1954 Basketball Team
Milan, Indiana
Franklin & Washington Townships
Tornado Shelters:
First Baptist Church
United Methodist Church
For a detailed map to these shelters, visit:
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1954 Basketball Team |
Milan, Indiana
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Tornado Shelters: First Baptist Church United Methodist Church For a detailed map to these shelters, visit: |
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Population is about
1816 Other
Features: |
Location: State Road 350 and
State Road |
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Link
To Milan:
http://milanin.areaguides.net/ |
| History
of Milan - The real beginning of Milan was probably in the 1820s or
1830s at a crossroads a mile or so north of the present town. On
November 9, 1836 Milan was laid out by Isaac Hancock, Stephen Harding and
George Walker. The first post office was established in 1837 in a
building called Harding's Store. It is believed that the name Milan
came from German settlers who gave much attention to grape culture and
processing of wine. Some of them may have came from the grape
growing and wine making areas of Milan - a province and city of Lombardy
in northern Italy. It is thought that they used their influence to
change the name of the town from the Harding's Store Community to Milan on
March 1, 1842. The village grew and was referred to as a substantial business center and an active Underground Railway Station of Antebellum days and was also on the route followed by Gen. John Hunt Morgan and his Confederate Calvary in 1863. Then in 1854 the railway came through a mile to the south. Businesses gradually moved to the railroad where railroad employees were building new homes, thus establishing the center of the current town. Today's maps show both old Milan and Milan. During those early days Milan was a supplier of wood which was used as fuel for the railroad engines. And the hardwood forests of the surrounding area attracted a furniture business in 1900. The Milan Furniture Company was a big part of the community's economic base before its closing. In the fall of 1920, the Miwogco Mineral Springs Hotel opened its doors. The name comes from - Milan Indiana Water Oil and Gas Company. It was said to have rivaled French Lick Springs Hotel at the time. Its mineral springs bath soothed residents and others, until a mysterious fire in February 1928 burned the building to the ground. It was the high school and its 1954 basketball team which gave Milan some fame and notoriety throughout the State of Indiana and much of the country. In 1954, a group of young boys set the basketball world on its ear when they won the Indiana High School Athletic Association State Basketball Championship. That team was honored throughout the state and since that time, no smaller school has won the state championship. A water tower near the railroad track proudly proclaims the accomplishments of that young group of boys. It simply states, "Milan State Champs 1954". The story of a small town basketball team bringing home the glory of a state win is never old in the town of Milan. Although it happened 50 years ago, many of the original players of the team still meet, stories are relived as though they were yesterday, and a town proudly remembers. The '54 Milan Museum, Inc. is a point of interest in the town as numerous items of memorabilia are available for people to browse through. Although the town of Milan relives history - it does not dwell there when it comes to updating the town's infrastructure. The town has grown by leaps and bounds and is now ranked the second largest town in the county, with Batesville being first. Milan has it all - a rural town with everything quickly accessible. |
