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IHS Press Publishes a Look at the Buchanan and Flanner Families of Indianapolis
In the latest release from the Indiana Historical Society (IHS) Press, “Building Community: The Flanner and Buchanan Families of Indianapolis,” author Julie Young shows how the name Buchanan is not only synonymous with Indianapolis but is recognized and respected among funeral directors throughout the United States. Celebrating its 140th anniversary, Flanner Buchanan’s longevity as a family-owned business and as influential families is highlighted throughout the book.
Since the founding of Indianapolis in the early 1820s, the Buchanan family has been part of its history, creating a uniquely diversified funeral business unlike any other, growing and changing with each generation and serving the living while also honoring the deceased.
The Buchanans (and related families, including the Flanners) have been business owners, state legislators, housewives, hospital board members, journalists, tavern owners, lawyers, prosecutors, writers, photographers, hospital chaplain assistants, service agency founders, Sunday School teachers, and even a state appellate court judge.
The Buchanans were pioneers in professionalizing the funeral industry and in the field of cremation, and were one of the first funeral firms to host wedding ceremonies on their properties. In fact, the Community Life Center on the east side of Indianapolis is known throughout the country as a multipurpose site. It sits on land that was the Buchanan family farm.
Bruce W. Buchanan, a sixth-generation Hoosier, said if there was a rudder that has directed his family’s community spirit, “it would be our business. Flanner Buchanan has a long, rich tradition of trust in the community. I believe that the Buchanans have made that business’s mission more important than our own personal gain. Perhaps that is why we continue to grow — because we give.”
Author Julie Young is the multi-award nominated author of several books, including “A Belief in Providence: A Life of Saint Theodora Guerin,” “Images of America: Historic Irvington,” and “Eastside Indianapolis: A Brief History.”
“Building Community: The Flanner and Buchanan Families of Indianapolis” is available through IHS’s Basile History Market and other places books are sold. For more information about the book or the IHS Press, call (317) 232-1882 or visit www.indianahistory.org.
About the Author
Julie Young is the multi-award nominated author of several books, including: A Belief in Providence: A Life of Saint Theodora Guerin; Images of America: Historic Irvington; Eastside Indianapolis: A Brief History; CYO in Indianapolis and Central Indiana; and Famous Faces of WTTV-4. She is also an award-winning freelance writer whose work has been seen in several local, regional and national publications.
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Title: Building Community: The Flanner and Buchanan Families of
Indianapolis
Publisher: Indiana Historical Society Press
Pages: 153
Size: 12 x 9
Cover: Hardcover
Publication Date: November 2021
Cost: $24.95
ISBN: 978-0-87195-456-5
