Pictured is the cover of a new book, “Delphi,” published by Arcadia Publishing and due to be released this month. Editors are Anita Werling and Bonnie Maxwell. The cover image is a Labor Day celebration in 1919 that welcomed home the veterans of World War I. The crowd was estimated between 10,000 and 15,000. This is a banner year for Delphi. Its Courthouse Square Historic District was named to the National Register of Historic Places in March, and now a new book on Delphi is scheduled to be released July 26.

Representing the Delphi Preservation Society, Anita Werling and Bonnie Maxwell did the research, compiling, and editing for the book. It is the story of Delphi, from the 1850s to the 1950s, told through photographs and detailed captions.

Entitled simply “Delphi,” it is part of the Images of America series distributed through Arcadia Publishing.

There are more than 200 photos in the book.

Werling said Delphi is fortunate to have so many photos from its early history. Photographers who stand out are James Boltz and Andrew Wolever, both of whom left a legacy of glass plates. Werling said most of the photographs in the book are images produced from those plates by local historian and photographer Charles Gerard, who donated them to the DPS before his death in 2005.

Maxwell, a Delphi native, said the community is indebted to Wolever, who photographed Delphi for six decades. He was mayor from 1887 to 1891, and died in 1936.

The pictorial history focuses on the courthouse square, the commercial area north, east, south and west of the square; the school, homes, and churches in the neighborhoods; entertainment and culture; industry; and transportation. Mentioned with the businesses are the merchants who owned them. A number of individuals are singled out for special recognition. Among them are Abner Bowen, James Kilgore, Enoch Rinehart, John Lathrope Jr., and Reed Case.

In the front of the book is a map created by Werling of the Courthouse Square Historic District. It includes 46 buildings. Werling said 31 contribute to the architectural significance of the district, 12 are non-contributing, and three are individually listed on the National Register (Assion-Ruffing City Hall Building, Courthouse, and Niewerth building).

“We did a lot of research,” Maxwell said. “We tried to establish the date of construction of every building in the historic district, along with who had them built.”

Images of Carroll County’s three suc- cessive courthouses are in the book, including photos of the current courthouse being built. It was listed on the National Register in 2003.

Many photos show comparisons of the same site or block through the decades. Some buildings have changed, some are no longer there, and some look about the same then and now. Whenever possible, the authors gave the succession of business owners at the same location.

Two examples of business locations pictured are Davies Service Station, which was erected in 1930, and now houses Mitchell’s Mexican Grill, and the site of a series of hotels, which is now Regions parking lot.

One of Delphi’s claims to fame is having Indiana’s oldest, continuously operating business. It began as Delphi Wagon Works and continues today as Delphi Body Works.

Anyone who has admired the architecture of homes in Delphi and wondered who were the first owners can find out in this book.

Among the downtown photos are fires, parades, bands, and gatherings. Two especially interesting photos in the entertainment chapter are a hooded tightrope walker between buildings and a women’s bicycle club that was formed in 1890.

Photos of early industry include mills, elevators, lime kilns, packinghouse, canning factory, etc.

Examples of transportation photos include a canal boat from 1860, railroad bridges, and the interurban electric train system that operated through Delphi from 1907 to 1932.

Werling and Maxwell said they had to submit a proposal to Arcadia Publishing in order to be considered for a book in the Images of America series.

“It’s unusual for a city of under 3,000 to be included in the series,” Werling said. The nearest cities that have been included are Kokomo, Monticello, and Crawfordsville. The series highlights local heritage.

Maxwell said the book had to conform to series specifications, including the number of pages. All books in the series have 128 pages.

The authors of “Delphi” credit many sources, and especially acknowledge the Gerard collection and resource materials compiled by Mark Smith.

The book will be available at Delphi Preservation Society’s Opera House Gallery of Contemporary Art, bookstores nationwide and online, and through the publisher at www.arcadiapublishing. com.

Werling said royalties from the sale of the book will benefit the Charles Gerard Archives fund. Proceeds from the sale of the book in the Gallery will go toward the restoration of the Opera House.