Fox Lake Resort
Location: Southeast point of Fox Lake, 1429 Fox Lake Rd., Angola (Steuben County), Indiana 46703
Installed 2022 Indiana Historical Bureau, Indiana Landmarks, and the Fox Lake Preservation Foundation
ID#: 76.2022.1
Text
Side One
Fox Lake Resort, established in the 1920s, offered Black middle-class families from Indiana and nearby states a refuge from Jim Crow discrimination. By 1940, the Fox Lake Property Owners Association formed to meet the growing community’s social and infrastructure needs. The owners transformed the resort into a desirable vacation destination for residents and visitors.
Side Two
The Negro Motorist Green-Book, which listed safe and welcoming locations for Black travelers, featured Fox Lake sites from the 1940s-1960s. Black social organizations, churches, and alumni groups met at the resort and joined property owners for dances, outings, and outdoor sports. The community continued to expand, remaining a destination for many Black families.
Annotated Text
Side One
Fox Lake Resort, established in the 1920s, offered Black middle-class families from Indiana and nearby states a refuge from Jim Crow discrimination.[1] By 1940, the Fox Lake Property Owners Association formed to meet the growing community’s social and infrastructure needs.[2] The owners transformed the resort into a desirable vacation destination for residents and visitors.[3]
Side Two
The Negro Motorist Green-Book, which listed safe and welcoming locations for Black travelers, featured Fox Lake sites from the 1940s-1960s.[4] Black social organizations, churches, and alumni groups met at the resort and joined property owners for dances, outings, and outdoor sports.[5] The community continued to expand, remaining a destination for many Black families.[6]
Note: Indianapolis Recorder accessed via Hoosier State Chronicles, Indiana State Library.
[1] “New Corporations,” (Muncie) Star Press, October 12, 1924, 2, Newspapers.com; “Fox Lake Big Opening,” Indianapolis Recorder, June 19, 1926, 2; “Fox Lake Resort Now Under New Management,” Indianapolis Recorder, August 24, 1929, 2; Bill Shaw, “Refuge from Racism,” Indianapolis Star, July 27, 2001, Section E, 1, Newspapers.com; “Fox Lake,” National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, United States Department of the Interior National Park Service, SHAARD Database, Indiana Department of Natural Resources; Mark Foster, “In the Face of ‘Jim Crow’: Prosperous Blacks and Vacations, Travel and Outdoor Leisure, 1890-1945,” Journal of Negro History 84, No. 2(Spring, 1999): 130-149, JSTOR.
[2] “Close Activities at Fox Lake,” Indianapolis Recorder, September 21, 1940, 5; “Fox Lake Land Owners Ass’n Closes Season, Elects Officers,” Indianapolis Recorder, September 18, 1948, 4; Fox Lake Property Owners Association, “History of Fox Lake Resort, 1925-1965,” unpublished manuscript, 1965, Spears Family Collection, Indiana Historical Society Digital Collection.
[3] Articles of Incorporation and By-Laws of The Fox Lake Property Owners Association, Inc., July 8, 1952, Spears Family Collection, Indiana Historical Society Digital Collection; Fox Lake Property Owners Association, “History of Fox Lake Resort, 1925-1965,” unpublished manuscript, 1965, Spears Family Collection, Indiana Historical Society Digital Collection.
[4] Note: “Negro Motorist Green Book” accessed Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division, New York Public Library Digital Collections.
Negro Motorist Green-Book: 1940 Edition (New York: Victor H. Green, Publisher, 1940), 12, Image ID 5206347; Negro Motorist Green-Book: 1941 Edition (New York: Victor H. Green, Publisher, 1941), 12, Image ID 5206294; Negro Travelers' Green Book: 1959 Edition (New York: Victor H. Green, Publisher, 1959), 23, Image ID 5206489; Travelers' Green Book: 1960 Edition (New York: Victor H. Green, Publisher, 1960),38, Image ID 5214744; Travelers' Green Book: 25th Anniversary 1961 Edition (New York: Victor H. Green, Publisher, 1961), 32, Image ID 5214876; Green Book: 1962 Edition (New York: Victor H. Green, Publisher, 1962), 38, Image ID 5215008; Travelers' Green Book: 1963-64 International Edition (New York: Victor H. Green, Publisher, 1963), 23, Image ID 5205895; Travelers' Green Book: 1966-67 International Edition, (New York: Victor H. Green, Publisher, 1966), 23, Image ID 5205895.
[5] “Orphans get Vacation at Fox Lake,” Indianapolis Recorder, August 10, 1929, 8; “Annual Trip to Fox Lake Sponsored by Wyleaway Club,” Indianapolis Recorder, July 4, 1936, 7; “Fox Lake is Scene of Wyleaway Bridge Club Annual Outing,” Indianapolis Recorder, July 11, 1936; “’Social Glances,’” Indianapolis Recorder, September 12, 1936, 5; “Combines Health, Fun, Business Investment,” Indianapolis Recorder, July 2, 1938, 2; “Popular Dukes Sponsor Annual Convention at Fox Lake Resort,” Indianapolis Recorder, August 13, 1938, 4; “Fox Lake Summer Resort,” Indianapolis Recorder, September 3, 1938, 2; “Having a Wonderful Time at the Beautiful Fox Lake Resort,” Indianapolis Recorder, September 10, 1938, 4; “Big Odd Fellows Picnic,” Indianapolis Recorder, June 22, 1940, 3; “Friends are Invited; Public Also Welcome,” Indianapolis Recorder, June 29, 1940, 9; “Fox Lake Resort Observes July 4th,” Angola Herald, July 12, 1940, 7, Newspapers.com; “Gay Caballeros Have Gala Picnic at Fox Lake, Indianapolis Recorder, August 10, 1940, 4; “Close Activities at Fox Lake,” Indianapolis Recorder, September 21, 1940, 5; “Clubs Will Meet,” Indianapolis Recorder, June 28, 1941, 4; “Hoosier Dance Lovers Invited to Fox Lake Resort,” Indianapolis Recorder, August 23, 1941, 13; “Labor Day was Gala Occasion at Fox Lake; Officers Elected, Indianapolis Recorder, September 13, 1941, 2; “Dukes Club Officers Plan Gala National Convention,” Indianapolis Recorder, July 13, 1946, 5; “Social Scene” Indianapolis Recorder, August 26, 1950, 4; “Five Contest Winners Enjoy Gala Week-end at Fox Lake; Indianapolis Recorder, September 15, 1951, 5; “Dukes Trek to Fox Lake Resort for 1952 National Convention,” Indianapolis Recorder, August 2, 1952, 4; “Fox Lake Vacationer Reviews Summer of Wholesome Living,” Indianapolis Recorder, August 16, 1952, 4; “State NAACP Stages Picnic at Fox Lake, Indianapolis Recorder, August 8, 1953, 5; “Talledagans Fox Lake Reunion Draws Crowd,” Indianapolis Recorder, August 29, 1964, 4.
[6] “Fox Lake Tradition as Black Resort Evokes a History of an Era Gone By,” (Fort Wayne) Journal Gazette, June 28, 1982, submitted by applicant, copy in IHB marker file; “Fox Lake Resort Honored as Historic U.S. Landmark,” (Fort Wayne) Journal Gazette, 2001, submitted by applicant, copy in IHB marker file.
Keywords
African American; Historic District/Town