04
GEIST
ABOUT GEIST
AN INDIANAPOLIS LAKE COMMUNITY
Nestled in the northeast corner of Marion County, the southeast corner of Hamilton County and the eastern border of Hancock County is the area known as Geist -- the homes and nearby neighborhoods that encircle and surround Geist Reservoir.
While not its own municipality, Geist is its own lake community -- drawing its personality and pace from the beauty and activities of its namesake 1,900 acre lake that rests in the middle and makes boating and fishing two of the favorite leisure activities of Geist residents.
Geist is home to a handful of golf courses, many churches and numerous restaurants. Geist spans 3 school districts, 4 voting precincts and 5 zip codes and is overlaps with the towns of Fishers, Lawrence, Oaklandon, McCordsville and Fortville.
Geist Community Picture Album
HISTORY OF GEIST RESERVOIR
Geist Reservoir is named after Clarence H. Geist, former owner of the Indianapolis Water Company, who foresaw a deficit in Indianapolis's water supply and the need for a freshwater source.
After buying the Indianapolis Water Company in 1912, Geist gradually bought some 5,000 acres in Fall Creek Valley in the 1920s and 1930s, including the small town of Germantown. The reservoir was completed in 1943. Today, the old town of Germantown lies underwater in the area near the Indianapolis Sailing Club and the Bridgewater neighborhood.
In 1961, the Water Company announced plans to restrict public access to the reservoir to build a 2,782 acre development named Shorewood on the west and south shores of Geist. After more than 15 years of lawsuits, petitions, rezoning and elections, construction of the first luxury homes started by an offshoot of the Water Company, The Shorewood Corporation, began in 1978.
Forty years later, Geist Reservoir is now lined with million-dollar-plus homes and most of the surrounding land is developed into upscale neighborhoods.
