1832 – A group of nine men met at the home of Pastor James Thomson in Crawfordsville to form the Wabash Teachers Seminary and Manual Labor College. Since 1851, the school has been known as Wabash College. The first professor was Caleb Mills, who arrived in 1833.
1858 – Attorney, businessman, and former state senator Calvin Fletcher reported that the Thanksgiving holiday was taking on many traditions and becoming more widespread through the state. It was first observed in 1837 when Governor Noah Noble proclaimed the day of gratitude. Fletcher wrote that, as the holiday took hold, “All the stores were shut and Indianapolis was in great harmony.”
1891 – Governor Alvin Hovey died in office. He had served as a U. S. Congressman and Indiana Supreme Court Justice. Lt. Gov. Ira Joy Chase served the 14 months remaining in Hovey’s term.
1915 – The Liberty Bell, on a tour of the nation, passed through Indianapolis. Downtown streets were crowded with patriotic citizens waving flags and singing “America.”
1916 – Celebrated actor John Barrymore was on stage at the English Opera House in Indianapolis, starring in the John Galsworthy play Justice. There were four performances over a three-day period. Nearly everyone in the cast had accompanied Barrymore in the original New York production.
1963 – Governor Matthew E. Welsh proclaimed a 30-day mourning period in Indiana following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in Dallas. On Nov. 25, the governor and his wife Mary attended the President’s funeral in Washington, D.C. On the same day, Lieutenant Governor Richard Ristine placed a wreath on the steps of the Indiana World War Memorial while 3,500 soldiers stood at attention.