Wanamaker is a community of Indianapolis located in southeastern Marion County, Indiana. It is situated 9 miles (14 km) southeast of downtown Indianapolis in north central Franklin Township. The community is concentrated near the intersection of Southeastern Avenue and Northeastern Avenue. The town was built along the historic Michigan Road.
History
The Adams Family
In 1825, Reuben Adams came from New Liberty, Kentucky to settle the land in the newly established State of Indiana. Adams cleared a plot of land, planted crop, and built a log cabin, after which he returned to Kentucky to bring his family to Indiana. Not long after the move to his new home Reuben became sick and died in 1826, leaving his widow, Mary Adams to raise eleven children in the Indiana wilderness. In 1834, Mary Adams had John H. Messinger lay out the town of New Bethel (the original name of Wanamaker) from a portion of her farmland. The town plat was recorded on March 24, 1834. The source of the name New Bethel came from the local New Bethel Baptist Church.
Post Office namesake
The Gallaudet post office was established on January 30, 1854. For many years mail was brought by carrier from Gallaudet to New Bethel. In 1889, a post office was established in Sutherland's Store in New Bethel. The office was named Wanamaker instead of New Bethel because there was already a post office in Indiana called Bethel. The post office was named after John Wanamaker, who was the United States Postmaster General at the time. The name Wanamaker over time became synonymous with the town of New Bethel. In 1914, after the store burned, the post office was moved across the street to a general store and interurban ticket office. In 1920, the post office once again moved to a new building at the location were the Sutherland Store had burned. On July 1, 1943, the post office advanced to Third Class office, and on July 1, 1952, it advanced to Second Class office. On May 1, 1960, it was made a branch of the Indianapolis Post Office. A new postal facility was built in 1965 with the dedication ceremony held March 13, 1965.
For many years, highway signs bore both the names New Bethel and Wanamaker. The name Wanamaker came to be accepted as the predominant local name for businesses, churches, and schools in the community. In the 1960s, the town's name was officially changed to Wanamaker after multiple proposals had been rejected by the Indiana Board of Geographic Names.