A Case Study of the Henry County Historical Society, 1887-1950
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THE MAKING OF A HISTORICAL CONSCIOUSNESS IN HENRY COUNTY, INDIANA: A CASE STUDY OF THE HENRY COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY, 1887-1950 Benjamin Joseph Badgley Submitted to the faculty of the University Graduate School in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts in the Department of History, Indiana University August 2017 Accepted by the Graduate Faculty, Indiana University, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts. Master’s Thesis Committee _________________________________ Philip V. Scarpino, Ph.D., Chair ________________________________ Robert G. Barrows, Ph.D. ________________________________ Anita Morgan, Ph.D. ii Acknowledgements As I entered the Public History Graduate Program at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, I was given a valuable piece of advice from Dr. Philip V. Scarpino that helped guide me through the selection of a thesis topic: “Choose a topic meaningful to you, which can be supported with an abundance of primary source material.” A case study on the Henry County Historical Society served me well in both regards. As a native of Henry County, Indiana, my association and appreciation for the Henry County Historical Society dates back many years. The organization’s rich history inspired me to learn more about not only the historical society movement in Indiana but also the movement at the national and regional levels as well. Few organizational histories exist for local historical societies in Indiana. I was motivated to tell the story and document the significant history of an institution with a past intermingled with my own. I am indebted to many special individuals who provided support and guidance through the process of researching and writing this thesis. First and foremost, I thank my advisor, Dr. Scarpino, for his patience, encouragement, edits, and suggestions that elevated my skills as a researcher and writer. His expansive knowledge of state and local history and the broad array of historical topics that this thesis touches upon provided a confidence I needed to initiate original research and interpretation. Dr. Robert G. Barrows and Dr. Anita Morgan, as members of my thesis committee, were also invaluable contributors to this process. Their cooperation, comments, and seemingly endless patience added much to this thesis and the scholarly experience. iii Several other professors deserve my sincere gratitude and thanks for their support, including Drs. Rebecca K. Shrum, Elizabeth Brand Monroe, and Kevin Cramer. I owe a special debit of appreciation to the staff and board members at the Henry County Historical Society. The tireless efforts and encouragement from Mary Miller, Ann Rockwell, Elizabeth Edstene, JoAnn Shell, and Richard McKnight facilitated the researching and writing of this thesis more than they would ever take credit for. I also want to thank the Indiana Historical Society, Indiana State Library, Earlham College, New Castle-Henry County Public Library, Indiana State Archives, and the countless local historical societies, county historians, public libraries, and other local historians for their research assistance. A number of Quaker historians greatly aided my research. Dr. Thomas D. Hamm, Earlham College (Lilly Library) Special Collections, was especially helpful through personal conversations, emails, and his expertise on the Society of Friends in East Central Indiana. County historians Gregory P. Hinshaw, Randolph County, Richard P. Ratcliff, Henry County, and Bill Munn, Grant County, provided special insights in respect to their specific areas of local history. Finally, I thank my family for their loving support. Without their endless encouragement and assistance in my life and my work, none of this would be possible. iv Table of Contents List of Illustrations .......................................................................................................... vi Introduction .......................................................................................................................1 Chapter One: Local History and the Historical Society Movement in America ............14 Chapter Two: Quaker Influence on the Cultural Development and the Making of a Historical Consciousness in Henry County ........................................................42 Chapter Three: The Old Settlers’ Society Movement, Local History Writing, and the American Centennial...................................................................................122 Chapter Four: Converging Forces and the HCHS ........................................................181 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................268 Appendix A: Indiana Yearly Meeting Membership Totals 1834 and 1888: Wayne, Henry, and Grant counties ................................................................................271 Appendix B: Henry Count Churches, 1860, 1870, and 1875 .......................................272 Appendix C: HCHS Mission Statements ......................................................................273 Bibliography .................................................................................................................274 Curriculum Vitae v List of Illustrations Introduction Figure A: The Henry County Historical Society Museum, 1919. ....................................3 Chapter Two Figure A: Township map of Henry County, 1884 ..........................................................54 Figure B: Henry County Historical Society program for the Twentieth Semi-Annual Meeting honoring founder Martin L. Bundy on his ninetieth birthday, October 31, 1907 .................................................................................................59 Figure C: Elwood Pleas ..................................................................................................70 Figure D: Benjamin S. and Huldah (Wickersham) Parker .............................................73 Figure E: Thomas B. Redding ........................................................................................78 Figure F: The residence of Thomas B. Redding, 1869 ...................................................80 Figure G: Henry County Historical Society program for the Thirty-Seventh Annual Meeting memorializing Margaret Wood on the cover, April 26, 1923 ..............93 Figure H: Henry County Historical Society Nature Study Club, 1920.........................105 Chapter Three Figure A: Old Settlers’ Association of Henry County, 1887 ........................................125 vi Chapter Four Figure A: Henry County Courthouse, site of early Henry County Historical Society semi-annual meetings, 1887 to 1902 ...................................................185 Figure B: Interior of Henry County Courtroom, ca. 1890 ............................................186 Figure C: Postcard of the Hoosier Manufacturing Company, New Castle, Indiana .....205 Figure D: Greenhouses constructed around 1902 on property once owned by Gen. William Grose by the Chicago concern, Fredrick J. Benthey & Co .................206 Figure E: Postcard of Krell-French Piano Company, New Castle, Indiana..................208 Figure F: Chrysler Corporation, formerly the Maxwell-Briscoe Automobile Company, ca. 1920 ...........................................................................................208 Figure G: Ground Plan—Residence Gen. Grose, Esq. .................................................219 Figure H: Henry County Historical Society Assembly Room, 1924 ............................220 Figure I: “Visit with the Gunders,” June 8, 1919 .........................................................227 Figure J: Clarence H. Smith on bicycle, undated..........................................................242 Figure K: Clarence H. Smith seated aside a horse, undated .........................................242 Figure L: Clarence H. Smith seated at his desk in at the HCHS, ca. 1940 ...................243 Figure M: Expenses of Senior Year in New Castle High School for Clarence H. Smith, 1893-94 – September through May ...................................246 Figure N: Henry County Historical Society assembly room, ca. 1938 .........................259 vii Introduction Despite damaging storms of the previous night, a large group of history enthusiasts gathered in New Castle on the morning of April 26, 1902, for the dedicatory services of the county’s first historical building—the former residence of Civil War general William Grose.1 Excitement for the day’s activities—planned to coincide with the Henry County Historical Society’s (HCHS) annual spring meeting—was not dampened even though inclement weather required the dedication exercises and historical pageant to be moved indoors.2 For the members and local community, the first meeting within the walls of the Society’s own building was “a great event…the most propitious meeting since its organization” in 1887.3 “It seemed that everyone present felt the incentive of new strength and new resolve to make the institution one of the finest in the State,” wrote long-time Society Secretary John Thornburgh.4 Thornburgh’s statement concerning the institution’s ambition was reasonably modest in an era of excessive local boosterism, for in 1902 only a very small number of Indiana counties could boast of an active historical society. Attempts, only three years later, “to gather information concerning the origin, history and accomplishment of [historical]