1896 – William H. English died at his home in Indianapolis. He had served in the Indiana Legislature and the United States House of Representatives He had been the Democratic candidate for Vice President in 1880. His English Opera House and Hotel was a landmark on Monument Circle.
1934 – Heavily shackled and surrounded by guards, John Dillinger faced a judge in Crown Point. He was charged with the murder of a policeman during a bank robbery. The Lake County Jail was under heavy security after rumors spread that Dillinger’s friends would help him escape.
1940 – Norwegian figure skater and film star Sonja Henie dazzled the crowd at the Indianapolis Coliseum. “Gliding in long, graceful arabesques, spinning like a jeweled top,” wrote one reviewer, “she enchanted her audience as few local audiences had been enchanted before.”
1970 – President Richard Nixon brought the Urban Affairs Council to Indianapolis. The President and six members of his Cabinet met with Indianapolis Mayor Richard Lugar and mayors from eight other cities. They were greeted by Governor Edgar Whitcomb as they came to discuss issues facing urban centers across the nation.
1992 – A Kentucky National Guard C-130 transport plane crashed into buildings housing Drury Inn and JoJo’s Restaurant on the north side of Evansville. All five in the plane died along with eleven others on the ground.
2012 – Indianapolis hosted Super Bowl XLVI at Lucas Oil Stadium. The New York Giants defeated the New England Patriots, 21 to 17. The broadcast of the game on NBC broke the current record for the most-watched program in American television history.