1893 – The USS Indiana was launched in Philadelphia. Over 10,000 people were in attendance, including President Benjamin Harrison. The ship served in the Spanish-American War as part of the North Atlantic Fleet.
1904 – Charles W. Fairbanks resigned as United States Senator from Indiana in order to assume the duties of Vice President of the United States under Theodore Roosevelt.
1929 – Indiana Governor Harry G. Leslie and his wife Martha were in Washington to attend the inauguration of President Herbert Hoover. They attended a reception at the White House hosted by outgoing President Calvin Coolidge. Later, as they arrived at the inaugural ball, the Marine Band played “On the Banks of the Wabash.”
1941 – Helen Keller was the honored guest at Memorial Stadium in Gary. She had recently been named one of the 10 outstanding women in the world. Though blind and deaf, she had become a highly-successful and inspirational author, political activist and lecturer.
1941 – Wendell Willkie was at the Indiana Statehouse to speak to a joint session of the Legislature. The 1940 Presidential candidate told the lawmakers that they were living in some of the most fateful times in the nation’s history. He departed to spend a few days at his farm in Rush County.
2012 – A large area around Henryville was struck by a series of tornadoes, killing 13 people and leaving hundreds homeless. Extensive property damage resulted from the twisters, which were on the ground for more than 50 miles.