The Story of Bulldog Crossing
(as told in the Elkhart Truth)

THE ELKHART TRUTH, JULY 19, 1980

Jim Loomis, of 208 State St., was going through a scrapbook of his mother's (Mrs. Nellie Loomis) recently when he came across an article from The Truth printed Dec. 22, 1942. It pertains to an exchange of letters between some soldiers stationed overseas and the Elkhart Chamber of Commerce about Bulldog Crossing. Jim thought our readers might be interested in it, so here is the article as it appeared on that date.

Cpl. Glen O. Davis, son of Mrs. Hazel Davis, 3801 E. Jackson, is proud of his old home town, and particularly of his own neighborhood, Bulldog Crossing. In fact, he's so proud of it, and has boasted so much about it, that the enlisted men of Div. Arty. 1st A.D. APO 251, c/o Postmaster, New York, have become just a bit skeptical - so skeptical, in fact, that they addressed a V-mail letter of inquiry to the Elkhart Chamber of Commerce. They turned it over to The Truth who handled it as follows:

Dear Sirs: This letter is a request for information concerning a suburb of your beautiful city, namely Bulldog Crossing.

We have a fellow soldier here with us - Cpl. G.O. Davis, who has been telling us about "Bulldog Crossing" for the past two years. We are very doubtful of the existence of such a place. Many of us are from your fair state and none of us have ever heard of it. Cpl. Davis claims that the Davis family is practically the sole inhabitants of said crossing, that they are the keepers of the dog pound, and that there is the conventional tavern situated at the crossing. He has a brother called "Skinny" Davis (at least that is what he calls him, his skinny brother) and says that he is the mayor.

It need not be mentioned that Cpl. Davis always gives your fair city a good bit of publicity and many of us who live close to him are planning to visit him if there is such a place. He tells us of the wonderful Alka - Seltzer plant in your city and also about the home of the wonderful musical instrument manufacturers.

We would appreciate it very much if you would write us and let us know all about the place in question. Thanking you in advance.

- The Doubters

Dear Doubters: Of course there is a Bulldog Crossing. And it's a nifty little spot, too, just out at the eastern edge of the outskirts of Elkhart. Some folks like to call it Middleton Run, but it's all a matter of taste. We always preferred Bulldog Crossing, be cause it sounds more virile, somehow.

A man named John Ulrich lived out in that neighborhood some 30 years or so ago. And he had a vicious bulldog. One day the dog got loose after John had left for work in Elkhart. A few hours later a lineman entered the neighborhood and shinnied up a pole to make some repairs. The dog spotted him, and the lineman spotted the dog. That's the day that flagpole sitting originated. The lineman stayed on the pole until John came home in the evening and called off the dog. Now it's called Bulldog Crossing.

And it's just like Cpl. Davis says, too. There is the conventional tavern, a filling station, the dog refuge and a railroad crossing nearby. Of course, now, the trains don't stop there, but they ought to if for no other reason than to permit the passengers to get a glimpse of the beautiful St. Joseph river (which is a little too hard for bathing just at the moment), or maybe Charley Rowley mowing the lawn in the summer time. That really is a picture - Charley mowing his lawn. One of those still pictures, you know.

However, there are 8 or 10 families living in that immediate neighborhood, instead of just one. And Dode (you call him Skinny) Davis, has been mayor of the community ever since he was a kid, so the neighbors say. Every morning, in the summer, Mayor Dode calls out his street department and sweeps off the river, then scoops up the smoke from the passing trains. Dode is a stickler for cleanliness. Then the mayor calls in his community treasurer, Dr. F.R. Booth, a veterinarian, for a report on the Crossing's finances.

That doesn't take long. And after that Dode has the day to himself.

We're surprised that Cpl. Davis hasn't told you about the wonderful fishing out there. The black bass are so hungry and savage that it's as much as your life is worth to prowl around Bulldog Crossing after nightfall. They jump right out of the water and attack automobiles sweeping around the highway curve at that point. Curiously enough, they usually vent their wrath on the automobile tires. They have gouged holes in about a dozen during the last six or seven months. But Mayor Dode doesn't seem much disturbed about it. He says he can't condemn the poor fish for letting the air out of tires, because-they're all against inflation. (Were they worried about inflation back then, too? - BF)

What Cpl. Davis tells you about Elkhart being the home of Alka - Seltzer as well as the largest band instrument manufacturing center in the world is likewise true. In fact, having checked the corporal's statements carefully, we have come to the conclusion that you can rely on him, absolutely, even if you can't be quite sure of us.

Get along with the war, boys, and after it is over, come to Elkhart and take a good took for yourselves. We'll induce the mayor of Bulldog Crossing to give you a rousing reception.

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