Primary Resources
For those conducting in-depth research…
…you found the correct page. Below are links to a wide variety of resources that you might find valuable. we will update this page as new documents are found as well as links to other collections that pertain to the Syracuse – Wawasee area.
The Indiana Memory Archives
The below link takes you to the Syracuse-Wawasee Historical Museum’s portion of the state digital platform, Indiana Memory. The SWHM portion currently contains over 3700 photos and documents, with more being prepared for uploading to the platform in the future. Click on “Browse” to begin looking, or search with keywords in the “Advanced Search” bar to easily find photos and documents pertaining to many venues and persons within the Syracuse-Wawasee area.
Syracuse and Wawasee High School Yearbooks.
The museum has been fortunate to have all yearbooks dating from 1950-2018 digitized in cooperation with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections: Oklahoma Correctional Industries High School Yearbook Project. This program was offered to us completely free of charge through their digital preservation services and was an enjoyable experience for the museum, library, and Wawasee High School, who all cooperated to make sure we had all of the yearbooks available. The museum staff also scanned copies of their 1933, 1948, and 1949 yearbooks. We hope you enjoy this collection of yearbooks:
Indiana Memory
A digital repository of the largest historical collections in the State of Indiana, with access to over 700 different historical collections that encompass over 700,000 articles, documents and other items.
Since 2012, anyone with access to the Internet has been able to take a pictorial walk through time on the Syracuse-Wawasee Digital Archives created by a partnership between the Syracuse-Wawasee Historical Museum and the Syracuse-Turkey Creek Township Public Library through grants funded by a Library Services and Technology Act grant administered by the Indiana State Library. In addition to viewing all these images, they can also be saved and printed. Over the years, images and documents continue to be scanned. Anyone who may have additional local history materials is encouraged to contact the museum @ 574- 457-3599 to have a scan or a picture of their materials taken and included in the archives.
George Miles Articles
A series of newspaper articles written in 1910 – 1911 by Syracuse native George W. Miles are an important source of information on the history and activities of the town of Syracuse and nearby Lake Wawasee. Mr. Miles was the editor of Syracuse Gazette, est. 1879, the first newspaper in this area. Later he owned a local business and became the attorney for the town of Syracuse. He was president of the Lake Wawasee Protective Association at its inception in the early 1890s and rose to become the Indiana Commissioner of Fisheries and Game from 1910-1914. Thanks to a 2018 Indiana Genealogical Society Grant, the newspaper articles have been turned into a searchable, digital resource for the museum and the community.
George Miles (1858-1914) did a tremendous amount for his Syracuse birthplace. In the span of 56 years, George worked on the B and O, returned to establish a law practice, published the Syracuse Gazette, wrote an extensive history of the town (published in the 1910-1911 newspapers) which is a go-to for local research, assisted in the organization of the Syracuse Power and Light Company, and developed Kale Island, building a log cabin in the 1890s which was moved to the WACF Between-the-Lakes property and dedicated Sat., July 24, 2023. George Miles was appointed the Indiana State Commissioner of Fisheries and Game in 1911 & died while in office in Dec., 1914.
The Syracuse-Wawasee Historical Museum and the Syracuse-Turkey Creek Township Public Library worked together to have the microfilm reels of the Syracuse newspapers from the late 1800s – 1990 digitized through a grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, administered by the Indiana State Library. This project was the first of its kind in Kosciusko County. These searchable newspapers have been on-line since November, 2022, at Hoosier State Chronicles.
Chronology of Newspapers On-line:
The Syracuse Enterprise 1875; The Syracuse Register 1894-1898; The Syracuse Journal 1908-1937; The Syracuse & Lake Wawasee Journal 1915-1923; The Indiana Journal 1937; Syracuse-Wawasee Journal 1937-1962; The Mail Journal 1962-1990
The Hoosier State Chronicles page for Kosciusko County.
Crow Descendants
The Crow families have long held a love of the Syracuse-Wawasee area, and this was made evident by the history provided and attendance at the August 2021 Centennial Homes program featuring the Kroh family, Crow family, and the Crow’s Nest house. Ann Garceau has put together the following documents to help explain some of the genealogical lines for the Crow families.
Indiana University Maps and
Spatial Data
Access to the Indiana University’s research library in Bloomington which specializes in Maps and Spatial Data.
Wawasee Protective Association
Spatial Data
From 1911 – 1918, this 26 page document covers a variety of issues, including the annual meetings of the Wawasee Protective Association.
Family Search-
FREE search tool to find documents and photographs. The site makes you set up a FREE account – then go to images, Indiana, Kosciusko. LEARN MORE
Kosciusko County Maps
From the Indiana State Library, this collection of maps goes as far back as 1866, when the lake that we now call “Wawasee” was called “Nine-Mile Lake”, and present-day Dewart Lake was named Wawasee!
Koscuisko County Maps
Kosciusko County Historical Society
A wealth of information about K-County that includes Geneology, information about historically significant places, and more!
Kosciusko County BEACON and GIS System
BEACON is an interactive public access tool that allows users to view County and City information, public records and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) via an online portal.
Beacon combines both web-based GIS and web-based data reporting tools including CAMA, Assessment and Tax, into a single, user friendly web application that is designed with your needs in mind.
Databases, Local History and Genealogy, Cemetary Databases; Turkey Creek Township Cemeteries; Crow/ Lake Bethel Cemetery.
This is Chautauqua. Community events for the whole family hosted in Syracuse Indiana and Lake Wawasee.
Kosciusko County Historical Society
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