Parke County, Indiana

The Parke County Historical Society was recently given a large box of photos and genealogical material from Lucille's estate by her granddaughter Gail Shelly. Gail graciously allowed me to scan the material before donation and wrote the biography below to provide a history of the photos as an additional tribute to her beloved grandmother Lucille.

Special thanks to Mike Lewman for all the hard work preparing the photos for presentation.

Sarah Lucille Reeves was born Feb 18, 1901 in Indianapolis. She was the only child of Blanche Cole Reeves and Perry Willard Reeves. Her father, Perry, worked for the Pennsylvania Rail Road, and in the 1920's and 30's held a position in Washington, DC in the Hoover administration. The family moved between Indianapolis and Washington DC and were part of "Washington Society". Lucille was a fine singer and taught piano and voice to many students. She receiving her teaching certificate from the Peabody Conservatory of Music in 1932. She also studied at Julliard. Lucille was an only child but had many cousins in and around Mansfield, IN.

The family bought the "Buillion Farm" near Bellmore, IN for $6000 in 1933, after Hoover was defeated by FDR. Lucille didn't marry until after her parents' deaths. She managed the farm and had a very active church life as well as many friends and students. She met Buel Edward Horn, a widowed Methodist minister, and they were married in 1953. They "retired" to the farm and had a fine vegetable garden and raised chickens, cows and hogs. Buel had lost his wife in 1951 and had two grown daughters and, at that time, two grandchildren. Lucille became an "instant grandmother" and eventually had six grandchildren. I have many wonderful memories of going to visit my grandparents at the farm. Lucille taught me how to gather eggs and pluck a chicken - a far cry from Washington Society, but she handled both extremely well.

Lucille was widowed in 1962 but remained close to her step-daughters and grandchildren. She was an independent woman, well-traveled, active in her church and community, a friend to many and a wonderful grandmother. She moved from the farm in 1988 to an apartment in Asbury Towers (Greencastle) and lived independently until she had a stroke in 1995. She died in 1997 at the age of 96.