This coming week in Indiana’s history …
1899 – Dorothy Stratton was born in Missouri. After earning her PhD, she moved to Indiana to serve as the first full-time Dean of Women at Purdue University. During World War II, she became the first female officer in the United States Coast Guard. In 2010, the Coast Guard Cutter Stratton was christened by First Lady Michelle Obama, who called Stratton “one of the most extraordinary women to serve our nation in uniform.” Dorothy Stratton died in West Lafayette at the age of 107.
1912 – In South Bend, the first “automobile fire apparatus” was put into service at the Central Fire Station. It made its first run on April 2 with I. W. Sibel as driver. Sibel was one of the 66 firemen with the department.
1913 – Incredibly heavy rain led to massive flooding in several states, including Indiana, where towns along the White, Wabash and Ohio Rivers were devastated. Large areas of Indianapolis were under water. Governor Samuel Ralston ordered the National Guard to help with the crisis.
1916 – The cornerstone was laid for the new Indianapolis Public Library to be built on St. Clair Street on land donated by Hoosier Poet James Whitcomb Riley. Schools were dismissed so that pupils could attend the ceremony, which included a talk by author Meredith Nicholson. Music was provided by a chorus of 1,000 children.
1929 – The Marmon Company of Indianapolis introduced the “Roosevelt,” the first automobile with a “straight-8” engine to be sold for under $1,000. Customers were already placing orders for the new model, named for former President Teddy Roosevelt. The Marmon factory was going strong, producing more than 200 cars a day.
1984 – Fourteen tractor-trailer trucks departed Owings Mills, Md., in the middle of the night as the Colts NFL team moved to a new home in Indianapolis.