two south of my college, ten stories high and almost a half block square, it was the biggest single building in my environment. Except for the Sandwich Shop, which was one of my haunts, and the lobby, which we walked through in winter to stay out of the weather, the Terre Haute House was for special events. When rich relatives, the kind that didn't crowd into our house for sleeping, came to town, they stayed at the Terre Haute House rather than one of the motels on Highways 40 or 41. One aunt said she liked the security of interior hallways and the convenience to downtown shopping.
 Not long after I left, most retailing relocated to the south near the ill planned intersection of US 41 and I 70. The Terre Haute House was closed, most of downtown was closed and some of the places that were still open for business were a little shabby. From a distance and in just the right light, the old Terre Haute House shows beauty.

 But the hotel was crumbling. Brick facing, after years of neglect, was falling to the ground.
 Not just the Hotel but the rest of the block (save the Indiana State regional office building at the opposite corner) is owned by the Hulman family and the three properties are joined together as one. The above picture shows the front of the former Ft. Harrison Savings and loan building, vacant, and the Bement-Rae Building which housed a corner cocktail lounge and not much else. Bement-Rae seemed a solid building badly in need of restoration and the tiny savings and loan building with its large skylight at rear and high arched window in front was as charming as the Terre Haute House was grand.
Ostensibly to sort out and validate any proposals to restore and rebuild the property, the city government took a fixed term option on the property and gave all proposals a public hearing. There were charts and drawings and columns of figures but in the end, all proposals were deemed insufficiently funded.
Not long after the city's option expired, Gregory Gibson bought the property from the Hulmans and announced that demolition would start soon.

 The stone eagle was saved.
 They brought a lot of heavy equipment to the site.
 The early demolition seemed to focus on salvage. This picture shows a crew trying to remove the engraved stone that marked MCMXXVII TERRE HAVTE HAVSE MCM XXVII. Parts of the stone parapet are also stacked and kept separate from the rubble.
 Then they began banging the wrecking ball against the north wing of the hotel.
 spare wrecking balls
 Big news will be announced at a 10:30 meeting at Hulman's Clabber Girl Museum. It was rumored last night and printed in the morning paper. The press conference gives more details. The mayor, the owner and the builder answer questions.
 Here's how the demolition project looks from 4 blocks away and 500 feet up. WTHI-TV shares this view over the internet at www.wthitv.com/towercam.asp
 Meanwhile, they swing the ball to knock off the walls and then drop the ball onto the floors systematically removing rows and columns of rooms.
 Progress as of the date and time marked at the bottom by WTHI
 These rails and balls will probably be recycled and become part of the Hilton Garden Terre Haute House.
 Part of the old and future name plate.
 Workmen gather, clean and stack facing bricks from the Terre Haute House for sale for ten dollars each. Proceeds will go to Hospice.
 This much undone so far. (Current picture from WTHI-TV Tower Cam available here.)


Next.... (remembering the THH as a winter oasis) .....