All Stories: 449
Stories
Limberlost Cabin
Geneva “Gene” Stratton was born in 1863 on a farm near Wabash to nature-loving parents. It is because of their strong influence that nature was a continuous theme throughout their daughter’s life as an author, naturalist, photographer, and…
James Whitcomb Riley Home
James Whitcomb Riley’s writing opportunities increased with his move to Indianapolis. He worked for the Indianapolis Journal and continued writing on his own. His first real success came with a series entitled “Benjamin F. Johnson of Boone”. Riley…
James Whitcomb Riley Boyhood Home
James Whitcomb Riley was born in 1849 in a log cabin. That cabin, constructed in 1847, is now the kitchen wing of the current house. The two story main portion of the house was built by James’ father, Reuben, from 1850-1853. Reuben Riley was a…
“The House of the Singing Winds” (T.C. Steele House and Studio)
Theodore Clement “T.C.” Steele and his second wife, Selma Neubacher Steele, purchased the land in 1907 and constructed a home there. Known as “The House of the Singing Winds,” the property also housed a studio and acres of landscaped hillside and…
Dan Quayle Center and Museum
Originally constructed as the First Church of Christ Scientist in 1919, the building now houses the Dan Quayle Center and Museum. It contains specific memorabilia related to Dan Quayle, the 44th Vice President, as well as other information on Vice…
Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial
Built on the site where Thomas Lincoln’s family lived from 1816 to 1830, the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial commemorates President Abraham Lincoln’s formative years in Indiana. While Lincoln was born in 1809 in Kentucky and established his…
Charles Fairbanks House
Designed in 1912 by Howard Van Doren Shaw, the Charles Fairbanks house served as a residence from 1912-1918. Charles Fairbanks served as the 26th Vice President of the United States under President Theodore Roosevelt (1905-1909). Charles Fairbanks…
Thomas R. Marshall House
Yet another Hoosier who served as Vice President was Thomas Marshall. He was born in North Manchester, Indiana onMarch 14, 1854 and was the only son of Daniel
M. and Martha A. Marshall. From the age of six until he departed for Wabash College,…
President Benjamin Harrison Home
Benjamin Harrison was born into a politically active family. His father, John, was a United States Representative. William Henry Harrison, the ninth President of the United States, was his grandfather. He was named after his great-grandfather,…
Thomas A. Hendricks Library
Formerly the Hendricks Library, the building commemorating Vice President Thomas Hendricks is now known at Hendricks Hall. Hendricks born in 1819 in Ohio, moved to Shelby County, Indiana as an infant, where his uncle was the newly elected governor.…
Schuyler Colfax Grave
Schuyler Colfax’s home no longer exists in South Bend so the only site associated with him is his grave, located in the City Cemetery. His father died four months before Colfax was born in 1823. His mother remarried and the family moved to New…
Corydon State Capitol Building
After the Indiana Territory was divided into the Indiana and Illinois Territories in 1809, the location of the original territorial capital in Vincennes no longer proved practical due to its location on the extreme western boundary, away from more…
Grouseland (William Henry Harrison Home)
The ninth President of the United States, William Henry Harrison served as the Territorial Governor of the Northwest Territory from 1801-1812. During that time he lived at “Grouseland,” a 300 acre estate in Vincennes that he modeled after his…
Territorial Capitol of Former Indiana Territory
In 1800, the Northwest Territory was divided up into two territories, the eastern region called the Ohio Territory and the western region called the Indiana Territory. Vincennes became the Territorial Capitol until 1813 when it was moved to Corydon.…
Lincoln Pioneer Village
The Lincoln Pioneer Village was created in 1935 to promote the life and legacy of Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln lived in southern Indiana during his childhood and adolescence. George Honig, a Lincoln expert in Rockport, suggested the idea of recreating a…
Otis Park
Otis Park began as a farm in the 1860s. The original 1865 Italianate house is still located on the grounds. After the farm failed, there were a series of owners. Local newspaperman Fred Otis acquired the property and in 1915 he donated it to the…
Crystal Beach Pool and Bathhouse
The Crystal Beach Pool and Bathhouse were constructed by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) from 1937-1939. The pool has a half circle form designed by a Mr. Hunter. Shallow water starts at the curved outer edge and plunges to 9-feet deep at…
Garfield Park
This 123-acre park southeast of downtown Indianapolis was originally a horse-racing track. This venture failed and the property was sold to the City of Indianapolis in 1873 and became known as Southern Park. Upon President Garfield’s assassination…
Hillcrest Country Club
Hillcrest Country Club, established in 1924, included a clubhouse, 1934 swimming pool, and a 1924 golf course. The remarkably intact golf course is why the property is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
The 1920s-1930s is known…
Indianapolis Motor Speedway
It took Ray Harroun 6 hours and 42 minutes to win the first Indianapolis 500 on May 30, 1911. Speeding past the checkered flag in his bright yellow Marmon “Wasp,” Harroun had driven the five hundred miles at an average speed of 74.6 mph. Today’s…
Broad Ripple Park Carousel
A second National Historic Landmark Dentzel carousel is located in Indiana (the other is in Logansport). Formerly a part of Broad Ripple Park, the carousel is now housed at the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis. It is one of three of the earliest…
Porter Pool Bathhouse
The Porter Pool Bathhouse is one of several examples of Art Deco architecture in Shelbyville. Designed by D.A. Bohlen in 1930, the bathhouse was paired with a public pool that was managed by the American Legion from 1930-1955. At that point the…
Martinsville Gymnasium
The Martinsville High School Gymnasium served as the prototype for many 1920-1930s high school gyms. Designed by Indianapolis architects D.A. Bohlen and Son, the building was the first free–standing gym in the state. It was created specifically for…
Deming Park
Deming Park, located on the east side of Terre Haute, is the work of landscape architect George Kessler. He created this park and adjacent Ohio Boulevard as one component of a parks and boulevard system for Terre Haute. Unfortunately Deming Park was…
Collett Park
Collett Park is a 21-acre park that dates back to the 19th century. Designed by local architect J. Merrill Sherman, it was dedicated in 1890 although construction was not completed until 1894. It is the oldest park in Terre Haute. Several of the…
Dentzel Carousel
German immigrant Gustav Dentzel began a carousel manufacturing business in Philadelphia in 1867. His father also created carousels in Kreuznach, Germany. The Dentzel family created over 100 hand-carved wood carousels during the 62-years they were in…
Wallace Circus & American Circus Winter Quarters
Traveling circuses flourished in the years between the Civil War and the Great Depression. Few people may realize that Peru, Indiana, served as the winter headquarters from 1892-1938 for what would become the second largest circus in the country.…
Huntington Sunken Gardens
Sometime between 1914-1920, the Keefer and Bailey Lime, Brick, Tile, and Cement Company abandoned their quarry in Huntington. The quarry became quite an eyesore until 1923 when the proposal was made to convert it into a sunken garden. The Chicago…
Lindenwood Cemetery
In 1859, the first Board of Trustees for Lindenwood Cemetery purchased 175 acres outside of Fort Wayne. They hired Englishman John Chislett, then superintendent and landscape gardener of Allegheny Park Cemetery in Pittsburgh, to plat the grounds.…
Battell Park
Battell Park is an 11-acre parcel that runs along the north bank of the Saint Joseph River. Previously known as Riverside Park, it was formally dedicated as a city park in 1881 and the name was changed to Battell Park (after the family that donated…