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Showing posts from January, 2025

Spanker’s Branch to Campus River

 By Theresa Quill   Featured Item or Collection: Indiana Historic Maps; Indiana Sanborn Maps   One of the most distinctive landmarks on the Indiana University Bloomington (IU) campus is a small creek, sometimes optimistically referred to as a "river" that flows through the heart of campus. In the spring, students hang hammocks along its bank, classes take samples to study water quality, and the campus maintains a large green space in central campus because periodic floods preclude any new buildings from encroaching on the creek. This creek is currently called The Campus River, though it has had other names throughout IU's 200+ year history.   The Campus River on a snowy day. Photo Credit James Brosher/Indiana University Scanned maps from the Herman B Wells Library's Map Collection help us trace not only the name changes of this campus landmark, but also the environmental impact the creek has had on the town.   ...