1873 – Susan B. Anthony gave a lecture at Hamilton’s Hall in Fort Wayne. Her subject was “American Citizenship, or How I Came to Vote.” The newspaper ad for her appearance stated that she “was under indictment for voting in Rochester, New York.” Admission was 50 cents with no reserved seats.
1885 – Over 800 people gathered in the nation’s capital as President Chester Arthur led dedication ceremonies for the Washington Monument. To represent Indiana, Governor Albert Porter had appointed Colonel R. W. McBride from Waterloo in DeKalb County. At the time, the 555-foot monument was the tallest structure in the world.
1894 – The Athenaeum opened on East Michigan Street in Indianapolis. Originally named Das Deutsche Haus, the building was designed by architects Bernard Vonnegut and Arthur Bohn.
1923 – Edward M. Bassett, a city planning expert from New York, spoke to civic leaders at the Claypool Hotel. He described Indianapolis as “one of the most carefully planned and laid-out cities in the United States.”
1938 – Mary Wien, a junior at Purdue University, won a contest as best cherry pie maker in America. Her award was $100 and a trip to Washington to meet First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.
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.