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1858

‍The Western Yearly Meeting of Friends begins holding annual sessions in Plainfield, establishing the town as a major center of Quaker activity in western Indiana. The nearby Western Yearly Meetinghouse becomes the focal point of these gatherings.

‍1873

‍The building was constructed as the Western Yearly Meeting Depository. Its functions included:

‍Storage and distribution of Quaker books, records, and printed materials

• A parsonage or residence for traveling ministers

• A library and resource space supporting the Yearly Meeting’s work

‍By the 1874 Yearly Meeting it was finished, with the Meeting disbursing $2,999.11 to pay for it. It had come in on time and under budget by $5.89.

‍Built in the Italianate style, the two-story brick structure contributes to the growing commercial and religious core of downtown Plainfield. The town’s development during this period is strongly influenced by its Quaker founders and institutions.

‍Late 19th – Early 20th Century

‍The building continues serving Quaker-related purposes. It remains connected to the Western Yearly Meeting and nearby institutions such as Friends Central Academy (operating 1881–1919).   As Quaker organizations evolve and experience internal divisions over time, the building’s role gradually shifts.

It is later described in some records as having served as the superintendent’s home for the Western Yearly Meeting.

‍Fredric E. Carter was the first found there in the census, serving as Western Yearly Meeting superintendent from 1936 to 1943, when he resigned to become superintendent of the North Carolina Yearly Meeting.

‍Glenn A. Reece was the next resident superintendent from 1944 to 1957. For his last few years in office, however, he was in danger of losing his home to the post office.

‍1950s

‍The Plainfield Post Office was soliciting proposals and bids for new quarters as early as 1950. The zoning board approved the site at 303 East Main Street. Bids for construction of the new post office were submitted, only to be rejected by the Post Office Department in Washington, DC.  Renewed efforts to place a post office on the site faltered when the post office proposed including an additional commercial building and the requisite parking.

‍ ‍The Frends Trustees refused, saving both the historical house and the meetinghouse lawn. The new post office wound up on the site of the old Plainfield Mill at 164 North Mill Street, opening in 1958.

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1959

‍The Western Yearly Meeting built a new residence for the superintendent and then sold the

building in 1959. Miriam Atkinson (1909–1981) and Margaret Atkinson (1912–1995) purchased the building.

They were sisters and granddaughters of Riley and Ann Atkinson, who lived there as young Quakers

in 1920s. ‍ ‍ ‍

Atkinson sisters were members of a long-established Plainfield family with Quaker roots. They converted the building into three apartments, which remained through the 1980s. The Atkinson family was active in the local Friends community, and many relatives are buried in Maple Hill Cemetery. The sisters appear in local archival photos and family reunion records. Their ownership reflects the continued connection between the property and Plainfield’s Quaker heritage.

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1989

‍ ‍Philip and Carol Wubbolding bought the property, they kept it until 2013. Converted into offices, the structure housed Jim Lautenschlager’s Insurance Agency in the 2000s, as well as the Sketch Pad for a brief stint.‍ ‍

2013‍ ‍

The Holsclaw Group, LLC, a law firm, bought it from the Wubboldings in 2013.  It appears to function as a residential or mixed-use structure.‍ ‍

Mantis Management LLC became the owner in 2014, then sold it to CKF, LLC in late 2021.

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2022 – Present‍ ‍

The Frigid Frog (an ice cream and snack shop) opened in the building in January 2022.   ‍ ‍

Momma Shell’s Cookies (a small home-based bakery) rent a room to open a business on bakery/cookies. ‍‍ ‍

Outdoor seating and pedestrian-friendly features reflect the revitalized character of the downtown district. The building is not individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places but contributes to the Plainfield Historic District. Its architectural integrity and association with the Western Yearly Meeting of Friends make it one of Plainfield’s notable 19th-century religious and community-related structures.‍ ‍

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