Maple Lane, Indiana facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Maple Lane, Indiana
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 Maple Lane, Indiana
Location in Indiana
Maple Lane, Indiana
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | Indiana |
| County | St. Joseph |
| Township | Clay |
| Elevation | 748 ft (228 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP code |
46637
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| Area code(s) | 574 |
| GNIS feature ID | 452680 |
Maple Lane is a small place in Indiana, United States. It's called an "unincorporated community." This means it's a group of homes and businesses that don't have their own city government. Instead, it's part of a larger area called Clay Township in St. Joseph County, Indiana. Maple Lane is also close to the cities of South Bend and Mishawaka. It's part of the bigger "South Bend-Mishawaka Metropolitan Area."
Contents
The Story of Maple Lane
Early Days and Growth
Maple Lane started to grow in 1922. A company from Louisville, Kentucky called National Realty and Development Co. began selling land there. They even gave away gold and free homesites to attract people! By 1928, about 200 people lived in Maple Lane. This number grew a lot over the years. By 1971, the population was estimated to be 3,238.
Community Parks and Green Spaces
In 1937, Maple Lane got its first public park. It was called Ponader Park. A man named William J. Ponader, who owned Maple Lane Realty, donated the land. This was the first public park in all of St. Joseph County! Later, in 1961, the park was given to the South Bend Board of Park Commissioners.
Community Action and Changes
The people of Maple Lane have always worked together. In 1939, the Maple Lane and Wilmette Civic Association successfully stopped an attempt to make Maple Lane part of a larger city. This process is called annexation. In 1945, the Maple Lane Civic Association helped get better transportation services for the area.
By 1957, Maple Lane had about 1,800 homes and more than 5,500 people. Local businesses also got involved. In September 1957, the Maple Lane Business Men's Association met to talk about important issues. They discussed things like water wells and septic tanks. They also talked about the idea of being annexed by South Bend.
Fighting Annexation Efforts
In 1971, the city of South Bend voted to annex Maple Lane. This meant South Bend wanted Maple Lane to become part of its city. However, over 1,000 Maple Lane residents went to a public meeting to say they didn't want this to happen. The annexation plan was argued in courts for several years. Finally, in 1977, the annexation was rescinded. This means the plan was canceled, and Maple Lane remained an unincorporated community.
