“Stars, Stripes and Small Towns – Celebrating 250 Years” is the theme of the 2026 Tree City Fall Festival Parade. What better way to celebrate those years than with a parade that reaches back to the beginning of our community, including the honor of presenting family of Greensburg’s founder, Colonel Thomas Hendricks.
From her early childhood in the 1960s until 1989, author/professional editor/ghost writer and genealogist Krista Hill spent many days in the home of her great-grandaunt Victoria Woolverton, who was the great-great-granddaughter of Colonel Thomas Hendricks. Hill will represent the family as the 2026 Grand Marshal at the Tree City Fall Festival Parade.
“The TCFF committee had a discussion about our parade theme, “Stars, Stripes, and Small Towns”, and the connection with the Grand Marshal,” Festival volunteer Brian Wenning said. “My thoughts went to Greensburg’s founder, Thomas Hendricks… Do we have descendants of Hendricks? If so, they would make a great Grand Marshal.
“John Pratt (local historian) gave me Krista’s name, and I reached out to her,” Wenning continued. “She was immediately interested and excited about the idea. In my interactions with Krista, I have found that she is a historian and loves our local history. She has a wealth of knowledge concerning her great-great-great-grandfather, Hendricks and his/her family. I think she’ll make a “Grand” Grand Marshal for our parade!!”
According to information provided by Krista, Victoria, her sister Mary Woolverton Swift (Krista’s great-grandmother), along with their mother Eliza Talbott Wooverton, chartered and were early members of the Lone Star Chapter of the DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution).
The Talbott-Wolverton home at the corner of Michigan Ave. and Ireland Streets was at one time a virtual museum of Greensburg historical artifacts. For nearly three decades, Krista listened to stories of her ancestors and even slept in beds that belonged to the town’s founders. She has in her possession today a cherry chest from Greensburg, PA, (the town Greensburg, IN was named after), that belonged to Colonial Hendricks and his wife Eliza. She is also in possession of a letter penned in 1849 by Benjamin Kirby, whose family married into the Hendricks line.
At present, Krista is spearheading a mission to install a grave marker at South Park Cemetery on the unmarked grave of Anna Meadows Irvin, whose son Edward Giles Irvin co-founded Kappa Alpha Psi at Indiana University in 1911.
Krista views the Tree City Fall Festival parade grand marshalship as an honor and opportunity to pay homage to her foremothers and forefathers and to share the family heritage with many cousins in the area.
Tree City Fall Festival Parade Chair Sydney Meyer Schwering said, “The Fall Festival Parade is one of my favorite ways to kick off festival weekend. It is such an honor to have a descendant of our town’s founder leading our parade. It’s always great to see everyone come together during the parade. We already have so many great organizations signed up; you won’t want to miss it!”
The Herb Koehler Memorial Parade begins at 10 a.m. Lineup starts at 9 a.m. Watch the Tree City Fall Festival Facebook page and local media for the parade lineup.
Registration forms for the parade are available at www.treecityfallfestival.com
The Tree City Fall Festival runs Sept. 18 and 19 in downtown Greensburg, IN.
