Your visit to the Inn at the Old Republic is not complete without learning about its history and the challenges surrounding it. Knowing where the house came from will make you appreciate your stay even more. The Old Republic was built in 1860 for Jeremiah Service and his family. Service operated a bank and dry goods store in New Carlisle. Jeremiah and his wife Sarah had six children in all, two of whom died as very young children. The names of the four surviving children were used to name each of the four bedrooms.

The house was built in the Italianate style and features a central cupola with a Turkish-style onion dome, an architectural element taken from the Far East, and a rare feature on residential structures. The house was sold out of the Service family in 1901 and went through a series of owners, eventually serving as apartments from the 1940’s through the mid-1960’s. The house was purchased by a man who operated a used car lot in the front yard for a couple of years until he went bankrupt. The bank owned the property for a couple of years until it was purchased in 1973. Unfortunately, the new owner didn’t follow through on his promises to rehabilitate the home and the house and grounds stood vacant—attracting animals and vandalism. The house was exposed to the elements for nearly 30 years, the property used for storage with junk vehicles littering the grounds. Over the years, the house became more and more deteriorated, but the owner was unwilling to sell it or fix it up.

In 1998, after 25 years had passed, the Town of New Carlisle deemed the property a public safety hazard and talked of condemning and demolishing the property. Fortunately, the Council agreed to give Historic New Carlisle, Inc. (HNC) some time to come up with a plan to save it. Working with the statewide preservation organization and Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana, HNC found out how to use the legal system in order to possibly save the house. The Town and HNC worked together, and through various legal proceedings, the owner finally agreed to sell the property. HNC took possession of the house in November 1998 with the help of a loan from the Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana.

Work began in April 2001 and through various grants and loans, private donations, thousands of hours of volunteer labor as well as donated services and goods, the house has been rehabilitated to its former grandeur. The Old Republic houses the HNC office and local history museum and rents out the house and grounds for weddings, showers, meetings, and other special events. For more information about the history of the house and to view a slideshow of the before and after images, visit Historic New Carlisle’s web site at www.historicnewcarlisle.org.