According to National Day Calendar, December is National Tie Month. Though the origin of the celebration is unknown, I have a guess. As neckties are often given as gifts, especially for Father’s Day and Christmas, it seems fitting that we should celebrate in one of those prime gift-giving months. While ties are more often thought […]
Years ago, in a newspaper search I came across an article about a string of burglaries in 1931, one was at an Indianapolis chili parlor owned by Philip Gomez. Researching Phillip’s life has initiated multiple discoveries, and he has served as a teaching tool on of how we have statistically defined Latinos throughout history in […]
I love November – it’s one of my favorite months of the year. The temperature is starting to cool down meanwhile some people are preparing for Thanksgiving and observing National Indigenous Peoples Day. November has many fun and interesting holidays like Saxophone Day. Saxophones are popular for use in jazz music. Indiana has produced many […]
My colleague Suzanne shared another surname with me, Maxwell. I started digging and quickly found several references to that name in the IHS collections. The search took a little longer because this surname is also a fairly common given name. I found 13 unique Maxwells pictured within the collections, a selection of those available in […]
Did you know that between October and November 1930, architects and engineers rotated a building in downtown Indianapolis without disrupting business inside? What is historically known as the Indiana Bell Building has gone through quite a few name changes throughout its history. Established in 1883, the Central Union Telephone Company of Indianapolis was one of […]
While Aviation has a much longer history than many consider (think balloons, gliders, and other ‘flying machines’), the most common vehicle in aviation history is probably the airplane. I could certainly look at the IHS collections and pull up images of some of those other forms, but in looking at the digital collection, planes, planes, […]
I go through a lot of names while searching for ‘Are We Related’ connections for this blog series. Some of those names are not represented in our collections. Those are the easy ones to discard. Other surnames, those found in our holdings, cause me to fall down the rabbit hole trying to locate connections between […]
“I bashed his head in with a hammer … I pleaded guilty hoping to get life. I got what I deserve…” – Clarence Thomas. This chilling confession echoes through history, drawing us into a harrowing tale that unfolded in a small Indiana town. On July 3, 1936, the quiet steamy summer morning was shattered at […]
This month we celebrate our appreciation for photographers. Whether amateur or professional, photographers are important to the historical record. At the Indiana Historical Society, we have millions of photographs representing many photographers. It was a struggle to decide which photographer’s collections to highlight. Here are the ones that I decided to share: Cephas M. Huddleston […]
Welcome back to our monthly installment of “Are We Related?.” This time we’re exploring the Cheek family. My colleague Tamara provided some links to this surname, specifically noting her grandfather, Gail Austin Cheek. While seeking out Cheeks in the IHS collection, I came across a couple of options, but one really stood out. In our […]
