INDY BEACONS: Dr. John Evans created state’s first mental health hospital
The accomplished doctor move on to found both Northwestern University and the University of Denver.
Richard Gunderman / Special to IBJ
Articles
INDY BEACONS: Major Taylor, the fastest man on two wheels
Indy’s most-famous cyclist pedaled against racism to prevail in some of the world’s most prestigious championships.
INDY BEACONS: Indy native Ted Stevens made mark on Alaska
Like his long-time Senate colleague Richard Lugar, Stevens attended Indianapolis Public School No. 84 and Shortridge High School.
INDY BEACONS: Frederick Douglass, campaigner for human rights
The papers of the Nineteenth Century icon are housed at IUPUI’s Institute of American Thought.
INDY BEACONS: Recognizing Indy’s pandemic heroes—nurses
A shortage of nurses hit the city hard during the flu pandemic of 1918-1920.
INDY BEACONS: Steve McQueen, Indianapolis’ greatest movie star
The tough-guy actor left the industry to focus on motorcycle racing after a string of big-budget films in the 1970s.
INDY BEACONS: Ernie Pyle, America’s greatest war correspondent
The Indiana native and Indy 500 lover captured World War II in a way that connected with Americans.
INDY BEACONS: Dr. John Hurty, a leader in time of pandemic
Hurty helped guide both Indianapolis and the state through the devastating 1918 influenza pandemic.
INDY BEACONS: Wes Montgomery, a modest king of jazz
The Indy native and self-taught musician was a regular at the city’s jazz clubs and won two Grammy Awards,
INDY BEACONS: May Wright Sewall, early proponent of women’s suffrage
Her work paid off 100 years ago this month with ratification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution.
HOOSIER BEACON: Calvin Fletcher, philanthropist and city’s first lawyer
Deeply religious, Fletcher was a staunch opponent of slavery and led an unostentatious life despite being one of the state’s richest men.
HOOSIER BEACONS: Landis, the man who cleaned up baseball
Kenesaw Mountain Landis became one of the most famous men in America.
HOOSIER BEACON: Gene Stratton-Porter, naturalist and author
Difficulty finding publishers for her naturalist writings compelled Gene Stratton-Porter to write fiction. She embedded her love of nature in romance stories, what she called “nature studies sugar-coated with fiction.”
HOOSIER BEACON: John Wooden, legendary basketball coach
A man of deep faith, he celebrated his championships by going to church and taking his grandchildren out for ice cream.
HOOSIER BEACON: Hoagy Carmichael, legendary Indiana composer
After hearing one of his songs on the radio, Carmichael abandoned his legal career and devoted himself to music.
Gov. Bowen’s two terms led to Washington
Otis Bowen, who became the first physician to lead the federal government’s largest department, Health and Human Services, lived a long and rich life that included service as the Speaker of the Indiana House of Representatives and two terms as one of the state’s most popular governors. Bowen was born in 1918 near Rochester, where […]
HOOSIER BEACON: Richard Lieber founded Indiana’s park system
Though lacking any state funding, Lieber proposed that the state’s 1916 centennial should be celebrated through the creation of a state park system. The first two state parks, McCormick’s Creek and Turkey Run, both opened in December of that year.
HOOSIER BEACON: James Whitcomb Riley, ‘The Children’s Poet’
Riley, for whom the city’s children’s hospital is named, was a best-selling author of the 1890s.
HOOSIER BEACON: Booth Tarkington, Hoosier novelist
Tarkington, named America’s greatest living writer in 1922, won two Pulitzer Prizes.
HOOSIER BEACON: Pierre Goodrich: champion of ideas
Goodrich did not see liberty as an option, something people merely desire. He saw it as an absolute necessity, without which no one could develop fully and make important contributions to society.