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Moment of Indiana History

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An antique, oval-framed daguerreotype featuring a somber middle-aged man and woman from the mid-19th century. The man on the left has wavy dark hair and wears a dark jacket over a light-colored, double-breasted waistcoat and a stiff white collar with a dark cravat. The woman on the right wears a dark shawl and an elaborate, ruffled bonnet adorned with checkered ribbons that tie in a large bow under her chin.
Giving Thanks On Schedule
Governor Noah Noble proclaimed Indiana’s first Thanksgiving Day December 7, 1837. In 1863, Indiana joined all the Northern states in a coordinated observance.
  • A black-and-white photograph shows a Victorian-era hospital ward. The room features two rows of neat iron beds with white linens and dark blankets at the foot. Patients are visible in several beds, while a nurse in a crisp white uniform with puffed sleeves stands near the window. In the center aisle, two wooden tables hold medical supplies, including a large white basin.
    Envisioning A Modern Hospital
    In 1879, William Niles Wishard ushered in a pivotal period in City Hospital’s history that coincided with the beginning of the scientific medical revolution.

"Moment of Indiana History" was a weekly two-minute radio program exploring Indiana History. The series was a production of WFIU Public Radio in partnership with the Indiana Public Broadcasting Stations (IPBS).

The program began as a co-production of WFIU, Bloomington, and WBAA, West Lafayette as a module to air on IPBS radio stations. From 2007 to 2014, the series was produced by WFIU for broadcast by IPBS stations as well as other entities interested in Indiana history. Now being re-released every Wednesday.

  • An old, sepia-toned photograph of a group of men and women in formal early 19th century attire dancing at a social gathering. The individuals are arranged in couples and groups, some holding hands or fans, with one man on the far right holding a large fan and smiling broadly at the camera.
    Fighting For (And Against) The Right To Party At Purdue
    Purdue President Winthrop Stone accepted personal responsibility for reforming not only academics, but also students' moral character.
  • A large, two-story white historic house sits on a grassy hill under a clear blue sky. The building features multiple gabled rooflines, dark shutters on its windows, and several screened-in porches with large white columns. Lush green trees frame the sides and top of the image, casting soft shadows on the lawn in the foreground
    A Founding Justice And His Scenic Overlook
    Overlooking the Ohio River at Aurora, Veraestau was built as the home of a member of the state's first Supreme Court and a founder of Franklin College.
  • A black and white line drawing of an early steam locomotive stopped at a station labeled "DEPOT." The train's engine features a large, funnel-shaped smokestack emitting a thick plume of dark smoke. Several figures are present: a man in a top hat and a woman in a Victorian-style dress stand on the station platform, while workers near the back of the engine appear to be loading wood or coal .
    It’ll Never Happen Here: Fast Trains and Indiana Politics
    Oliver Smith got elected to Congress when his opponent pledged support for railroads, which in 1826 Indiana were not only nonexistent but almost mythological.
  • Vance Hartke, Indiana Liberal
    When Hartke left Evansville for the U.S. Senate in 1958, he was the first Democrat to represent Indiana in the Senate for two decades.
  • A close-up view of a large collection of vintage envelopes and letters with various stamps and handwritten addresses.
    Correspondence Course
    Mail delivery in Indiana was uncertain until 1800, when the postal service established a weekly there-and-back-again route from Vincennes to Louisville.
  • Dedication ceremony, Indianapolis Senate Avenue YMCA, 1913. George Knox, one of the founders of the branch, stands at the far left; to his right are Madam C. J. Walker, Freeman B. Ransom (attorney for the Walker company), special guest Booker T. Washington, Alexander Manning (editor of Colored World newspaper), Dr. Joseph H. Ward, R. W. Bullock (secretary of the Louisville YMCA), and Thomas Taylor (Senate Avenue secretary).
    Faburn DeFrantz: A Lifetime Of Leadership For Racial Progress
    “Little progress ‘happens’," stated Faburn DeFrantz. "Usually it must be wrested from influences that—either belligerently or indifferently—deny it.”
  • A red brick building with multiple towers and a central dome. The building has a Romanesque Revival architectural style and was formerly the Central Avenue United Methodist Church.
    The Second Life of an Indianapolis Landmark
    As demographic change altered the landscape of downtown Indianapolis, the church that had housed Indiana's largest Methodist congregation faced demolition.
  • A faded and creased handwritten letter on a single sheet of paper. The handwriting is in cursive. In the middle of the page, there is a printed illustration of a woman in a classical robe, holding a banner that says "UNION FOREVER" and standing on a base that says "AMERICA."
    A Shifting Role on the Civil War Homefront
    Women on the Civil War home front spent the war years occupied with matters outside the boundaries of what was then considered “women’s work”.
  • A close-up photograph of an antique map of Indiana, dated 1826. The map is folded and shows the state's boundaries and internal divisions
    Mapping the Frontier
    Gazetteers helped lure settlers westward into the towns of Indiana and other frontier states and gave them concrete information about their destinations.
  • An illustration titled "The Joys of the Free Highway" by G. Wright from 1907. It depicts a family next to an early automobile in a snowy landscape with a large building in the background.
    An Avant-Garde Electric Car
    Gasoline propulsion claimed the day, and by 1914 the Waverley Electric car went out of production. Turns out, the vehicle was a century ahead of its time.

A Moment of Indiana History is a production of WFIU Public Radio in partnership with the Indiana Public Broadcasting Stations. Research support comes from Indiana Magazine of History published by the Indiana University Department of History.