Brook (400) Built 1936
May 20, 2025
May 20, 2025
Let's talk time zones! Exciting stuff right? My introduction to time zones came when I was a kid, and for a period of time the counties in southern Michigan right across the state line from us switched to Central time. The nearest Walmart was actually in Sturgis, Michigan, so whenever we went shopping my dad would say we were "going back in time." I didn't really understand it, but I thought it was awesome! Looking back on it, it seems strange that a place just 5 minutes away could be in a different time zone, but I guess the boundary lines have to be somewhere. That part of Michigan pretty quickly switched back to Eastern time, and I haven't thought much about time zones for a long time. That is, until recently. They are actually pretty important to consider when I'm planning these gym hunting days that take me all over the state. Indiana is one of fourteen states that is split into two time zones. Ninety percent of the state operates on Eastern time, but there are two pockets in the northwest corner and southwest corner that operate on Central time. To make it more confusing, the western most counties in the central part of the state have stuck with Eastern for whatever reason. My recent trip up US-35 to see some old gyms started out smoothly enough. I typically plan these visits down to the minute to ensure I'm respectful of the peoples' time who are showing me the gyms. I realized I made a grave mistake though while driving from Reynolds to Brook as I noticed the time on my phone was an hour behind the time on my dash. I hadn't realized that I would be crossing over from Eastern to Central time when I passed from White County into Jasper and Newton County. I quickly called the fine people of Brook who were kind enough to show me around, and sheepishly let them know I was going to be an hour earlier than I had told them. Luckily for me, my guide dropped what he was doing and met me at the town hall on about 15 minutes notice. While my lesson on time zones may not be the most interesting lead-in to a blog I've ever written, I hope you can at least use it to avoid the embarrassment I felt on this visit.
The old Brook gym is one of the prettier ones you'll find when you're driving up and looking at it for the first time on the outside. It's a classic red brick WPA era gym, but it has a traditional straight-sloped roof instead of the curved style you see on a lot of 1930s gyms. It also has grey brick support beams in between the rectangular windows that line the baseline walls. They help it stand out a little more as well. The gym was home to the Brook Aces for thirty years until 1966 when they consolidated into South Newton along with Kentland and Goodland. At that point, each town's school was turned into an elementary. Each town maintained their elementarys until 1997 when a new one was built for the entire corporation. At that time, the schools and gyms were given to the towns in which they resided. Brook and Kentland razed their old school buildings but kept the gyms, while Goodland got rid of everything almost immediately (tragically, I was told Goodland had the neatest gym of them all). Brook has operated their gym as a community center ever since. The Aces won four sectionals while playing in this gym (to go along with eight more in the 20s & 30s). Most of those sectionals were actually played at the old Rensselaer College, but it appears the host jumped around a lot, because one was held at Morocco, a few in Kentland, and one in this very gym. My favorite story I heard over the course of all my traveling this day was about one of the first sectionals that took place right after the big wave of consolidation hit this area. Benton Central was hosting its first sectional in its new domed gym, and for some reason the brand new roof was suffering from some leaks. In South Newton's sectional game there, there was a lot of slipping and sliding going on. When South Newton hosted Benton Central the next season, they decided to remind them of their leaky roof by putting on a killer rendition of "It's Raining, It's Pouring" at halftime.
When you walk into the little foyer at the front of the gym, you find a couple of cool historic pieces of the gym. To the right is a little closet where there's a small wooden framed section of wall near the floor. It's actually the top of a door frame. The door used to lead to an underground tunnel that connected the gym to the old school. The stairs have since been filled in with cement. To the left is a little plaque recognizing the year the gym was built and a prominent community member who helped make it possible. The gym itself was in the midst of a small remodel when I came to see it. The area around the stage was recently repainted, and the sideline walls were plastered with insulation that would soon be finished over with a new interior wall. It was still easy to see the history of the place shining through. The first thing I noticed when I walked into the gym was the permanent bleachers lining both sidelines. Five rows of basic wooden bench seats attached firmly into concrete, everything painted a light grey. They run from baseline to baseline. Above them are neat rows of rectangular windows that let in a good amount of natural light. While the exterior roofline is slanted, the interior is rounded, which makes me wonder if the exterior was rebuilt at some point. The baseline wall opposite of the entrance is pretty bare. There is a small concession window in one corner. The best feature over here is the old school hoop setup with the practice baskets hanging perpendicular to the main hoop so people can shoot free throws off to the sides.
The grandest part of the gym is the one I didn't notice until I walked out to center court and then turned all the way around. Stages are a dime a dozen in gyms that predate 1960, but few are as pretty as this one. The trim that frames the stage on three sides is inlaid with two different sections. The top is beautifully rounded to form a slight arch. The bottom portion that reaches from the stage to the floor is made up of light beige panels that are framed in by a rich, dark colored wood. A heavy golden-brown curtain hangs across it in the most regal manner. I can't tell you exactly why, but I just think it's gorgeous. It all fits together marvelously. The playing floor itself is in great shape as well. It's stained a classic gold color and features double timelines at midcourt as it's a few feet short of regulation.
When I visited, the gym was being set up to host a dinner theater event put on by a local troupe. It was cool to see the costumes laid out along the bleachers and part of the set and props up on the stage. Like most old gyms that are now community centers, events like these along with reunions, receptions, and even weddings are what bring in funds to keep the places afloat. In Brook, they want to continue to do more repairs and small renovations to keep the gym in good enough shape to serve the community for another 90-100 years. If I ever won the lottery, I would probably blow it all on giving all these old gyms whatever they need to perfectly preserve them, but I can only dream. In the meantime, people who care about these old gems like the one in Brook will continue to put in the work that needs to be done. They'll keep showing up. After we left the gym, we made a stop at the town's historical museum. They had old Brook basketball team photos dating all the way back to 1910. One hundred and fifteen years ago, and one year before the first ever IHSAA boys state tournament. That's how deep-seeded the roots of basketball run in Brook. That spirit weighs heavy in the air around their gym. As long as it stands, I doubt that will ever change.
