By Mary Beal

It was an exciting evening at Grace Community Church on Oct. 25 as the 21 youthful members of the Montpelier History Club and their leader, Ryan Ingram, a Montpelier resident and city history buff, presented the premiere of their latest documentary film, “Ghost Buildings of Montpelier II” in the sanctuary packed with students, families and other well-wishers from the community, including Mayor Brad and Tina Neff and family.

Young Montpelier Celebrities - History Club

Ingram also told the crowd about the Shull & Leonard Block building on West High Street that he bought last year, and that the group members and he are laboriously restoring, piece by piece, as a club project. “They call it their building,” he remarked.

The hope, Ingram said, is to save the 1895 structure from becoming another of the city’s “ghost buildings.” He is pursuing a PACE grant to assist with the cost of restoring the building so that a present-day business can eventually occupy it, but donations to the history club are always appreciated, Ingram added.

As Ingram welcomed the crowd, an original club member, Oliver Koenemann, who Ingram called a member of the “Montpelier History Club Hall of Fame”, shared some of his experiences in the club since it started various projects in 2016 and introduced the documentary.

The lights went down, and the film that was conceived, written, filmed and produced by community youth of various ages took the audience back to yesteryear, to the Montpelier that was; a gathering of people, buildings and institutions that was alternately glorious and poignant, serious and amusing, as only a small town can be.

“I didn’t know that” was a commonly whispered comment among viewers, as photos or videos of long-ago and not so long-ago buildings, Montpelier residents and companies that are now “ghosts” flashed across the screen.

After the screening, the youth group gathered on the stage for applause and photos, then retired downstairs with their admirers for refreshments and to sell and sign copies of their accompanying book, “Ghost Buildings of Montpelier, Volumes I and II”. The youths were seated at a table, where each signed copies of the books as they went around, as celebrities usually do.

The history club was formerly recognized for its projects by the Indiana Landmarks Foundation and was the only children’s group at the presentation, Ingram noted.