PENDLETON — Scores of celebrants turned out to dedicate the recently restored log cabin in Falls Park on Saturday, May 1, at the park’s North Entrance, sharing mostly stories about the project but also some recollections from the past.
“It’s just incredible — just when you think the park can’t get any better, this happens,” said Bryan Williams, president of Pendleton-Falls Creek Board of Parks and Recreation, during the dedication ceremony.
Story continues below photos.
The cabin project has been in the works for a few years. It was led by a group known as the Log Cabin Committee, in cooperation with the park board and Falls Park staff, and with the help of dozens of individuals, families, businesses and other organizations.
The cabin was built originally in the 1830s a few miles west of Pendleton. It was moved to a site on Mill Road more than 100 years later. It had fallen into disrepair until the recent effort to salvage it.
Committee Chairwoman Sandi Butler thanked members of her group — including Jay Brown, who led the restoration, and Steve and Annie Wills, who bought and donated the cabin to the park — as well as the many others involved.
“You guys funded this project,” said Butler, who is also vice president of Historic Fall Creek, Pendleton Settlement, a local historic preservation group.
Monetary donations were handled through South Madison Community Foundation, which also awarded $7,500 in grants to the cabin effort. The project cost came in just under the committee’s $50,000 budget.
But that doesn’t account for the in-kind donations, such as donated materials and labor, and the use of building equipment, which tallied to more than $347,000 in value, Butler said.
The cabin, which project leaders have described as unusual for having an L-shaped floor plan, measures about 20 by 22 feet, including a bump-out along part of one side. Plans are to rent it our for occasions, such as weddings and birthday parties. It is located next to a small pond and near the Red Barn, a larger similar venue, and the park’s trails.
Before and after the ceremony, attendees gave the project great reviews.
“It’s just amazing,” said Susan Markle, who donated two beams used in the restoration. “The authenticness, the sturdiness, the thoroughness.”
Scott Berline, the brother of a committee member, who lives east of Pendleton in a home converted from a barn dating to 1867, said he attended in part because “I wanted to see how this thing turned out.”
After walking around inside on Saturday, he shared his opinion.
“I love it … they’ve done a great job. It’s just awesome.”
The cabin, which Brown previously said was constructed in the 1830s using logs from two cabins, now incorporates logs from yet another cabin, which was bought and hauled from Whiteland; it also includes logs purchased in Blackford County, as well as wood from trees downed by the 2019 Memorial Day tornado in Pendleton.
Extra logs were needed during the restoration to replace those that were too deteriorated to use because of frequent flooding at the cabin site through the years.
Max Aiman, who helped with the project, can attest to the water issues on Mill Road; his family lived in the cabin from 1945 to 1950. He and his two surviving siblings attended the dedication.
“It used to flood every year,” Aiman said after the dedication.
He was born just a year before his family moved out, he said, so he was too young to have first-hand recollections. But the family has photos of the children being evacuated across water from the cabin to the road.
His sister, Rita Rider, who spoke from within the crowd during the dedication, said she lived in the cabin from age 2 until third grade.
“I saw Santa Claus come down that chimney,” she said, to laughter from the crowd.
She said living there “was wonderful … great memories.”
Leigh Berline read a poem she wrote commemorating the project. One section reads: “We chose to re-locate this Outstanding gem, The families and businesses We had help from them; As part of the town’s historic distinction, You didn’t allow the cabin’s extinction.”
Brown mentioned another project on the horizon — a permanent structure to house the Conestoga wagon he helped restore a few years ago.
The wagon was used by John Rogers, the man credited with settling Pendleton in the early 1800s, he said previously. It now belongs to Pendleton Historical Museum, which is located in Falls Park.
Butler wrapped up the dedication by saying, “OK, we’re ready to rent it, you guys.”
[sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”Log Cabin Dedication” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]
A poem by Leigh Berline
Down by Fall Creek,
With the crickets and frogs
Stood an old, rugged cabin
Made from carefully notched logs
By the shape they were in
And the wear on the chink
The cabin’s condition
Would Lead one to think
That it couldn’t be saved
Or should be torn down
But knowing the heart and soul
Of our town …
Our committee was sure
And all there knew better
That with the right plan
And a site much less wetter
Folks would chip in
Their time and donation
To help us restore the parts
And foundation
We numbered and moved
Each log, one by one
And, due to their age,
We did replace some
Stones out in fields of
Fallen-down barns
Were donated, washed,
And used for their charm
The cabin is “L” shaped
Which is really quite rare
And the park’s north entrance is the
Location where
We chose to re-locate this
Outstanding gem
The families and businesses
We had help from them
As part of the town’s
historic distinction
You didn’t allow the
cabin’s extinction
And now, here it is
Just look what you did …
A venue for families
And learning for kids
Thanks for your part
In this sweet restoration
And for coming today,
To a town celebration!
[sc:pullout-text-end]
