This week in Indiana’s history …
1854 – St. Meinrad was founded in Spencer County by monks from Einsiedein Abbey in Switzerland. It is one of only two archabbeys in the United States and one of 11 in the world.
1912 – The Spades Park Branch Library was dedicated in Indianapolis. Andrew Carnegie built 164 libraries in Indiana, and this is the only one in the Italianesque style. The Spades Park Branch continues to serve the community near Brookside Park.
1917 – The Methodist Church approved the move of Moores Hill Collegiate Institute to Evansville. In 1919, it became Evansville College and, in 1967, the University of Evansville. The school was founded in 1854 in Dearborn County.
1954 – The basketball team from the small high school in Milan, Ind., won the state championship. The victory was the inspiration for Hoosiers, one of the most popular sports movies of all time. The film was shot in locations around the state, including the iconic final game at the Butler University fieldhouse.
1954 – RCA began producing color TVs at its plant in Bloomington, Ind. A set with a 15-inch screen and 36 vacuum tubes sold for nearly $9,000 in today’s dollars. At the time, there were only six hours of color broadcasting each week.
2012 – Randall T. Shepard retired as Chief Justice of the Indiana Supreme Court. He was the longest-serving Chief Justice in Indiana history. Appointed to the Court in 1985 by Governor Robert D. Orr, Shepard had earlier served as Judge of the Vanderburgh Superior Court in Evansville.