Arsenal Technical High School began as an actual U.S. Army federal arsenal. Created by an act of Congress during the Civil War, the arsenal was built on a wooded, 76-acre tract of land east of the Indianapolis city limits with buildings constructed of locally made brick and limestone hauled from southern Indiana. It was used to store …
Objects can be compelling storytellers that put other times and places in context. They bridge time periods and cultures and celebrate our differences. As a collaborative effort The Indianapolis Public Library and The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis have selected 1,000 artifacts from the museum collection to photograph and make …
Broad Ripple High School was originally established in 1886 with a two-year high school course of study for students in the little village north of Indianapolis. The school soon expanded to become a four-year institution and was annexed in May of 1923 to the city of Indianapolis, becoming the city's fourth public high school.
In the late 19th century, some innovative educators conceived of the idea of a high school that would combine a traditional curriculum, including subjects such as mathematics, science, and Greek, with courses in manual skills, such as mechanics, drafting, and home nursing. The school, originally known as the Industrial Training School, …
Formally opening on September 27, 1880, English’s Opera House quickly became Indianapolis’ leading theater presenting not only opera but drama, musical comedy, ballet, concerts, minstrel shows, lectures, vaudeville and film. The theatre was built by William Hayden English, businessman and 1880 Democratic vice-presidential …
The Free Soil Banner was published in Indianapolis from 1848 to 1854. Other cities had newspapers by the same name, but the Indiana version was edited by Lew Wallace and William B. Greer, and reportedly funded by Ovid Butler, the founder of North Western Christian University, later renamed Butler University.
The paper was an …
George Washington High School opened in 1927 in Indianapolis in the Haughville neighborhood. A thriving and solidly working-class community at that time, the near west side of the city was hit hard by the Great Depression and suffered through the following years from the loss of employers and neighborhood institutions. Finally, due to …
"The Activities of the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce" provides an intriguing glimpse of the city during the period of time between the two world wars. Although the primary focus of the newsletter was local business, the interests of the Chamber extended far beyond the business community. They actively promoted the fine and performing …
Opened in 1996, the Indianapolis Firefighters Museum’s mission is to celebrate the history of the Fire Service in central Indiana and the Fire Departments’ contributions to the community. Located on the north end of the Massachusetts Avenue corridor and originally built in 1872, the Museum resides in the remodeled Fire Station #2, …
Since the first copyright for it in 1861, people have found that the small, thin postcard is a quick and inexpensive way to keep in touch with others. Deltiology, the study and collection of postcards, is one of the most popular hobbies today. The cards offer unique views of life as it once was and give us a glimpse of society and …
Irvington is a historic neighborhood on the east side of Indianapolis, bounded by 10th Street, Arlington Avenue, Brookville Road, and Emerson Avenue. From its inception, Irvington, named for the author Washington Irving, was planned to be a community of culture and refinement. Created from the land holdings of Jacob B. Julian, …
On Friday, June 7, 1912, James Whitcomb Riley finished his last recording session for the Victor Talking Machine Company. Out of around twenty recordings made during five days of readings, only four of the discs were ever issued by Victor.
The James Whitcomb Riley Recordings at the Indianapolis Public Library consist of seventeen …
The May Wright Sewall Papers are a collection of documents comprised of approximately 500 letters written to May Wright Sewall dated between 1879 and 1919, and three guest books with remarks and signatures from 197 guests of the Sewall house.
The correspondents represented in this collection include not only people important to the …
From the beginning, Shortridge High School was an innovative educational force in the city. It is the oldest free public high school in Indiana, opening as Indianapolis High School on the Circle in downtown Indianapolis in 1864. The first superintendent, Abram C. Shortridge, took the unusual steps of hiring female teachers and …
When the United States entered World War I in April of 1917, a means of communication was needed to encourage the public to support it. President Woodrow Wilson established the Committee on Public Information (CPI) and its offshoot, the Division of Pictorial Publicity (DPP).
Director George Creel and artist Charles Dana Gibson …
Welcome to the Indianapolis Public Library’s digital collections. The purpose of these collections is to provide access to digital images and recordings of cultural and historical interest to Indianapolis residents as well as students, researchers and others. The Library offers these collections to allow free access to digital versions of increasingly valuable, fragile and hard-to-use originals.
| A |
| B |
| E |
| F |
| G |
| I |
| J |
| M |
| S |
| W |