Your Summer Reading

by Carmen Doyle

Summer is (almost) here! That means more time to read! Since November, the History Center has gotten in several new books!

The Iron Men of Indiana’s 44^th Regiment is two volumes. Part 1: Biographies and Regimental Statistics has mini bios of every soldier who served in the 44^th. What’s interesting is the amount of detail included in each biography- a general description of what the soldier looked like (for example, John Deardoff “was 5’10.50” tall, fair complexion, blue eyes, and black hair”) where they fought, and where the soldier was born, the pension certificate number, and places of residence. If you’re looking for info on a specific soldier, this book is awesome. 

There are also small chapters on regimental statistics, which had some good information, such as the nativity of the men in the regiment (mainly German heritage) but it involved far too many numbers for my taste. I had trouble figuring out the difference between enrolled, drafted, recruits and subs.

Part 2: Formation and Photos is full of details such as who would be in a company (each company had two musicians.) What I found intriguing were the court-martial records, which included the transcript for a trial. If you are interested in the nitty-gritty details about Civil War regiments, these books are a great resource. There is so much information, though, that it can be hard for the casual reader to get into. Great for scholars.

Salt: A Story of Friendship in a Time of War takes place in 1812. It is the story of two 12 year old boys, Anikwa and James. Anikwa is a Miami Indian and James lives in the Fort. Their families are good friends, but not everyone else in their communities even trusts one another. The narrative is a series of almost poems, each section alternating between the voice of Anikwa and James, with poems about the importance of salt between them. The book was appealing in the way it tried to describe how each boy heard rumors about a coming war and how their families felt about that. The torn loyalties are easy to understand. The armies- both British and American- look like ignorant bullies or cowards who have no idea what really happens in the communities. This book is short (less than 150 pages) so it is an easy read. It was also nice that the author had a character list and a pronunciation guide for some of the Miami words used. The torn loyalties are what make this book fascinating.

Author Helen Frost and members of the Miami Tribe talked about her book at the History Center a few months ago.

Shopping in Fort Wayne 1848 features the same family from A Trip on the Wabash and Erie Canal. (See the blog post from July 2013.) It takes place about a week after Trip ended, and continues to tell about the adventures of Daniel and his family. This book is about a day in Fort Wayne, where Pa tries to buy everything that the family will need when they move out to their farm. Daniel visits the cooper, the tannery, and the blacksmith shop, and each shop features new vocabulary words and pictures of what the tools mentioned look like. I had no idea what an adze or a croze looked like or what they were used for until I read this!

The History Center got in two cookbooks, Blue and Grey Cookery: Authentic recipes form the Civil War Years and Johnny Apppleseed Cookbook: Favorite apple recipes of our land.

I try to make my family dinner once a week, so I was really interested in seeing if these recipes could be used for that. Blue and Grey Cookery has traditional Civil War recipes, with some equivalencies for modern cooking. Many of the recipes seemed to call for salt pork or shortening. A lot of the recipes seemed complicated to me (but I’m one of those people who often wonder how people managed to cook before Bisquick!) The recipe for sauerkraut was interesting- I didn’t realize it took weeks to make. Germanfest is coming up- maybe I should try and make my own sauerkraut and compare it to the kind I get there. The recipe for noodles looked very easy- just flour, egg, and shortening. It seems like something I not only have the ingredients for, but don’t need any special equipment to make.

I was more intrigued by the Johnny Appleseed cookbook. I’ve gotten apples from the Farmers’ Market before (the Barr Street Market is held at the History Center on Saturdays) and a co-worker recently brought in applesauce cookies, so I was really curious to see what I could make with apples beside my attempts at applesauce. I was happy to see several apple pie recipes as my only complaint at Johnny Appleseed Fest is that no one ever has apple pie, and I can’t think of any better use for an apple. The book has recipes for pie crust as well as the apple filling. Just reading the recipes made me hungry! There is also a recipe for sauerkraut and apples.

I haven’t dared to try any of these recipes yet, so I don’t know in reality how easy or good tasting they are. But many sounded delicious, and easy. Maybe this summer I’ll work up the courage to really expand my cooking abilitie

  

Elizabeth Keckley- Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker

by Carmen Doyle

Mary Todd Lincoln is one of the most well-known First Ladies and almost always criticized. Her dressmaker, Elizabeth Keckley, was born into slavery but worked her way out of it to become one of the most sought dressmakers in D.C.

Behind the Scenes in the Lincoln White House: Memoirs of an African-American Seamstress is Keckley’s autobiography, from her birth as a slave to working as a successful dressmaker and becoming a confidante to Mary Todd Lincoln. 

Elizabeth is very eloquent, explaining how she was born into slavery “therefore I came upon the earth free in God-like thought, but fettered in action.” Her early years are heartbreaking, as she tells how her father was the slave of another man and only allowed to visit at Christmas and Easter. At one point, her father was going to be allowed to live with her mother full-time, but instead his master went further south, and she never saw him again. Elizabeth has some excerpts of his letters to her mother. He writes he hopes to see her again and hopes that someone headed north will take him along so he can visit. Elizabeth tells how her mother had a lot to do; making clothes for the owner and family, as well as all the slaves, so Elizabeth determined to learn to sew in order to help her mother. There are other incidents that clearly tell of the cruelty of slavery, such as that she was persecuted for four years by a white man with “base designs”, which led to Elizabeth becoming a mother. 

Elizabeth tells how she gained her freedom through her sewing, managing to raise $1200 from clients in order to buy the freedom of her and her son. All the money she received was paid back. The book includes the receipts from clients contributing to her freedom, and the receipt for the freedom of Elizabeth and her son.

The story gets very interesting when Elizabeth goes to D.C. She acquires some prominent clients, including the wife of Senator Jefferson Davis. One interesting anecdote that Elizabeth recounts is how years later, she was at a fair and there was a wax figure of Jefferson Davis in a dress (it was reported untruthfully that was how he was captured) Upon close inspection, Elizabeth discovered that the dress he was in was actually one of the “chintz wrappers” that she had made Mrs. Davis. 

One of Elizabeth’s goals was to work in the White House and she is recommended to Mary Todd Lincoln, becoming her dressmaker and confidante. Most of the book takes place in the White House, working for Mrs. Lincoln. Elizabeth tells of how she met the President and how Mrs. Lincoln seemed to accidentally hurt him often. Although it is easy to see how Mrs. Lincoln often came across as vain, Elizabeth portrays her in a sympathetic light. Mrs. Lincoln did run up more expenses than the President’s salary could afford, and she didn’t tell him about it. Since Mrs. Lincoln was aware that her every move was scrutinized, she wanted to appear at her best at all times. 

As Mrs. Lincoln’s friend, Elizabeth observes many events. One of the saddest things she witnesses is the death of Willie Lincoln. A doctor had been called  and said Willie gave every indication of an early recovery, and that the reception which the Lincolns had planned should go on. Willie grew worse and during the reception Mrs. Lincoln often went up to check on him. But he still grew worse and soon died.

President Lincoln is not always portrayed in a positive light. When Mrs. Lincoln was in “one of her paroxysms of grief” the President tells her that if she doesn’t control herself, she will be driven mad, and have to be put in the lunatic asylum. One person who never comes off in a positive light is Robert Lincoln, not just in refusing to go to a reception for Tom Thumb, but later after the President’s death in complaining about the smallness of the apartments that they were in and refusing to let Tad go to town with him. Unfortunately, the book ends in 1867, after the death of Lincoln, but before the death of Tad and before Robert’s marriage and Mary being declared insane. 

As might be expected in a book written by a dressmaker, there are descriptions of clothes, but there are no pictures of these clothes. Mrs. Lincoln later tried to sell some of her expensive clothes in order to raise money for her living expenses, so there are lists of what she was trying to sell, but again, no pictures, so it is difficult to try and figure out what Mrs. Lincoln was wearing.  (The Lincoln Financial Collection has photos of Mary Todd, but it’s difficult to tell if any of the dresses she is photographed in were ones that Elizabeth made or if they were ones she later tried to sell)

Elizabeth tells of her accomplishments too, such as starting a relief fund for colored soldiers, but it’s really the First Family that is the most interesting facet of the book.

Behind the Scenes in the Lincoln White House: Memoirs of an African-American Seamstress is a great read, particularly because it is a contemporary account of Mary Todd Lincoln, one of the most maligned First Ladies.The book is available for sale at the History Center.

Maggie Ray, WASP

by Carmen Doyle

Margaret Ray was a farm girl from Fort Wayne. She went on her first airplane flight at age 7, when a barnstormer took her whole family up. That started her love of flying. She didn’t believe she could be a pilot because she was a girl, so she decided to become a stewardess. 

You can read about Maggie Ray and other Fort Wayne historical figures in books available in our gift shop.

Maggie got concerned about what would happen if she was on a plane and the pilot became incapacitated, so she decided that she would like to learn how to fly a plane just in case that happened. She was working at the canning factory at GE in order to earn money for the nurses training that all stewardess were required to have. At age 19, Maggie took her first solo flight in an airplane, and decided she wasn’t going to be a stewardess- she was going to be a pilot. There was only one class at Indiana Tech that offered pilot training. Maggie was the only girl in the class, and the instructor often picked on her to answer questions, hoping to embarrass Maggie and have her drop out. Maggie tried to blend in by wearing jodhpurs, but she still got picked on.

In 1943, at age 21, she received a telegram that said “if interested in women flying training for ferry command” to contact Ethel Sheely, Chief Recruiting Officer, for interviews. If any women pilots were interested, they were to go to Chicago for interviews. Maggie went with a couple of other women, and passed the initial interview. Further instructions were then given on how to apply for the program.

 Maggie received a letter a few days later from Jacqueline Cochran, who was the Director of Women’s Flying Training. The letter said that if a woman received “clearance of your Civil Service appointment and approval of your medical examination, you will be officially notified when and where to report for duty.” The physical was the same one that all Army Air Force cadets, who wanted to be fighter pilots, required. Maggie was concerned she would not pass the physical, because she was recovering from an appendectomy at the time.

The Women’s Ferrying Squadron had begun in September 1942, and at first only the most experienced women were accepted- most had over a thousand hours of flying experience. If commercial airlines had hired women as pilots, these women would have qualified.

Jackie Cochran urged General H.H. Arnold to provide opportunity for additional women pilots to be hired. At first Cochran anticipated being only able to accept women with 300 hours or commercial licenses, but huge demand meant that requirements were reduced to having a private license.

Women in the program had been instructed “not to publicize what we were about to do as we didn’t want the enemy to know that United States was so desperate that it was training women.”

Maggie was sent to training in Sweetwater, Texas. WASP (Women Air Service Pilots) had the same training as the male cadets, except females didn’t get gunnery training. Some fundamentals were skipped over because all the women knew how to fly already. Cochran insisted on military discipline because she didn’t want anyone to say that the women couldn’t pull their own weight. However, the women were volunteers, which meant they could leave at any time. The rate of attrition for the women trainees was 35%, no higher than that of men. Five hours a day were spent studying math, physics, meteorology, navigation, aerodynamics, electronics and instruments, as well as military and civilian air regulations, engine operations and maintenance. Every minute of free time was spent studying, including with a flashlight under the covers after bed check. When ground training was completed, Maggie had the equivalent of a college degree in aeronautics.

Women weren’t supposed to release information about what they were doing, allegedly in case the information fell into the hands of the enemy. Maggie had to get permission from the Public Relations Officer for her name and address to be published in the church bulletin.

Maggie later thought the real reason WASP weren’t supposed to tell anyone what they were doing might have been because the people in charge didn’t want a lot of publicity because of the high number of women who might be likely to “wash out”. Eighty-five girls of the 127 in Class 43 W-5 (Maggie’s class) graduated. It was dangerous too-38 women pilots died during WASP training.

WASPs didn’t receive any death benefits (and had to sign a release discharging the government of any claims, demands or actions on account of death or injury.) When a WASP died, the rest of the girls had to cover the expense of shipping the body home. Coffins could not be covered by an American flag, and family members couldn’t display a gold star in their window (a gold star indicated the loss of a family member in the war). Despite all the training that the WASPs went through, they still weren’t considered part of the Army.

There was a perception that WASPs were “rich girls on a lark”. That wasn’t true. Maggie explained: “I would get orders to pick up an airplane. I would grab my B-4 bag, which was always packed, and my parachute bag, catch a train or get on a commercial flight. When I arrived, I would go to Operations, pick up the airplane and deliver it to its destination. Most of what I flew were trainers and twin-engine troop transports. When trainers needed to be moved from base to base for whatever reason, it was a ferry pilot who did it.”

The WASPs were abruptly disbanded in December of 1944. Maggie tried to become a flight instructor, but few people seemed to want to take flight lessons from a girl, so she worked at the local airport at a desk job, or worked on the sidelines directing and fueling planes while waiting for pupils. It was when Maggie was at the desk job that she got hired for one last war effort. In 1945, the newspapers were on strike. A local radio station called the airport to say that Japan was about to surrender and the station had an idea to inform people not near their radios: the station would do a news drop. Thousands of leaflets were printed up with news of the surrender, and the station wanted someone to drop them over Fort Wayne. Maggie got to be the pilot to do it.

She recalled in The Greatest Generation: “I got to fly right over Main Street. Over the factories. I was flying real low- at only about a hundred feet, almost below the tops of some of the buildings.” (The History Center has one of the flyers that she dropped.)

In 1995, on the fiftieth anniversary of V-J Day, a radio stationed mentioned the dropping of the flyers, and wanted to know if anyone had any information about the pilot. Maggie called the station and informed them that SHE had been the pilot. Maggie got to do a re-enactment of the drop- but this time she stayed out of downtown.

Maggie continued flying, including participating in many races, as well as continuing to instruct, until her death in 2008 at age 87.

 For more information on Maggie, the History Center has a book: Maggie Ray World War II Air Force Pilot, written by her daughter, Marsha J. Wright. 

I Need Something to Read--part two

Carmen, who works in our gift shop, has compiled a list of many, if not most, of the books in our gift shop AND written a brief synopsis of each. If you're downtown during the 3RF...or anytime...we encourage you stop in and browse (as well as buy).  

by Carmen Doyle

Fiction (Michael Martone)

Double-Wide-This is actually a reprint of a few of his other volumes that went out of print.

Michael Martone- A collection of author’s notes and bios that Martone wrote about himself. Each one is different and some contradict themselves. It reads like Martone got bored of the standard author bio, and decided to start making stuff up to see if anyone noticed. It has made me read the author biography of other books a little closer.

Racing in Place- A group of essays on various topics.  The essays sort of ramble onto various topics, and can be a little hard to follow.

Miscellaneous

Remembering Grabill, Indiana- It is obvious that the author loves Grabill. This book serves as sort of a historical tour of Grabill, and includes many pictures of interest, such as an old newspaper or photos of families.

American Folk Art: Expressions of a New Spirit- Pictures of art work from the 1800s. A brief description of each piece is included. However, without reading the descriptions, I would have found it hard to distinguish between the sculpture and the paintings.

Done and Been: Steel Rail Chronicles of American Hobos- This was a really interesting book. The author first clarifies the differences between a hobo, a bum, and a tramp, and then has some of the hobos she has met tell their story. The most interesting parts are when the author tells her adventures riding the rails. However, because the book is written, not told around a campfire, sometimes the author’s prose gets irritating. A great book to just pick up and start reading anyplace.

Quest Club: the first 100 years and The Quest for Fort Wayne- These are a series of papers on a variety of topics, including politics, stem cell research, Stradivarius violins and prominent Fort Wayne people like Harry Baals and Hugh McCulloch.

Kids

A Trip on the Wabash and Erie Canal- This book is designed for grade school readers, but there is so much information that older readers can find it helpful as well. The story is about Daniel and his family leaving Toledo on their way to settle in Fort Wayne. They use the canal to travel, and Daniel learns about the mechanics of the canal- how long the trip takes, how locks works, and other activities.

Before the Dinosaurs- A good start to learning about fossils in Indiana.

Essential Atlas of Astronomy- Gorgeous photos and a ton of information. This book could be used by anyone interested in astronomy basics- there is more information in here than I remember learning in school. 

Eyes on the Skies: 400 years of Telescopic Discovery – Beautiful photos of not just stars, but of telescopes and planetariums. Also comes with a DVD.

*By Freedom’s Light- fictional story about a 13 year old girl who has to decide how she feels about slavery when she meets a slave girl her own age,

*The Civil War Book of Games, Puzzles, And Things To Do- These games range from “secret messages” (cryptograms) to mazes, matching, and coloring. Most of the activities would work in a car, so if you have a long trip in front of you, this might be a way to keep the kids entertained.

Genois Wilson, Firefighter – See the blog post: http://historycenterfw.blogspot.com/2013/04/as-good-fire-laddie-as-many-of-boys.html

Birds of Indiana: A field guide- Organized by bird color, this book is great for a budding ornithologist.

Trees of Indiana: A field guide- Organized by leaf shape, the small size makes it easy to carry. Great for use outdoors!

Sports

Baseball in Fort Wayne- Images with detailed information attached. While this book was written before the TinCaps, it still has a lot to offer. I liked the section “Major Connections” which featured contemporary baseball players who had played for the Wizards before making it to the Major League.

Fort Wayne Sport History- This book is organized like a calendar, with every day of the year (including February 29) having some Fort Wayne sports record. If you don’t know when something happened, this book isn’t very helpful. It does work well if you use it as a sports devotional- every day read a new fact.

Dottie Wiltse Collins: Strikeout Queen of the All-American Professional Baseball League- This book is excellent for anyone wanting to learn more about women playing baseball during WWII. Dottie was an excellent pitcher. The book also tells of her experience advising for the movie A League of Their Own, (including the fact that Madonna’s character catching a ball in her cap would never have actually happened. A lot of the other baseball scenes were accurate.) A question I did have trouble finding the answer to in this book was how women’s baseball differed from men’s.

Opening Pitch: Professional Baseball’s Inaugural Season, 1871- How baseball started to evolve into the game as we know it today. Chapter 3 talks about the short lived Fort Wayne Kekiongas, and why they were short lived. Unfortunately, the writing style made it hard for me to follow the details. It is clear money was an important factor, but that wasn’t the only reason. I did enjoy learning about how the dimensions of the stadiums have changed. There are also lots of stats for the avid fan.

Indiana Sporting Life: Selections from Traces of Indiana and Midwestern History- This book is a collection of articles that originally appeared in Traces magazine.  The History Center has a small exhibit devoted to a baseball player form Fort Wayne, Chick Stahl. One of the stories in this book goes into greater detail of the tragedy of Chick. Baseball is not the only sport covered- basketball, fishing, horse racing and boxing are among the other sports covered. However, my favorite story was “A Major League Friendship: Carl Erskine remembers Jackie Robinson and the Brooklyn Dodgers”. Erskine talks about not only Jackie Robinson, but also how he got involved in Wildcat baseball- Erskine and Jackie Robinson were both named “the Godfathers of Wildcat Baseball”.  There are even photos of Jackie, Erskine, Bob Feller and Ted Williams with Dale McMillen, founder of Wildcat baseball. The recent movie 42, about Jackie Robinson, makes this article a great read.

Hoosier Leisure

50 Years Together: The Red Birds Remember- Joe Taylor and the Red Birds were a popular country music band from Fort Wayne for many years. This book traces how the band got started, including how Taylor came to record his signature song “Cowboy Auctioneer”. While the book includes a discography, there is no music attached to it. Difficult to have a book about a band without being able to listen to the music!

A History of Lake James-Lake James is the third largest natural lake in Indiana. The authors’ love for the lake clearly shows in this book. What makes the book really interesting are the illustrations- many are old postcards sent from the lake.

Spinning through Clouds- This book is the memories of Max Knight, who began flying at age nine in the mid 1930s. His adventures in flying are interspersed with stories of famous pilots, and their contributions to aviation.

Life in a 3-Ring Circus- The pictures in this book are gorgeous- very colorful. The description of circus posters isn’t very interesting- discussions of sizes are hard to tell in a book. The interviews with the circus performers is very good; however, the reader is assumed to know so much about renowned circus performers it was hard to follow. Get the book for the artwork, and the interviews. If you have background knowledge of circuses, this book is great. If you have only vague knowledge of prominent circus performers, then this book isn’t very helpful.

Wolf & Dessauer: Where Fort Wayne Shopped- On the off chance you have no idea what Wolf & Dessauer was, this book starts with a brief background, and then has interviews with various people who worked for W&D’s. There is also (of course) a huge chapter on Christmas at the store. The History Center has several of the animated figures from the store on display during the Festival of Gingerbread.

Indiana Living

A Swiss Community in Adams County- Photos of Berne, Indiana. Part of the Images of America series, so the photos are good quality.

Haunted Hoosier Trails- and More Haunted Hoosier Trails- scary tales from around Indiana. The story of the Embassy ghost even has an interview from Steve Toor, the History Center’s event coordinator! (I’m not a fan of scary stories, so I’m happy to know that the History Center isn’t among the haunted places in Fort Wayne)

Indiana: A new Historical Guide- A series of tours over several portions of Indiana. If you have a car, and are looking for a tour that lasts an entire day, this book is helpful. While some of the information is outdated, (sadly, the Lincoln Museum is no more) there are some interesting things. I enjoyed learning that Concordia Seminary, located not far from my house, was designed to look like a North European village.

The Irish in Indiana- The most famous Irish place in Indiana, Notre Dame, is only mentioned briefly, within the context of a deeper subject. And the football team gets only ONE mention! There is interesting information on social and economic interests of Irish from the 18^th century to the present.

Peopling Indiana: The Ethnic Experience Every ethnic group is covered in this book, not just the groups from Europe. The difficulty faced by Chinese immigrants coming to Indiana isn’t a topic I had thought of before. There are many diagrams for the serious scholar, but the book is well written and clear enough that someone with a casual interest can read it as well. However, there is no mention of Notre Dame!

Play the Yellow Tape- If you like Unsolved Mysteries, this book is full of descriptions of crimes from 1854-1932 for which no explanation has been found.

Lincoln

 “There I grew up”: Remembering Abraham Lincoln’s Indiana Youth- Lincoln spent 14 years in Indiana, and this book starts with Lincoln’s memories of IN, and then goes into memories from the people who surrounded him while he was there, including his stepmother, as well as his law partner (and later biographer) William Henry Herndon. If you’re a Lincoln scholar, this book is wonderful.

*Abraham Lincoln: Portrayed in the collections of the Indiana Historical Society- This book has wonderful images of Lincoln; not just portraits, but also political cartoons and paintings. Not only are there pictures, there are explanations of the role the pictures played in the memory of Lincoln.  A wonderful book for those who haven’t been able to make it to the Indiana State Museum to see their Lincoln collection, or for those who don’t want to look at the online Lincoln collection from the library

The Faces of Lincoln (postcards) - These postcards feature a wide variety of Lincoln images. My favorite was the reward poster for “THE MURDERER of our late, beloved President” These postcards would also make great thank you notes!

Abraham Lincoln stickers- Fun stickers are a great way to introduce Lincoln to younger kids. Plus, they make an excellent decoration for any patriotic occasion!

Young Lincoln: the early life of Abraham Lincoln, 1816-1830 (DVD) - This video has interviews with historians as well as excerpts from Lincoln’s writings.

The Life of Lincoln: Video & Interactive group learning tool (DVD)- a 3 disc set designed for classrooms, both school age and adult.

African-Americans

A Friendly Mission: John Candler’s Letters from America 1853-1854- Candler was an English Quaker who came to America on an anti-slavery mission. The letters are written to his wife, and tell of the people he met on his travels and how people in different areas felt about slavery. Really interesting view of the culture of the time period                                                                                                                                                                                                              

Indiana’s African-American Heritage: Essays from Black History News & Notes- The essays divided into five general topics, and each author goes into depth about their subject. Each essay is written by a different author, and well researched. The essays cover a variety of areas.

Negro Theatre in America Prior to the Civil War- Although there isn’t much directly written about African-American theater in this time period, the author uses mentions of theater in newspapers and other sources to try and figure out what theater there was and where it happened. Because the author has to rely so much on mentions of theater, not on actual sources, his enthusiasm is sometimes annoying. Lots of information for people who want to do further research.

A Communion of the Spirits- This book was very neat. It’s organized by people- the author interviewed multiple people about their memories of quilting, and what it meant to them. However, I would have appreciated more photos of the quilts, along with descriptions of the designs and how quilts are made- I have very little idea what a quilting frame is, for example.

Desperate Deliverance: The Story of African-Americans in the Civil War-Lots of information, and well told. I really liked some of the stories of bravery performed by the African-Americans, like the man who managed to steal a ship and successfully pilot it to Union territory.

The Black Women of the Middle West project- the oral histories are very interesting, but most of the book seems to be lists for additional research. Good for scholars seeking more information.

An Oral History of African Americans in Grant County- various people tell about an area of their life in Grant County. Everyone interviewed was born in the early 1900’s and when interviewed were in their 80s or 90s. The interviewees talk about their life when they were in their 20s and 30s, and some of the experiences they had.

 African-Americans in Fort Wayne: The First 200 Years – this book has interviews with several elderly African-Americans about their early memories of Fort Wayne. There are a lot of photos of African-Americans from the 1930s through the 1960s. The book also contains information about African-American churches and the first in Fort Wayne. The interviews are great, but it’s the photos that make this book really worthwhile.

Native Americans

Contested Territories: Native Americans and non-natives in the lower Great Lakes, 1700-1850- Seven in-depth essays on various topics related to Native Americans in the area. Great for scholars, but it can be hard for the average person to follow. The essays that discuss Chief Richardville is very informative, however, that essay didn’t discuss Richardville and Métis as much as I would have liked.

Long Journey Home- Oral histories of Native Americans from Oklahoma (The tribe was originally located in Indiana.) Really interesting but I would have liked the fry bread recipe (not just a song and a photo.) 

A Sorrowful Journey- The journals of John Shelby and Daniel Workman are presented side by side. Both men accompanied the Shawnee on their journey out of Ohio. The journals presented side by side can be confusing, as some of the line spacing is off. This is a minor problem, and the side by side presentation makes for an engrossing read.

The Lost Years: Miami Indians in Kansas- Very informative book about the problems encountered by the Miami Indians on the journey to Kansas. Despite the author’s writing (It reads like a book report from a junior high student, with sentence fragments and time confusion) there is a lot of good information in this book. Great for kids and those wanting just a little bit of information. Sources are given at the end of each chapter for further investigation.

Blacksnake’s Path- This book, while fiction, goes into depth about the life of William Wells, a white boy captured and raised by Miami. Wells was both a Miami warrior and later a scout for Anthony Wayne. This book goes into detail about Wells’ life among the Miami and then among white settlers.

Heart of a Warrior –This book reads like a Hollywood movie. It focuses on the relationship between William Wells and Sweet Breeze, Little Turtle’s daughter. Although their relationship was only a section of William Wells’ life, it’s still worth reading. Because the book is written like a movie, it’s easy and fun to read. One thing that would make this book better is pictures. Guess I’ll have to wait for the movie! (Assuming a movie is ever made.)

Land of the Indians: Indiana- a good beginner book. There is a ton of information in here, but a few spelling errors, bad pictures (the pictures all look like someone just printed them off from their computer) and lack of citations mean that this book is for starting scholars only. A good book to start research, but better information can be found elsewhere.

Miami Indians of Indiana: A Persistent People 1654-1994- This book has a ton of information, and is well written. The history of the Miami and the government continuing to take advantage of them is told. Also told is the process used to try and get the Miami federal status. This book was published in 1996, so an update or a place to get more information would be nice. 

Murder in their hearts: The Fall Creek Massacre--This book starts with a description of the 1824 murder of a small group of Indians, including children, who were killed by drunken white settlers. What’s unusual about the murder is that the murderers were tried and convicted. The book uses newspaper and court accounts to help tell the story.                                                                            
  
The Native Americans- History of the Native Americans  in Indiana from BC to the present, and how the view of the Native Americans have changed throughout the decades.

Northwest Territory

Bayonets in the Wilderness: Anthony Wayne’s Legion in the Old Northwest- This book tells about Anthony Wayne and his campaign in what would later be Fort Wayne. Heavily researched, and has information about William Wells and Simon Girty. (For more on Simon Girty, check out our blog http://historycenterfw.blogspot.com/2013/02/a-look-at-simon-girty.html )

Frontiersmen- Very entertaining book about Simon Kenton, who traveled around the Northwest Territory (which would later become Ohio, Indiana and Illinois.) The only problem with this book is that the hefty size (600 pages) makes it a little difficult to fit in your beach bag or on your nightstand. Engrossing read.

President Washington’s Indian War: The Struggle for the Old Northwest 1790-1795- The clashes between the Indians and the settlers, and Anthony Wayne’s campaigns. Includes maps of locations mentioned, to help better of the areas involved. The descriptions of some of the torture committed by both sides is enough to make those with weak stomachs (and I’m one of them) a little queasy. Don’t read while eating or before bed!

Mr. Jefferson’s Hammer: William Henry Harrison and the origins of American Indian Policy- William Henry Harrison is probably remembered best as “the President who made a really long inaugural speech, got pneumonia, and died a month later.” This book tells the story of Harrison before he became President, including his time as governor of Indiana. What I found interesting was the reasoning behind Harrison’s stance on slavery, even after the issue was hurting his political career.

Women

Fighting For Equality: a life of May Wright Sewall- This biography is of an Indiana suffragist, who with her husband started a girls’ school in Indianapolis. The aim of the school was that the girls’ studies would be equal to the men’s. She also served as a delegate for Henry Ford’s 1915 Peace Trip, and worked with Susan B. Anthony.   

Maggie Ray: World War II Air Force Pilot-Margaret Ray was from Fort Wayne and wanted to fly since she was ten. This book tells the story of her learning to fly, then becoming a WASP in WWII. Her adventures learning to fly are awesome to read about- like the time after an appendectomy when a friend checked out a plane, not telling the people in charge at the airport that Maggie would be coming along as a passenger. Then he let Maggie fly the plane. The plane had troubles, but since he hadn’t told anyone he was taking a passenger, Maggie had to wait for him to go back to the airport, report the accident, and come back. The book was written by Maggie’s daughter, Marsha Wright. Margaret was also featured in Tom Brokaw’s Greatest Generation because of her work in WWII. The book also has photos throughout of Maggie. After you read this book, pick up a copy of the DVD Wings for Maggie Ray, a documentary film based on the life of this trailblazing woman.  

Nature’s Storyteller: The Life of Gene Stratton Porter- Porter was one of Indiana’s most well known people. She was a well-known author (the History Center has two books written by her, the Harvester and Mickey O’Halloran.) She was also a conservationist, using her popularity from her writings to encourage public interest in wildlife causes. This book focuses on her life and her lasting influence. A fun, easy read.

Hold Fast to Dreams: The Sixty-Year Career of an Indiana Teacher- An autobiography of Audra Snyder Bailey, who worked as a teacher in various capacities, from a boarding school to abroad to Milwaukee and then to Indiana. An interesting career.

*Carole Lombard: The Hoosier Tornado- Carole Lombard was a well-known actress in the 1930s and early 40s. Originally from Fort Wayne, (her house is on the Bicentennial heritage Trail) she became known as a screwball actress. This book details her life from Fort Wayne to her tragic death during a tour to sell war bonds. Easy read, if not as fun as watching her movies.

Pictorial Histories

Historic Photos of Fort Wayne- Beautiful black and white photos of Fort Wayne from 1860-1979. It’s neat to see how some places seem little changed, and how some beautiful buildings are no longer here.

“One Shot”: World War II Photography of John A. Bushemi- Not just photography, this book serves as a biography of a Bushemi, photographer during WWII, who became well-known for his photos capturing soldiers in the Pacific. The book also tells about some the difficulties photographers faced during the War, from being shelled to dealing with the elements. A great book for those interested in the Pacific Theater.  

Images of America: Fort Wayne, Indiana- photos of memorable Fort Wayne scenes and events. The picture of St. Mary’s Catholic Church after the fire is memorable, but I preferred the photos of kids at the zoo.

Images of America: New Haven- beautiful photos of New Haven. I liked the photos of the canals and the railroads, especially reading about railroad disasters and near disasters.

Images of Aviation: Fort Wayne Aviation: Baer Field and Beyond- Photos related to Fort Wayne aviation. While there are of course, many photos of planes, some of my favorite images weren’t directly associated with flying, like veterans housing at Baer Field or the photo of Hank Aaron’s bat, which was in Fort Wayne as part of a publicity tour. (The picture was taken when the bat arrived in Fort Wayne- by plane)

Headwaters Park: Fort Wayne’s Lasting Legacy- TRF is here, so what better time to look at Headwaters Park? The park has served many purposes, and there  are photos of many major events, including the many floodings, and baseball photos from when League Park, home of the Fort Wayne Kekiongas, was located in what became the park. (There’s even a photo of Babe Ruth when he played at League Park!)

Exploring Old and New

The Calumet Region: Indiana’s Last Frontier- exhaustive early history of Indiana, great for in-depth scholarship. For the casual reader, it can be difficult to follow.

*Wabash and Erie Canal Notebook I: Allen County and Huntington County, Indiana- History and importance of the canal to Allen and Huntington County.

Wabash and Erie Canal Notebook II: Cass, Carroll and Tippecanoe counties- Importance and influence of the canal in three counties. Exhaustively informative on each county and wonderful for the canal scholar.

Wabash and Erie Canal Notebook III: Wabash and Miami Counties- uses official reports and stories of two important canal counties. The book also has photographs and maps of the canals sprinkled throughout the text.

On the Heritage Trail- Chock-full of information on sites of local historic interest in Fort Wayne. This is designed to be an accompaniment to the Heritage Trail Guide Map, which is set up as a series of walking tours around Fort Wayne. The History Center is no. 7 on the Central Downtown Trail, and the Carole Lombard house is no. 32 on the West Central Trail. ARCH is in the process of digitizing parts of the trail with QR codes, but for those without smart phones, or who just prefer the sensory experience, the book is awesome. (And since TRF is in full swing, this is a great time to see how Fort Wayne started!)

Early Indiana Trails and Surveys- reprint of a 1919 book. In-depth information on early Indiana trails. The index is helpful in finding data on various aspects of early Indiana paths, focusing on the physical trails, and not as much on the people as I would have liked. (For example, I found that Aaron Burr may have stayed one night in Vallonia “during his famous conspiracy days of 1806” but does not explain who Aaron Burr was or what his conspiracy was)