hoosierhistorylive

Rock and roll icon Chuck Berry was the headliner at a concert at Bush Stadium in 1972, the first of a long-forgotten series of music festivals at the former baseball stadium in Indianapolis. A poster for that 1972 concert is now part of the collection of the Indiana Music History Project. So are rare vinyl LP's and 45's featuring Indiana musicians. And so are four Indiana University yearbooks from each year that Hoagy Carmichael was a student in the 1920s, although the music history project generally focuses on the "vinyl era"; that's usually defined as stretching from 1950 to 1990. The 1972 poster, vinyl LP's and yearbooks are among more than 5,000 pieces of memorabilia, ranging from a record player, photos and cassettes to flyers for concerts, that have been donated during the last year to the music history project, an initiative of the Indiana Entertainment Foundation. So Rick Wilkerson, the executive director of both the entertainment foundation and the music history project, will return to share updates since he was Nelson's guest last July about the vinyl era of Indiana music. Rick, who formerly owned vinyl record stores in Indianapolis, attended the Chuck Berry concert in 1972, although the poster was donated by musician and photographer Neil Sharrow.

As Hoosier History Live salutes the recent 80th anniversary of D-Day, a milestone during World War II, we will explore the Indiana connections to the largest amphibious invasion ever undertaken. Our guest, World War II historian Ron May, an author and chaplain, interviewed Hoosiers involved in various ways with D-Day, which was June 6, 1944. He also has researched the lives of those who did not make it home. In addition, Ron has visited American cemeteries in Normandy, France, and Luxembourg. So we also will discuss Hoosiers who are buried at the graveyards, including a pacifist from Indianapolis who served in a medical detachment and voluntarily walked into a minefield to come to the aid of two wounded comrades. William McGee, who was 21 years old when he was killed in March 1945, was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, the military's highest decoration. Ron May, who is based in Carmel, has been a frequent Hoosier History Live guest when we have explored World War II history, most recently on a show in 2023 in connection with his book titled "World War II: Indiana Landmarks".

New information continues to emerge about a woman whose deathbed testimony in 1925 helped end the stranglehold of the notorious Ku Klux Klan in Indiana. And there are multiple, new efforts underway to spotlight the legacy of Madge Oberholtzer, the victim of a lurid crime by KKK leader, D.C. Stephenson, her neighbor in the Irvington neighborhood of Indianapolis. So Hoosier History Live will follow up a show from 2021 with Charlotte Ottinger, the author of a trail-blazing biography titled Madge: The Life and Times of Madge Oberholtzer published by the Irvington Historical Society. A registered nurse who also lives in Irvington, Charlotte will return as Nelson's guest to share more insights about Madge, who was brutally raped by Stephenson, the Grand Dragon of the KKK, during a train trip to Chicago with him and one of his associates. After being brought back to her family's home, Madge courageously recounted details of Stephenson's physical and sexual assault. Her statements resulted in his eventual conviction of second-degree murder in a sensational trial that helped end the clout of Stephenson, who had intimidated Indiana political and civic leaders.

Maybe you have heard some of these comments about houses built in the 1800s and early 1900s: "They never had closets." "Anything that sticks out of the house – like a wing -- was a subsequent addition." "Their only light was from candles or kerosene lamps." These are widespread misconceptions that our distinguished guest, Indianapolis-based architectural historian Benjamin L. Ross of RATIO Architects, plans to dispel when he joins Nelson in-studio. For more than 15 years, Ben Ross has been involved in analyzing, interpreting and planning for the future of historic sites in Indiana and across the country, including well-known historic houses. Some myths about historic houses are so pervasive that they even are repeated to visitors by well-intentioned docents at the sites, Ben says. They include: "The back part of the house is shorter and simpler, so it must be older." "Almost everyone was a homeowner." "Many people lived in one place their entire lives." In some cases, Ben says, the myths distort social history and the way people lived in the 1800s and early 1900s.

A fan favorite even though he shunned publicity, hard-charging Bill Vukovich was the two-time defending champion at the Indianapolis 500 and on his way to a third consecutive victory in 1955 when he was killed during a horrific crash. One of his closest friends was a nationally acclaimed sportswriter, charismatic Angelo Angelopolous of the Indianapolis News, who chronicled Vukovich's rise from a hard-scrabble childhood (and a family tragedy) to his triumphs at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Angelopolous had completed an eagerly anticipated biography of his friend before the sportswriter died at age 43, probably as a result of radiation exposure he endured as a pilot in World War II by flying over atomic bomb sites in Japan. The manuscript of the biography of Vukovich went unpublished for nearly 65 years and remained in the closet of Angelopolous' nephew. But Vukovich never has been forgotten among Indy 500 history enthusiasts. A photo of the publicity-adverse driver covering his face in his Gasoline Alley garage after escaping crowds following his triumph in 1954 remains the bestseller in the Speedway's photoshop.

All across the state, sites are named in his honor. The city of Lafayette, for example. In Indianapolis, there's Lafayette Road. In the city of Princeton in southwestern Indiana, there's a Lafayette Park. And the Marquis de Lafayette, hailed as a hero of both the American Revolution and the French Revolution, is the only individual to have two counties in Indiana with names associated with him: Fayette County and LaGrange County. LaGrange was the name of an estate in France owned by Marquis de Lafayette (1757-1834). Now, admirers across the country, including Hoosiers, are preparing to spotlight the 200th anniversary of Gen. Lafayette's grand farewell tour of 1824-25, during which the distinguished "guest of the nation" returned to America after his triumphs in the Revolutionary War. He traveled 6,000 miles and visited all 24 states that comprised the country then, including Indiana. Lafayette's interactions with the Hoosier state were brief but eventful.

Sure, the White House has been the setting for hundreds of joyous and celebratory events. But the historic home of U.S. presidents and their families also has been a setting for deaths, including that of the only First Lady from Indianapolis. Not only did Caroline Scott Harrison, the beloved wife of President Benjamin Harrison, die in the White House, so did his grandfather. William Henry Harrison, the shortest-serving president in history, had only held office for 31 days when he died in 1841 at age 68. He had been elected to the presidency as a resident of Ohio; beginning at age 27, though, he had served as the first governor of the Indiana Territory and lived in Vincennes. During our show, we will explore these deaths as well as others with connections to the presidency of Benjamin Harrison, a Republican who was elected in 1888 after having served as a U.S. Senator from Indiana; the deaths include tragedies involving two of his Cabinet members. Also, just one month after Caroline Scott Harrison succumbed to tuberculosis in 1892, her father, John Scott, a retired college professor and Presbyterian minister, died in the White House, where he had been living with the First Family. Nelson will be joined in studio by Jennifer Capps, the veteran curator at the Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site in Indianapolis, where a current exhibit, Death in the White House explores these losses in the mansion of the country's chief executive. The exhibit includes displays about Victorian-era mourning customs, so Jennifer will share insights about them during our show.

Nearly 160 years ago this month, President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in Washington D.C. Witnesses to the tragic event on April 14, 1865 may have included several Hoosiers who claimed to be at Ford's Theatre. In the decades following the shooting, residents of Indiana towns and cities including Dayton in Tippecanoe County, Ladoga in Montgomery County, Jonesboro in Grant County and Aurora on the Ohio River – as well as Indianapolis – were interviewed by newspapers about what they witnessed. Or claimed to have seen. During our show, we will explore these reports, including some involving Hoosiers who even said they helped carry the fatally injured president's body to a house across the street, where he was pronounced dead the following morning, April 15. We also will explore the reaction in the Hoosier state to the shocking news that the Great Emancipator, who lived in southern Indiana from ages 7 to 21, had been slain just after the Civil War ended.

She vanished more than 75 years ago over the South Pacific while attempting to fly around the world in a Lockheed Electra 10E twin-engine airplane sponsored by Purdue University. That's just one of the connections between famous aviator Amelia Earhart and the Hoosier state. She was particularly associated with Purdue, which has the world's largest and most comprehensive collection of artifacts associated with the famous aviator, whose disappearance in 1937 remains a mystery. To explore the sky-high stack of Earhart links to Indiana, Purdue staff writer and historian John Norberg, an aviation expert, joins Nelson for an encore broadcast of one of the most popular shows in our Hoosier History Live archives with the original show from 2012. During the final two years before Amelia Earhart vanished, she was a sort of visiting celebrity-in-residence on the West Lafayette campus, where she was a career counselor for women students, and where she lectured and conducted conferences. She also was an adviser to the university's department of aeronautics.

Have you ever gazed up at the Art Deco-style Circle Tower Building in downtown Indianapolis? With its tiered exterior design of the upper floors, the 14-story building has been a landmark on Monument Circle for more than 90 years. Also on Monument Circle, the Columbia Club has been a presence even longer. The building that houses the prestigious private club was completed in 1925 and is on the National Register of Historic Places. But two former Army airfields in Indianapolis are long gone. Stout Field, where famed aviator Charles Lindbergh made a stop on a national tour in 1927, was in the Mars Hill neighborhood of southwestern Marion County. Schoen Field, which opened in 1922 and became the site of several tragic crashes, was located near the former Fort Benjamin Harrison on the northeast side. Hoosier History Live will explore these current and bygone landmarks as well as several others, including the barracks at Fort Harrison and the Traction Terminal that was the hub of the state's extensive Interurban system of electric rail cars during the early 1900s. https://hoosierhistorylive.org/mail/2024-04-13.html

Surveys in recent years often have found more than 25 percent of Hoosier respondents did not know the name of the governor, according to a Ball State University professor quoted in a recent Indianapolis Star article. Does that sound alarming? Well, efforts are underway to increase civic understanding both by the general public and by students at Indiana schools. In a joint project, the Indiana Bar Foundation and the Indiana Chamber of Commerce are publishing an updated book, Here is Your Indiana Government, to enhance understanding; it can be downloaded for free by the general public at https://www.inbarfoundation.org/indianagovernmentbook/ and is being made available to Indiana schools (and their libraries) ranging from elementary schools to high schools. During our show, Nelson's guests will share about ways that people can get involved in public affairs; projects to enhance civic understanding, and Bar Foundation-supported programs such as We the People and Mock Trial. We also will share various intriguing "Indiana facts" featured in the updated civics book. They include some that are obscure or quirky such as: In what Indiana city is it illegal to throw a snowball in city limits? Tune in for the answer. Who is the only elected county official with the authority to arrest a sheriff? Hint: It's probably not the office holder you would have assumed. And tomato juice was invented at what famous site in Indiana?

Calling all Hoosiers (or Hoosiers at heart who live in other states): Do you have any questions about Indiana's heritage that you'd like to ask historians? This show will be an ideal opportunity, with an open phone line throughout as Nelson is joined by Glory-June Greiff, a well-known public historian with broad and deep expertise about the Hoosier state. In between phone calls from listeners – the WICR-FM studio number to call is 317-788-3314 – Nelson and Glory-June will interview each other, particularly about topics related to Women's History Month. She will share insights about women sculptors from Indiana during the early 1900s, including those whose works are featured in one of Glory-June's books, Remembrance, Faith & Fancy: Outdoor Public Sculpture in Indiana. Two of the sculptors whom Glory-June will discuss are: Janet Scudder (1869-1940), who was born in Terre Haute and became one of the most prominent women sculptors in the country. The Swope Art Museum in her hometown displays some of her works. And Myra Reynolds Richards (1882-1934), an Indianapolis native whose outdoor sculptures and statues can be seen across the state, from Delphi to the Fountain Square neighborhood in her hometown. She also created the statue in Greenfield of James Whitcomb Riley that stands in front of the Hancock County Courthouse.

Although the heyday of the Indiana Avenue jazz music scene in Indianapolis has been explored frequently – including on Hoosier History Live shows – one aspect is seldom discussed. What happened to the lives of the musicians during the 1970s, '80s and '90s? Where did they perform after the Indiana Avenue nightclubs closed? Those are the questions we will explore when Nelson is joined by a well-known Indianapolis musician and producer who worked with, was influenced by and befriended many of the jazz notables who, earlier in their lives, had performed on "The Avenue". The heyday of the Indiana Avenue jazz scene generally is defined as stretching from the 1940s through the mid-1960s. Bill Myers, 58, who is best known as a bass player (although he has played several other musical instruments), began meeting former Indiana Avenue headliners as a 12-year-old. He eventually went on to play an array of gigs with everyone from the legendary Slide Hampton (1932-2021) to saxophonist Jimmy Coe (1921-2004). Bill Myers thinks he has the distinction of being the only male to ever play bass with the popular Hampton Sisters after one of them, Virtue Hampton, their bass player, suffered a stroke.

From a massive former factory on the eastside of Indianapolis that's been repurposed into two charter schools to a 1950s-style diner in Plainfield and a former Masonic Temple in Greenfield, sites along U.S. 40 in Indiana will be in Hoosier History Live's spotlight. We also will explore a bygone barbershop that was owned by a formerly enslaved African American entrepreneur as well as two early automobile manufacturing plants , one of which is set to become a music venue. Stretching from Richmond to Terre Haute, U.S. 40 bisects the state and follows the route of the National Road, which was completed across the Indiana wilderness during the 1830s. Its designation as U.S. 40 came in the 1920s. That's also when P.R. Mallory opened a massive factory on the highway (which enters Indianapolis as East Washington Street) that eventually employed thousands of Hoosiers who made electronic components and dry cell batteries. After sitting vacant and decaying for more than 30 years, the plant (the birthplace of the Duracell battery) has been repurposed as the home of Purdue Polytechnic High School and Paramount Englewood Middle School. It's among the historic sites – current, bygone or repurposed – that Nelson and his guests will "cruise by", although they won't leave the radio station. He will be joined by two board members of the Indiana National Road Association: David Steele of Indianapolis, a business and civic leader who has crusaded for six Indiana Historical Bureau markers. Along those lines, the Indiana National Road Association has erected 15 interpretive panels along the U.S. 40 route in Indiana. And Bob Hunt of Greenfield, who is retired from Eli Lilly & Co. With his wife Beverly, Bob renovated a former Masonic Temple that was considered one of the largest lodges in the state when it opened in 1895. The historic building on U.S. 40 now is a banquet and event center in Greenfield owned by Bradley Hall Events.

One series is called "Sharing Hoosier History Through Stories". Another series, about historic landmarks across Indiana, is titled "If These Walls Could Tell". There's also an annual "Liar's Contest" on the opening night of the Indiana State Fair. Storytelling Arts of Indiana is deeply involved in each of those, and, as Hoosier History Live salutes Women's History Month, we will spotlight a woman who has been a key figure in the nonprofit organization since it was created in the late 1980s. Ellen Munds, the executive director of Storytelling Arts, is a former children's librarian who, with two co-founders, launched the organization with a festival at Conner Prairie Interactive History Park in 1988 after a year of planning. Ellen, who is retiring on June 30, will be Nelson's guest as we spotlight her and the organization created for the promotion and preservation of stories. In turning back the pages of Storytelling Arts' own history story, it seems a floatation center in Indianapolis played a key role. According to Ellen, she met future professional storyteller Bob Sander, one of the other co-founders of Storytelling Arts, when he co-owned a local floatation center.

How often does Indiana rank as the No. 1 state in a national list? Well, here's a record for the books: More Carnegie Libraries were built in Indiana than any other state. Between 1901 and about 1918, 164 public libraries built in large part by funding from philanthropist and industrialist Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919) were constructed in Indiana. More than 100 of them are still used as public libraries across the state. Others have been repurposed as everything from restaurants to museums, art galleries, local government offices and civic centers, with many retaining the "Carnegie" name in some way. To explore a range of aspects about "the Carnegies" – which include two branches still in use in the Indianapolis Public Library system – Nelson will be joined by studio guest Dr. William McNiece, president of the Marion County Historical Society, who has done a deep dive into the topic. The first Carnegie Library built in Indiana was in Goshen and the last town to receive funding was Lowell, Ind. OF Indiana's 92 counties, only 9 did not receive any Carnegie funding for a public library, according to Dr. McNiece.

Way back in 1876, when firefighting equipment was transported by horse-drawn wagons, the first Black firefighters were hired by the Indianapolis Fire Department. The four African Americans included a firefighter who, in 1911, died in the line of duty. Details about the story of the trail-blazing firefighters will be described on this show as Hoosier History Live salutes Black History Month. Our guest will be Corey Floyd, an IFD battalion chief and president of the Indianapolis Black Firefighters Association, which is in the midst of a major project.  A history museum about Black firefighters is being developed in a non-operational (shuttered) fire station on the north-eastside. The museum in Old Station No. 31, 1201 E. 46th St., is expected to feature historic firefighting equipment, uniforms, helmets, plaques and videos. Battalion Chief Floyd, who grew up near Old Fire Station No. 31, says he hopes the museum will open in two or three months.

On the east end of downtown Indianapolis, there was a community (or "barrio") of Mexican families during the 1940s and '50s. During the 1960s and '70s, camps in the farm fields of Grant County and Howard County were set up for migrant workers, most of them of Mexican or other Latino heritage. So there were urban as well as rural residents of Latino heritage in the Hoosier state during the mid and late 1900s. In our rotating series about ethnic heritage in Indiana that has focused on heritage groups ranging from Germans and Irish to Ukrainians and Koreans, Hoosier History Live will follow up a show in 2018 about the Mexican communities in northwest Indiana during the 1920s. The guests on that show included Nicole Martinez-LeGrand of the Indiana Historical Society, who will return to share insights about the subsequent evolution of Latinos during the mid and late 1900s. Nicole is the co-author of "Hoosier Latinos: A Century of Struggle, Service and Success" (Indiana Historical Society Press); her ancestors came from Mexico to the Indiana Harbor area of Lake County as early as 1918. Steel companies in northwest Indiana recruited Mexican immigrants as workers, with a barrio established in the Indiana Harbor area of East Chicago.

Now that awards season is underway in Hollywood – Oscar nominations were announced Tuesday – our spotlight will be on movie and TV directors with Indiana connections. The filmmakers range from directors of movies from the Golden Age of Hollywood such as the holiday classic "Miracle on 34th Street" (1947) and "To Have and Have Not" (1944) to popular hits like "The Amazing Spiderman" (2012). "Miracle on 34th Street" was directed by George Seaton (1911-1979), who was born in South Bend. Although the movie has become a Christmas classic, it was not initially released during the holiday season and was not promoted with yuletide as a focus. Nelson's guest, Dan O'Brien, a screenwriter and former TV sportscaster based in Greenwood, will explain why. In addition to being a director, George Seaton was a screenwriter and won an Oscar for his screenplay for "Miracle on 34th Street". He also won an Oscar for his screenplay for "The Country Girl" (1954) starring Grace Kelly and Bing Crosby; Seaton directed that movie as well. Other movie directors we will spotlight include Howard Hawks (1896-1977), whose ancestors helped found Goshen, Ind., where he was born. Although Hawks primarily is remembered as a director of Westerns (several starred John Wayne, including "Red River" and "Rio Bravo"), Hawks was known for his versatility. His other hits include "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" (1953) starring Marilyn Monroe as well as "To Have and Have Not" (1944) that teamed Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall for the first time.

Who was Bertha Ross? A park on the north west side of Indianapolis is named in her honor. Namesakes of other city parks include a superstar in baseball's old Negro League, a beloved cook at Flanner House and one of the first Black officers in the U.S. Navy during World War II. Our show on Saturday (Jan. 13) will spotlight "African American namesakes of Indy parks", with Deputy Mayor Judith Thomas sharing insights.

Because of a tragedy, a picturesque town with a Greek name (unusual for Indiana) has been in the national news for more than six years. That has often obscured the colorful heritage that Delphi in northern Indiana has reclaimed in captivating ways, including cruises on a portion of the former Wabash & Erie Canal, restored historic structures and a park showcasing the waterway's heritage, that have made the city a popular destination for visitors. Hoosier History Live will spotlight Delphi (population. 2,975), the county seat of Carroll County, where, from May through September, visitors enjoy cruises on The Delphi, a replica of a 19th century canal boat. In this encore broadcast (original air date: Jan. 14, 2023), we also look at the history of some sites associated with the tragedy, the murders of two girls in February 2017, as well as the Canal Interpretive Center, which includes an interactive museum, and restored buildings such as the Delphi Opera House. Not only did James Whitcomb Riley, the Hoosier poet, perform at least six times at the opera house, he also visited the Delphi area to enjoy fishing and other leisure activities. Nelson's guest is Carroll County historian Mark A. Smith. He is a docent at the Reed Case House, a grand, Federal-style home built in the 1840s by the contractor of the region's section of the Wabash & Erie Canal, which was constructed to connect Toledo on Lake Erie with Evansville on the Ohio River. The Reed Case House eventually became an inn for travelers and canal workers.

He quit school after the fifth grade to ride the rails, so Henry Ulen was an unlikely Hoosier to become an international business tycoon. Ulen also created and became the namesake of an unusual small town that's surrounded by the city of Lebanon in Boone County. In this encore broadcast of a show from 2022, History Live will take a dual look at Henry Ulen, an industrialist, and the town of Ulen that he founded in the 1920s not far from where he had grown up. "I traveled from the time I was 14 until I was 18," Ulen once said. "The moment the idea hit to go somewhere, and it always did in the spring, I was off. St. Louis, Denver, Chicago, Dodge City, Cincinnati . . . anywhere the next freight train happened to be going." Henry Ulen (1871-1963) founded Ulen & Company, a prestigious business that oversaw infrastructure projects in places like Bolivia, Iran and Greece. The company was based in New York City until Ulen decided to return to Indiana and create a town as a community for his executives and engineers. Although that's no longer the case (Ulen & Company shut down more than 60 years ago), the 40-acre town still has about 120 residents. Just as in the 1920s, the hub of the community is a golf course and country club.

Whether you have been naughty or nice during this yuletide season, have you wondered how a sleepy village founded in southwestern Indiana during the 1840s became the country's only town that has a post office with the Santa Claus name? Hundreds of thousands of "Dear Santa'' letters from children around the world have been delivered to Santa Claus, Ind., since the early 1900s. And the Spencer County town (approximate pop.: 2,580) has become a tourist destination, with an internal, recreated historic village that includes a Santa Claus Museum, a church built in the 1880s and a towering Santa statue that weighs 40 tons. To celebrate the season and its spirit, Hoosier History Live will explore the evolution of the unusual town (its original name was not Santa Claus) and the letters, which are answered by a joyful army of community volunteers known as "elves". They toil in the recreated historic village, which opened within the town in 2006.

With construction finally underway of a new home for the Indiana Archives, which include a trove of historic material such as the transcripts of landmark court cases, Hoosier History Live will follow up a show we did last year about the status of the archives. In addition to highlighting aspects of the $102 million structure being built on the downtown canal in Indianapolis, we also will spotlight some of the landmark court cases, which range from "slave trials" early in the state's history to the death penalty case involving a teenage girl and a gruesome murder in 1906. Nelson's returning guest will be Chandler Lighty, executive director of the Indiana Archives and Records Administration. For more than 20 years, many of the state's archives, which include the original Indiana State Constitution of 1816, have been housed in a deteriorating warehouse on the eastside of Indianapolis that was intended to be temporary and is not sufficiently climate controlled. A tunnel will connect the new Archives building with other buildings on the state government campus. To share insights about the landmark court cases with transcripts housed in the archives, Chandler has consulted with former Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Randy Shepard, who was a guest on Hoosier History Live in 2019. The cases include two that became known as "slave trials" in the early 1820s involving teenage African American girls. The cases tested the then-new constitution prohibiting slavery in Indiana. During this show, Chandler will discuss one of the cases, involving a teenager in Vincennes named Polly Strong. On Hoosier History Live, we have explored the other "slave trial", which also involved an enslaved teenager, Mary Bateman Clark, on a show that we rebroadcast most recently in 2020; our guest was well-known Indianapolis journalist and historian Eunice Trotter, a descendant of Mary Bateman Clark.

Once there was a majestic courthouse in Marion County designed in the Second Empire style with a clock tower, spire, cupolas and statues of Greek goddesses. Once, where Butler University's campus is located today, there was a spacious park, with a boathouse for canal rides, an outdoor band shell for concerts, a roller coaster and diving horses. And once there was a long covered bridge that extended across the White River, enabling travelers on Washington Street in Indianapolis to make it across the waterway without getting wet. These and other bygone landmarks will be the focus of our show with the author of a new book, Vanished Indianapolis, that describes the distinctive sites and explains why they went away. The author who will be Nelson's guest is Ed Fujawa, the creator of a popular blog about city history, class900indy.com. Although Ed is an Indianapolis attorney, he never tried a case in the Marion County Courthouse, which was demolished in the early 1960s. (Today, the site is a plaza just south of the City-County Building, which replaced the courthouse as the home of local courtrooms and various city offices.) Constructed in the 1870s, the courthouse drew national attention because of its lavish architecture. In Vanished Indianapolis, Ed describes a daredevil in 1919 who climbed to the top of its central spire and was among the thrill seekers attracted by the building's design.

With the approach of Thanksgiving, Hoosier History Live will spotlight the trail-blazing woman who wrote the first cookbook published in Indiana. Also on the menu: We will explore food fashions of the mid-18th century era when the cookbook came out. The author was Angelina Collins (1805-1885), who was living in New Albany, Ind., when her popular cookbook was published in 1851. Titled "Mrs. Collins' Table Receipts" (and retitled "The Great Western Cookbook" when it was reprinted in New York later during the 1850s), the cookbook "is an excellent reflection of the dishes served in middle class homes in mid-century Indiana", our guest says. (The word "receipts", as in the title of the book, was often used during the era to refer to recipes.) Our guest on this encore show (originally broadcast last Feb. 25) is Indianapolis-based food historian Sheryl Vanderstel, an expert on foodways of late 18th century America through the pre-Civil War era. With more than 20 years of experience as a historic consultant to museums and historical societies in researching and developing programs, Sheryl helped launch the hearthside dinners at Conner Prairie Interactive History Park. 

It may be easy to unfurl a flag, but there sure are a lot of twists in the story of how the current Indiana state flag became the official symbol. At one point, even the Stars and Stripes (a k a the American flag) was the official flag for the Hoosier state. The backstory about the state flag and several untold, related stories are described in a new book, The Indiana Flag: Who Really Designed It?. The author, Morgan County resident David Reddick, will be Nelson's studio guest to dig into the history that he's unearthed about the blue and gold flag with the torch and 19 stars. (Refresher history tidbit: In 1816, Indiana became the 19th state to enter the country.) Also during our show, David Reddick will share insights about the life and career of Paul Hadley (1880-1971), the watercolor artist from Mooresville credited with designing the state flag. According to folklore, Hadley won a contest sponsored by the Daughters of the American Revolution in 1916. The actual story is more complicated, David Reddick says.

A rotating series on Hoosier History Live delves into the ethnic heritage of (and immigration to) Indiana. We have explored dozens of ethnic heritage groups, ranging from shows about Ukrainian immigration and Scottish heritage to the state's early Mexican heritage and the Arab heritage in Indianapolis. Many of the immigrants and refugees become U.S. citizens at naturalization ceremonies held at various venues. This time, we will explore the topic from a different perspective: that of a federal judge who oversees many of the naturalization ceremonies. Judge James Sweeney of the U.S. District for Southern Indiana will be Nelson's studio guest to share insights about an aspect of his job that he considers among the most rewarding: officially making Indiana residents new American citizens. What has been the homeland for the most immigrants at Judge Sweeney's naturalization ceremonies since he began his stint on the federal bench in 2018? He plans to share the answer during our show, as well as offer other observations about naturalization ceremonies that he's overseen. (The U.S. District for Southern Indiana includes a wide swath of central and southern Indiana, stretching from the Indianapolis metro area, Kokomo, Terre Haute and Richmond to Evansville, Bloomington and New Albany.) According to court officials, 1,333 residents of the district have been naturalized as U.S. citizens so far in 2023, with a total of 1,850 projected by the end of the year. The number declined during the Covid pandemic, when naturalization ceremonies were unable to be held for a few months. (In 2020, only 925 residents of the district were naturalized, compared to 2,286 in 2018.)

It's a creepy chapter of Indiana's history, but probably appropriate to explore during the season known for all things ghastly. Graverobbing in central Indiana had been an "open secret" for decades before several arrests in 1902 and subsequent trials drew national attention, according to Chris Flook, a public historian and senior lecturer at Ball State University's department of media. Rings of graverobbers in Indianapolis and Hamilton County had been plundering small cemeteries in the Hoosier capital city and rural cemeteries. They sold corpses to various medical schools that were desperate for cadavers. (These medical schools predated the formation of – and were unaffiliated with – the I.U School of Medicine.) Chris Flook, who will be Nelson's studio guest, describes the grisly conspiracies in a new book, "Indianapolis Graverobbing: A Syndicate of Death". Key figures in the graverobbing rings included Rufus Cantrell, an itinerant African American preacher known as the "King of the Ghouls", and his competitor, Hampton West, a white, former Confederate soldier who was based in Hamilton County. They were hired to ransack cemeteries by the medical schools, including the Central College of Physicians and Surgeons, that sought cadavers to use in training students. In his book, Chris Flook describes the impact of racism in the arrests and trials of the conspirators. "Racism played a decisive role in how the participants were adjudicated", Chris notes. "The Black graverobbers received a disproportionate amount of blame and punishment for a criminal conspiracy created, managed and maintained by white doctors at some of the medical schools."

A controversy about religion divided churches, communities and even families in southern Indiana during the early 1800s. The conflict among Baptists even affected the church that young Abraham Lincoln attended with his family in what is now Spencer County. Our guest Randy Mills, a retired distinguished professor at Oakland City University in southern Indiana, has researched and written about the fights, which involved missionaries sent to the then-Western frontier (which included Indiana) from the East as well as foreign and domestic missions. According to Randy Mills, a Midwest historian, some historians suspect the bickering that impacted Little Pigeon Baptist Church, which young Abe Lincoln attended, may have caused the future president to avoid formal religious affiliations later in life. "At the heart of the bitter conflict was a frontier preacher named Daniel Parker whose violent preaching against mission efforts split churches, communities and families," Randy Mills says. In an article that he wrote for Indiana Magazine of History, Randy Mills noted the feud among congregations was triggered by the arrival in the frontier of a Baptist missionary, John Mason Peck, from New England.

Some of their creations are gone, with parking lots or modern structures currently on the sites. But some of the distinctive work of historic Indiana architects still stands in the town of Madison, the city of Evansville and historic neighborhoods in Indianapolis including Herron-Morton Place and Woodruff Place. The Indiana Album and various partners are creating an online resource with biographical information about Indiana's architects and the buildings they designed, which ranged from houses and churches to theaters, hotels and a basketball arena. Some of the structures designed by Indiana's first prominent architect, Francis Costigan (1810-1865), are now museums in Madison, the scenic town on the Ohio River where he was based for much of his career. Other Costigan-designed houses are still private residences. So are homes designed by Indianapolis-based architect Louis H. Gibson (1854-1907), who wrote two books about house planning and design, including Convenient Houses (1889), a guide for people of modest means to build their homes.

Snicker if you must, because that's an understandable reaction to an annual tradition in Northwest Indiana. At the Pierogi Drop every New Year's Eve in the city of Whiting, a 10-foot tall version of the dumpling associated with Polish cuisine is dropped into a boiling cooking pot at the stroke of midnight. And in the summer, the Pierogi Fest in Whiting sometimes draws more than 350,000 enthusiasts. Also in Lake County, a historic former courthouse in Crown Point was known for decades as a "marriage mill". Hollywood celebrities like silent movie star Rudolph Valentino, sports icons such as Muhammad Ali and Joe DiMaggio and other notables trekked to Crown Point for speedy weddings. No waiting periods, residency requirements or blood tests were required then. Now known as the Old Lake County Courthouse, the former "marriage mill" structure, which was built in 1878, is a tourist destination that houses a museum and distinctive retailers, including antique shops as well as merchants who sell vinyl records and vintage clothes. The clothes won't be needed at two rival clubs, one of which dates to the 1930s in the city of Roselawn. The Sun Aura Club (which has had several names during its colorful history) and the Ponderosa Sun Club are nudist colonies. A third such club also flourishes in Northwest Indiana: The Lake O' The Woods Nudist Colony can be found in Valparaiso.

Following up last week's show about the lavish French Lick Springs Hotel, Hoosier History Live will focus on the southern Indiana town's other claim to national fame. French Lick, of course, is the hometown of the basketball superstar often called "Larry Legend". He also became known as "The Hick from French Lick". Larry Bird persevered through significant challenges in his youth (including an impoverished family and a tragedy) to become one of the greatest players in NBA history. Before that, he was a sensational player at Springs Valley High School, then reaped national fame at Indiana State University. After his playing career, he coached the Indiana Pacers, lifting the team to unprecedented success, then served in top management for the organization. His triumphs also include playing on America's Dream Team One in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics (the first time NBA players were permitted in the Olympic games), even though he was in excruciating pain. Our guide as we explore Larry Bird's life and career will be veteran sports journalist Mark Montieth, currently a sports columnist for the Indianapolis Business Journal. As the former Pacers beat reporter for the Indianapolis Star, Mark covered all three seasons the team was coached by Bird, who took them to their debut in the NBA Finals in 2000. Mark has a trove of podcast interviews with (and stories about) Indiana sports notables at markmontieth.com He has been a previous Hoosier History Live guest, including on a show in 2017 about the early years of the Pacers in connection with one of his books, Reborn: The Pacers and the Return of Pro Basketball to Indiana.

There's a significant connection between a lavish resort hotel in southern Indiana and an Irish immigrant who became the mayor of Indianapolis as well as a powerful political boss in the early 1900s. There's also a connection to a major amphitheater that was dedicated at Riverside Park in the summer of 2021 in honor of the colorful former mayor, who was known as the "father of the Indianapolis park system". The French Lick Springs Hotel wasn't always lavish. In the 1840s, a modest hotel was built on the property in Orange County that's long been touted for its mineral springs that are said to have healing qualities. It took colorful Thomas Taggart (1856-1929), who bought the French Lick hotel after his three terms as Indianapolis mayor, to make it a showplace known for its spas, gambling, gardens, gourmet dining and distinguished guests. By then, Taggart, a Democrat, was a nationally known political boss. He eventually bought a summer home for his family on Cape Cod at Hyannis Port, where their next-door neighbors were the famous Kennedy family.

Who knows if the soil is rich at the site that's now White River State Park? Regardless, the history of the site near downtown Indianapolis that's now a 250-acre cultural campus certainly can be described as rich and mighty colorful. Beginning as a fishing ground for Native Americans and encompassing a long era in which the area was industrial, bleak and unappealing, the White River State Park site today has an array of enticements to attract visitors, including an amphitheater for popular concerts. The park includes a portion of the Central Canal, where gondola rides are available, and there are promenade pedestrian walkways. (The portion of the Central Canal west of the West Street bridge is considered part of White River State Park.) The White River State Park campus also includes Military Park, which was the setting for the first Indiana State Fair in 1852. Later, Military Park was a training ground for Civil War soldiers. To share insights about the White River State Park site, then and now, Nelson will be joined in the studio by Jake Oakman, executive director of the park. Before his current post, Jake was a speechwriter for Gov. Eric Holcomb and communications director for Visit Indiana. Today, the White River State Park campus has become one of Indiana's most-visited attractions.

Even those who only dabble in Indiana's art history likely know about the Hoosier Group of painters, including T.C. Steele, who drew national fame. But another group of painters actually formed the state's first colony of artists. The Richmond Group Artists formed in the late 19th century in far-eastern Indiana, traveling along the Whitewater River and painting on weekends. In 1898, they founded the Art Association of Richmond. That evolved into the acclaimed Richmond Art Museum, which is generally considered to be the only independent art museum in the country that's housed in a public school: Richmond High School. Earlier this month, the art museum and its executive director, Shaun Dingwerth, were named recipients of the Governor's Arts Awards. The awards are given by the Indiana Arts Commission and the office of the governor to honor outstanding contributions to the arts.

Once upon a historic time, a touring circus started spending the winter in the Indiana city of Peru. Circus performers, exotic animals (camels, tigers, ostriches, hippos and more) and equipment would "winter" and train in the town in Miami County. Those beginnings in the late 1800s kick-started a heritage that flourishes, in a different way, to this day in Peru, which trumpets itself as the "Circus Capital of the World". Every summer now, the Peru Amateur Circus showcases a youth program in which about 200 local young people from ages 7 to 21 practice and perform acts such as juggling, tumbling and flying on the trapeze under a permanent, three-ring "big top". It's part of the Circus City Festival's fanfare that also features one of the largest parades in Indiana. To share insights about the deep circus heritage in Peru and how it was revived after the "wintering" of traveling circuses ended in the early 1940s, Nelson will be joined in studio by three guests. The guests, all from Miami County and board members of the Peru Amateur Circus, will be: Tim Bessignano, a circus historian who also has served for 33 years on the Circus City Festival's board. He oversees the circus wagon shop and the acquisition of horses for the parade. Kathi Greene, who has been immersed in the circus heritage in Peru for 51 years, starting when she was one of the original youth performers. She has been a rigger, clown and trainer; her grandchildren are the fourth-generation of her family to be involved in the circus. And Matt Barnett, a history teacher at Maconaquah Middle School.

Even though a couple from the town of Auburn in far-northeastern Indiana married after World War II, their letters included in a new book, "Army Guy, Red Cross Gal", are not love letters. Because they weren't even dating each other before they went overseas, their descriptive letters were not written to each other. Instead, the "Army guy", who became a military police lieutenant with Gen. George Patton's Third Army, wrote to his Indiana family members about his wartime experiences, including becoming ensnared in the historic Battle of the Bulge and witnessing the horrors at the Buchenwald concentration camp. Meanwhile, the "Red Cross gal", wrote to her family about her experiences, which involved being stationed in Italy and working at a sprawling sports complex that Fascist dictator Mussolini had built. To discuss the lives and letters of the couple, another resident of Auburn, the co-author of "Army Guy, Red Cross Gal", will be Nelson's guest. Barbara Olenyik Morrow is the author of seven books, most focusing on Indiana history. In "Army Guy, Red Cross Gal", she inserts narrative passages between the letters that illuminate a range of episodes during World War II. She notes that nearly 12,000 people from Indiana were killed during the war, including nearly 100 from DeKalb County, where Auburn is the county seat.

Roadhouses, saloons and gambling were part of the wildness during the late 1800s and early 1900s at Brighton Beach, a long-forgotten, notorious area just west of downtown Indianapolis. Newspapers in the 1890s called Brighton Beach (where enticements included "chuck-a-luck", a game of chance played with dice) "one of the toughest places in town". Ed Fujawa, an Indianapolis attorney and founder of Class900 Indy, a blog about city history, has researched some bygone rowdy pockets of Marion County, including Brighton Beach, which was located north of W. 16th Street and west of today's I-65. The area now primarily consists of infrastructure for the Indianapolis Water Company. "The infamous reputation of the Beach, and its saloons and roadhouses, continued to grow (during the 1880s), as did a criminal element", Ed Fujawa wrote in a recent blog post. "Reports of crime were frequent. Robberies, assaults, stabbings, even murders, were reported."

Strike up the band. But not necessarily a marching band. For this Hoosier History Live show exploring Indiana's music heritage during what is known as the "vinyl era" (generally defined as 1950 to 1990), the most appropriate band probably would be one that played "rock and roll", as the music was called during its early decades. Histories of other genres during the vinyl era also are being included in a new initiative launched by the Indiana Entertainment Foundation. The foundation's initiative, called the Indiana Music History Project, is spotlighting the 40-year vinyl records era with various endeavors. They include a new gallery with artifacts such as a recreation of an Indianapolis radio station during the 1960s or '70s; a Wikipedia-type online resource documenting music history during the vinyl era (including entries about Indiana-based businesses, venues and musicians), and a streaming radio service that plays music by all-Indiana singers and bands. Our guide for this exploration will be music historian and record collector Rick Wilkerson, executive director of the Indiana Entertainment Foundation and the Indiana Music Heritage Project. Rick, who once owned popular vinyl records stores in Indianapolis, will be Nelson's studio guest to share insights about the new initiative and our state's impact during the 1950-1990 music era.

Almost ever since the city of Indianapolis was platted in 1821, a site along the White River has been distinctive for various reasons. It started as a burial site, then multiple graveyards that became known collectively as Greenlawn Cemetery, where thousands of early residents were buried. Beginning in 1917, Diamond Chain had a manufacturing plant on the site just southwest of downtown that employed hundreds of Hoosiers. Now the site on White River is planned to be the location of a new stadium for the Indy Eleven pro soccer team. So Hoosier History Live will do a deep dive into the history of Greenlawn, the burial site of initial settlers and subsequent residents, including civic leaders, early African American residents (in segregated parcels), infants, impoverished Hoosiers and a vast range of other Hoosiers. Because of various factors, including the fact that Greenlawn was prone to flooding, the cemetery was closed in 1890.

They explored and advocated for the protection of a range of aspects of Indiana's natural heritage, from birds and other wildlife to flowers and plants, including ferns. In many cases, they lived during eras (including the late 1800s and early 1900s) before the word "environmentalist" even was used. Some of them were called "conservationists". They were often self-taught in our natural heritage, with true "in-field" experience. Even though Frank Wallace (1878-1968) didn't have a high school diploma, his expertise meant that he served as an Indiana state entomologist for more than 40 years. Jane Brooks Hine (1831-1916) of DeKalb County in northeastern Indiana became known as the "Bird Woman of Indiana" while documenting hundreds of sightings for the federal government. A former teacher and mother of six, she wrote for various publications and served on the Indiana Academy of Science. During a later era, John Gottschalk (1912-1999), a native of Berne, Ind., rose to become a top federal official as director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. On a local level, Maurice McClue (1878-1957), who loved wildflowers, trees and wildlife, donated more than 80 acres of his family's farm to "the citizens of Steuben County" in an era before land trusts.

To spotlight seven diverse Hoosiers who, amid great personal sacrifices, served in World War I, Hoosier History Live will feature as guests the Bloomington-based director and a producer of a new documentary that features them. Six soldiers and a nurse from Indiana are the focus of "Over There: Hoosier Heroes of the Great War", which is expected to be shown on various PBS-TV stations across Indiana by the end of the year. The Hoosiers featured in the documentary by Blue Ace Media include some who were killed on battlefields in France, often amid acts of outstanding bravery. Maj. Samuel Woodfill (1883-1951), who was born on a farm near Madison, Ind., received multiple accolades for his heroism, including the Medal of Honor, and likely would have become a nationally known public figure but, as a shy and modest man, did not like attention. Lottie May Berry (1888-1917) left a comfortable life in Indianapolis to become a nurse overseas for the American Red Cross; she died shortly after arriving in France. Lt. Aaron Fisher (1892-1985), who grew up in the historic African American community of Lyles Station, Ind., was acclaimed for multiple acts of courage in an infantry regiment in the U.S. Army, which was segregated during World War I.

Before the dust settles on last month's Indianapolis 500, Hoosier History Live will explore historic medical treatment, advances in care and safety issues at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Last year, we explored the first infield hospital at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and other medical developments and challenges by time traveling to the opening of the world-famous racetrack in 1909. But we only covered the first 50 years, stopping in 1959. Now we are roaring back with a sequel that will begin in 1960 with the appointment of a new medical director at the Speedway. Dr. Thomas Hanna, who would serve in that capacity for 21 years, received a baptism by fire in 1960 because his first year involved a spectacular tragedy during the Indianapolis 500. In the infield, privately constructed scaffolding collapsed, killing two spectators and injuring 76 others.

As by far the biggest of the Indiana Dunes on Lake Michigan, the legendary Hoosier Slide was a national tourist attraction. Sometimes likened to a sandy version of a Swiss Alp, the massive Hoosier Slide near Michigan City, Ind., stood 18.5 stories high and was the setting for wedding ceremonies, picnics and endless frolicking, with climbers and gawkers traveling by train or ferry to the towering dune during the late 1800s and early 1900s. By 1920, though, the Hoosier Slide had disappeared. Hoosier History Live will explore the heyday of the Hoosier Slide, the reasons it vanished from the landscape and the flourishing of Michigan City as a lakeside resort during the era that the huge dune captivated so many tourists. In particular, visitors from Chicago enjoyed spectacular views from atop the Hoosier Slide of Lake Michigan as well as Michigan City's vast lumberyards. Nelson's studio guest will be Christopher Taelman, who lives in Granger, which is a few miles north of the University of Notre Dame, near Indiana's state line with Michigan. Chris serves as chief development officer of the Hospice Foundation based in Mishawaka.

During a show five years ago, Hoosier History Live explored the connections between Indiana and Ellis Island, the gateway to America for generations of immigrants. The receiving center for aspiring Americans in New York Harbor opened in 1892 during the administration of President Benjamin Harrison, the only president elected from Indiana. As a kind of prequel to that show, in this encore of a program broadcast in July 2022, we delve into the immigration scenario that led the federal government to open Ellis Island, including controversies at its predecessor, Castle Garden on lower Manhattan in New York City. The country's first official immigration center, Castle Garden, was operated by New York officials. We also will explore the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, which Harrison opposed as a U.S. senator from Indiana. The Chinese Exclusion Act, which suspended the immigration of skilled and unskilled Chinese laborers, passed without Harrison's support. According to Nelson's guest, Harrison was labeled the "pro-Chinese candidate" of the Republican Party in his presidential campaign of 1888.

For a deep dive into the histories of Geist Reservoir and Morse Reservoir, which supply much of the water for residents of the greater Indianapolis area, Hoosier History Live will plunge into several questions. Were you aware that a historic village called Germantown, which was founded during the 1830s and flourished for more than 100 years, was subsumed to create Geist? Do some of Germantown's structures, which included houses, a post office and a mill, remain underwater in the reservoir located in northeastern Marion County and southern Hamilton County? Geist Reservoir was created in the 1940s, although the Indianapolis Water Company began a push to develop it more than 20 years earlier. Construction of Morse Reservoir, which is located northwest of Noblesville and south of Cicero in Hamilton County, began later, in the 1950s. Both reservoirs were named in honor of executives of the water company, now part of Citizens Energy Group. Beginning in the early 1960s, a crusade to build luxury homes around Geist came to public attention and was quickly controversial.

or a deep dive into the histories of Geist Reservoir and Morse Reservoir, which supply much of the water for residents of the greater Indianapolis area, Hoosier History Live will plunge into several questions. Were you aware that a historic village called Germantown, which was founded during the 1830s and flourished for more than 100 years, was subsumed to create Geist? Do some of Germantown's structures, which included houses, a post office and a mill, remain underwater in the reservoir located in northeastern Marion County and southern Hamilton County? Geist Reservoir was created in the 1940s, although the Indianapolis Water Company began a push to develop it more than 20 years earlier. Construction of Morse Reservoir, which is located northwest of Noblesville and south of Cicero in Hamilton County, began later, in the 1950s. Both reservoirs were named in honor of executives of the water company, now part of Citizens Energy Group. Beginning in the early 1960s, a crusade to build luxury homes around Geist came to public attention and was quickly controversial.

Feast on this: His name is Chadwick Gillenwater. But children across Indiana know him as bow-tied Professor Watermelon, the performance name he uses when he travels to schools, libraries, museums, summer camps and historic sites for presentations about history and writing. At various historic sites, Chadwick, a veteran teacher and school librarian, also offers workshops for children called Watermelon University. The historic sites include the James Whitcomb Riley Museum Home in the Lockerbie neighborhood of Indianapolis. It's also the setting for one of Chadwick's books for children, George and the Goblin Hole, in which he uses a real historical figure (the butler at the home when Riley was in residence) along with a fictional character, a contemporary boy, to inspire interest in the Hoosier poet. In addition to his presentations as Professor Watermelon, Chadwick is a history reenactor who frequently portrays James Whitcomb Riley (in costume) at civic events and presentations to children. So why not tap Chadwick a k a Professor Watermelon for tips about how to excite children in history, and insights about what turns them off? When he joins Nelson as a studio guest, Professor Watermelon also will suggest some do's and don'ts about sparking an interest in writing among young Hoosiers.

From the small city of Ligonier in northeastern Indiana to major cities including Indianapolis and South Bend, waves of Jewish immigration had, in a range of ways, an impact between 1840 and the 1920s on their communities. Immigrants came to the Hoosier state from various homelands, with a Jewish teenager who fled the Austro-Hungarian empire eventually becoming one of the founders of the Indianapolis Hebrew Congregation and a brigadier general for the Union Army during the Civil War. Our guide for a statewide exploration of Jewish immigration in this encore of a show originally broadcast in 2022  will be Michael J. Brown, executive director of the Indiana Jewish Historical Society. Michael is the host of IN-Jewish History Podcast, a series that delves into the Hoosier state's Jewish heritage. He has worked for Israeli start-ups and is a board member of Sinai Synagogue in South Bend. The differences in Jewish immigration patterns between South Bend and Indianapolis are among the topics Michael discusses when he is Nelson's guest for a show focusing on the 1840 to the 1920s. In Ligonier for much of that era, a multi-generational, German-speaking Jewish community flourished; a similar scenario unfolded in LaPorte and other, smaller Indiana cities.

As Hoosier History Live salutes spring, we will have another in our periodic series of call-in shows. During these shows, listeners are invited to call in with questions or insights about any aspects of Indiana's heritage. As a bonus, our host, Nelson Price, is joined by a co-host; they interview each other in between fielding the phone calls. To celebrate spring, who better to join Nelson than our favorite gardening expert, Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp, the Indianapolis-based writer, editor and speaker known as the "Hoosier Gardener''. Jo Ellen also is a garden coach and the past president of Garden Comm: Garden Communicators International. Jo Ellen has a free, award-winning newsletter; to subscribe, visit hoosiergardener.com. Nelson and Jo Ellen will branch out beyond garden-related topics, but those also are planned for the show. Jo Ellen will share insights about an aspect of Indianapolis city history in which she has deep ancestral roots: the concentration of German heritage growers, florists, nursery owners and gardeners on the southside for more than 100 years beginning in the late 1800s.