Martindale-Brightwood, a historically African-American neighborhood on the east side of Indianapolis, has undergone significant changes in recent years. The neighborhood’s history dates to the early 1900s when many Black people left the Jim Crow South for better opportunities and, along with a mixture of white immigrants, settled there. It was a blue-collar neighborhood, with mainly industrial workers, and was one of the few neighborhoods in Indianapolis where Black people could own homes.

Clete Ladd is a long-time resident and college professor. After serving in the military, he returned to the area and began creating his historical archive and collecting records of the beloved neighborhood.