National Register Form
Compiled by Michael White
a. Includes several places with information about the early Merrillville area,
Me-Gwun’s Village, and early settlers:
i. Page 15 – Wiggins’ Point.
ii. Page 53 – J. Wiggins’ Arrival spring of 1835.
iii. Pages 67 – 70 – Descriptions of Me-Gwun’s, Village, J. Wiggins,
interactions, plowing the cemetery.
iv. Pages 76 – 77 – Encounter with Mrs. Saxton.
v. Pages 80 – 82 – Another description of Me-Gwun’s Village and how they
lived.
vi. Pages 152 – 153 – Information on the history and development of Wiggins’
Point, Centreville, and finally Merrillville.
vii. Pages 320 – 323 – Information on the Saxton’s arrival and living on
Wiggins’ claim, information about the evolution of who owned and
developed the property initially, also where former sites of the Potawatomi
Village were in relation to Saxton’s property.
a. This book is great for the general history of both Lake and Porter County, and is
divided by county and townships. Doesn’t provide much bibliography
information, but good for references. Mentions Me-Gwun’s Village and Walnut
Grove in several spots:
i. Pages 544 – 547 – Information on J. Wiggins and early Merrillville,
mentions Me-Gwun’s Village and desecration of cemetery and chief’s
body.
ii. Ross Township information can be found on pages: 542 – 552.
a. A later history by T.H. Ball, this source includes further information about the
development of the Merrillville area, settlers, property, etc.
i. Page 65 – Merrillville and Wiggins’ Point, “Mc-Gwinns” Village.
ii. Pages 69 – 70 – “Mc-Gwinns” Village descriptions.
iii. Page 72 – Incident with Mrs. Saxton.
iv. Pages 75 – 76 – “Mc-Gwinns” Village burial place and gardens.
v. Pages 283 – 284 – Description of history of Merrillville.
vi. Page 493 – Story about Saxton’s conch shell.
a. Also includes biographical information on early settlers, families, and settlement.
Has several spots with information about the early Merrillville area, Me-Gwun’s
Village, and early settlers.
b. Page 75 – E. Saxton and family.
c. Page 123 – J. Wiggins.
d. Page 317 – Eli Boyd.
e. Page 401 – George Boyd.
a. Several mentions of Me-Gwun’s Village, Wiggins, and Merrillville in different
spots:
i. Page 19 – Mentions “Mc-Gwinns” village.
ii. Pages 40 – 41 – Wiggins’ Point Cemetery Desecration.
iii. Pages 53 – 54 – Saxton’s Take over Wiggins’ Claim.
iv. Chp XIV – Ross Township. Pages 183 – 184 – Discussed early
Merrillville, Wiggins, Saxtons, “Mc-Gwinn.”
a. This is the last report of the Old Settler/Historical Society publication. On pages
152 – 153 there are reports and discussion about remembering “McGwinn’s”
Village, buying and creating the monument plaque, setting the monument plaque,
and who was involved. Important to remember and trace how the property and
village were remembered in local history.
b. It is also important to note that if you examine newspaper articles from the 1960s
and early 70s, there was an uptick in articles discussing “McGwinn’s” village and
how the village was being remembered.
c. Placement of “McGwinn’s Village” Monument – The granite monument with the
plaque was initially placed near the Walnut Grove site, then moved to the former
high school (now Pierce Middle School), then again moved to a small landscaped
flagpole area at 73rd and Broadway, and then eventually moved to the back
parking lot site of the Merrillville/ Ross Township Historical Society on 73rd Ave.
a. Morgan-Skinner-Boyed Homestead and the Saxton’s are discussed on several
pages:
i. Intro III – Wiggins’ Point
ii. Pages 1 – 5 – Walnut Grove and Morgan-Boyd-Skinner House
iii. Pages 57 – 60 – Saxton/ Koch House, Saxton Family Information
iv. Pages 116 – 124 – Boyds History and pictures and names of family.
v. Whole book is a good reference for the history of “Old Merrillville.”
Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana. Lake County Interim Report: Indiana
Historic Sites and Structures Inventory. May 1996.
a. This source is a list of historic homes, properties, and buildings. Made in 1996, it
is hard to find. Other counties have theirs digitized, but Lake County’s cannot be
found online at this time. Some of the historical societies and libraries have it
available to examine on site.
b. Ross Township and Merrillville are on pages: 352 – 358.
c. Walnut Grove is listed on page 358 with a picture, number 007.
Schoon, Kenneth J. Calumet Beginnings: Ancient Shorelines and Settlements at the
South End of Lake Michigan. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2003.
a. Great recent book about Calumet Region history, wonderfully sourced as well
with a great bibliography that includes many of the sources mentioned above.
b. Mentions Merrillville history on pages 172 – 174.
c. Not digitized, but available at the local libraries and some historical societies have
copies available to examine.