1867 – Wilbur Wright was born near Millville in Henry County. He attended school in Richmond until his senior year, when his family moved to Dayton. There he and his brother Orville became aviation pioneers.
1920 – A large crowd filled the Murat Theater in Indianapolis to see the performance of ballerina and choreographer Ruth Page, who had grown up in Indianapolis and attended Tudor Hall. She became famous for her innovative dance creations based upon American themes. The Ruth Page Center for the Arts in Chicago continues her mission today.
1930 – Governor Harry G. Leslie presided at a ceremony marking the final inspection of the restoration of the original Indiana Statehouse in Corydon. The building was the center of state government until the capital was moved to Indianapolis in 1825. Among those at the ceremony were Conservation Director Richard Lieber and newspaper publisher Robert O’Bannon, whose son Frank would someday be governor.
1940 – Thomas E. Dewey, New York State Prosecutor, spoke to a rally at Butler Fieldhouse. He was considering a run for the Presidency that year, but the nomination went to Hoosier Wendell Willkie. Dewey later served as Governor of New York and was the 1948 Republican candidate for President in the election won by Harry Truman.
1945 – War Correspondent Ernie Pyle was killed by sniper fire near Okinawa. Born in Dana, he attended Indiana University. During World War II, he wrote newspaper columns six days a week. Often on the front lines, he described the war through the lives of ordinary soldiers.
1982 – Twelve men were killed and 18 injured in the collapse of a highway ramp under construction in East Chicago. The ramp was part of the Cline Avenue Extension Project.