World Weavers

Indianapolis

This is currently under construction. Suggestions welcome.

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For those from out of country here is some practical information that most Americans take knowing for granted.

Map of the Eastern Half of the U.S., with Indianapolis.
Map of most of the state of Indiana, with major roads shown.

History and Geography

• 1) The Madame Walker Theater (Forked Tether to Marc and Eli).
• 2) The Indianapolis Children's Museum (Tether to Christopher).
  Winona Memorial Hospital. (They aren't at the same address, but they're too close to separate on this map.)
• 3) Wishard Memorial Hospital
  Riley Children's Hospital
  Veterans Administration Hospital. (They aren't at the same address, but they're too close to separate on this map.)
• 4) Methodist Hospital.
• 5) St. Vincent Hospital.
• 6) Community Hospital East.
• 7) St. Francis Hospital.
• A) South Central Free Clinic (Kate's clinic)

Indianapolis is the capital city of the state of Indiana, in the United States. Indiana is in a region known as the Midwest.

The region is temperate in climate, with a high humidity. The average January temperature for the area is around 30°F (-1°C), though it gets below 0°F. With windchill, this can often be deadly, but such low temperatures are uncommon. In July, temperatures average around 76°, ranging as high as 100° some summers. With the humidity, these high temperatures can be stifling. As with the winter extremes, however, they are rare.

Nomadic hunters called Paleo-Indians, first inhabited present-day Indiana about 10,000 years ago. They hunted large animals like the bison and woolly mammoth and were known as Mound Builders. This was because of the large burial mounds and earthen forts they built.

The French explorer Robert Cavalier, Sieur de la Salle came to Indiana from the French colonies in Canada 1679. Searching for a water route to the Pacific Ocean he travelled down the St Joseph and Kankakee rivers. White fur traders arrived shortly after from Lake Michigan and traded beads, blankets, knives, paint, and whiskey to the Indians for animal furs. They built fur-trading posts near present-day Fort Wayne, Lafayette and Vincennes.

Soon the French had to compete with the British for the fur trade. Initially the French gained favour with the tribes because they treated them as equals, but the British slowly won them over by paying more for the furs and trading firearms.

This rivalry was one of the major factors which contributed to a series of wars between the French and the British in North America, culminating in the French and Indian War of 1763. Great Britain won, and in the peace treaty that followed, the British gained all of the former French land claims east of the Mississippi River, including Indiana.

By the time the American Revolution broke out in 1775, the Native Americans felt more threatened by the settlers of the colonies to the east, who coveted their land, than by the British troops. As a result, the Miami and some other tribes fought on the side of the British, against the United States. The British defeat, by Virginia troops at Vincennes in 1779, marked the end of British dominance in the territory, which was eventually ceded to the United States at the end of the war in 1783.

At the time of the Revolution, Virginia and other states made territorial claims over the west, which included Indiana. These were ceded to the United States Federal Government. Later they became known as the Northwest Territories as part of the Northwest Ordinance of 1787. An influx of settlers from the east created tensions with the Miami, which led to more conflict ending in a crushing defeat for the Native American Indians at the Battle of Fallen Timbers. Between 1795 and 1854 a total of thirteen treaties were signed in which the Miami ceded almost all of their land to the federal government. By which time most of the tribes had migrated to Kansas where their descendants live to this day.

Congress created the Indiana Territory in 1800 and elected General William Henry Harrison (who later became president) as its first territorial governor. Vincennes was designated the state's capital. Native American resistance continued, mainly from the Shawnee, but came to an end with the Battle of Tippecanoe. Thereafter, the rate of settlement increased until 1816 when Indiana became the 19th state to achieve statehood, with Corydon as its new capital. Indianapolis became the seat of government in 1825, chosen for its central location.

It was a planned city, mapped and platted by Alexander Ralston, former assistant to Pierre L’Enfant (who planned Washington D.C.). Ralston’s plan called for wide thoroughfares, radiating from a central circle. Although a four square-mile area had been designated, he designed only a one-mile square, because he didn’t believe the city would grow any larger.

Almost from the beginning, it was known as a city of homes and churches. When ethnic groups began arriving en mass in the mid 1800s, they settled in a particular area of the city, built a church of their faith, centered their activities around the church and maintained their own culture.

The Germans, Irish, African-Americans, Italians and Eastern Europeans (Slovenians) were the major cultural groups to converge on Indianapolis and swell the population, bringing with them their customs, religious beliefs, language and architecture. The Internal Improvement Act of 1831 attracted Irish, fleeing from famine in their country, and Germans, seeking political refuge from their divided country. And the railroad boom of the 1840s brought more Germans and African-Americans to seek their fortunes through labor in Indianapolis.

Slaughtering and metalworking were the two most important industries in the 1870s and 80s.

The Irish helped shape Indianapolis in its early years. A notable landmark, courtesy of Irish craftsmanship, is Christ Church Cathedral, located on Monument Circle. Designed and built by William Tinsley in 1857, it was the first church constructed of stone in Indianapolis. The interior features beautiful wooden trusses and stained glass windows by Tiffany.

Around the time of the Civil War, an increased number of African-Americans came to Indianapolis from the south, and settled to northwest of the Mile Square, around Indiana Avenue. The country’s third oldest African-American newspaper, The Indianapolis Recorder, located its original offices in this neighborhood at 518 Indiana Avenue. Anchored by Indiana Avenue and the historic Madame Walker Theatre, a cultural arts and business center, this neighborhood represents a historical cornerstone to the African-American community.

The Germans were once one of the largest and strongest ethnic influences in Indianapolis’ development. They arrived in large groups in the 1840s and settled on the eastside, where they worked on the railroads. Separated from the rest of the population by language, they developed a series of social clubs, emphasizing athletics or song.

German-American architects designed many churches and public buildings, for example, the completion of the design for the State Capitol Building, Scottish Rite Cathedral, Athenaeum, Herron Art Institute, Shortridge High School, the Jewish Temple, City Market, Tomlinson Hall, The Murat Temple, Roberts Park Methodist Church and Zion Evangelical United Church of Christ. It is significant the Indianapolis’ trademark, the Soldier and Sailor’s Monument (1902) was designed by Bruno Schmitz of Berlin.

The technical high schools in Indianapolis have German models and were established through active lobbying by the German community.

The German-American heritage is very much present in the city. There are currently 17 German societies in Indianapolis.

By the end of the 19th century, manufacturing surpassed agriculture as the main source of revenue. This was due in part to the automobile manufacturing plants, the opening of the world's largest oil refinery at Whiting and investment by the United States Steel Corporation.

Today, chief agricultural products include corn, soybean, and tomatoes. Manufacturing and mining also became a major source of income. Steel-making expanded rapidly in the first and second decades of the 20th century, particularly in Gary and other centres in Northwestern Indiana.

Today the state has a highly diversified industrial base which includes steel-refining, tool making and metal working with increased reliance on the manufacture of petrochemicals and pharmaceuticals. Milk is Indiana's third ranking livestock product in value, after hogs and cattle.

Of very more recent note, one of the more spectacular early UFO abductions took place during a dark summer night in 1983, in an ordinary rural area outside Indianapolis, when Kathie Davis was supposedly floated out of her room as she slept, then subjected to a physical examination inside a UFO.

Population

Indiana has a population of 5,752,000. Most people in Indiana live in urban areas with over one third living in the metropolitan areas of Indianapolis and Gary. About 98% of Indiana's population were born in the United States, one-eighth came from Germany and other foreign-born groups originated from Britain, Canada, Italy, Mexico, Poland, and Yugoslavia.

Religion

The Madam Walker Theater

This beautiful building, with its Egyptian and African design motifs, was built to house the business of Madame C.J. Walker, America's first African-American female self-made millionaire. The restored structure houses the impressive Walker Theater; an hour-long tour of the building is available. The theater and neighborhood once featured numerous jazz joints that attracted the biggest names in the business.

Its Seneschal is Jesse, Cherub of Trade with numerous boons from Eli. His role is as Jesse Williams, tour guide at the theater. He is Black, broad-shouldered, soft-spoken with a bass voice like silk, and a winning smile. Jesse knows the Indianapolis business community and talks it up to any visiting businessmen.

Indianapolis Children's Museum

The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, a non-profit institution committed to enriching the lives of children, is the largest children’s museum in the world. The 356,000-square-foot facility houses 10 major galleries that explore the physical and natural sciences, history, foreign cultures and the arts. The Children’s Museum is a place to learn and do. Whenever possible, exhibits are “hands-on” or participatory in nature. The Children’s Museum strives to be one of the vital links in the lives of children as it supports their intellectual curiosity and love of learning. The museum, situated on 13 acres of land in Indianapolis, presents thousands of programs and activities each year.

Its Seneschal is Aolani, Kyriotate of Children. Aolani's preferred hosts and Amanda Earley, ticket-taker, and several animals around the museum. Due to her Attunements, Aolani won't inhabit a child. Aolani doesn't often stay in one host for long, as people losing track of time while at the museum would be rather disturbing. Amanda figured out that there was something good inhabiting the museum and is a willing host to it, which is why she is a preferred host.

Demonic

The Dillinger Estate

In the town of Mooresville, IN, just a half hour southwest of downtown Indianapolis, on highway 267 stands a large sign advertising 80+ acres for sale. The sign has obviously been there quite a while. The price is quite high and the contract comes with an agreement not to subdivide the land or farm it. When the leaves are off the trees, a passerby can see a dilapidated clapboard house on the hill above the road. Few know this was the home of John Dillinger, the famous bank robber. It stands forgotten, a testament to greed that the town would as soon forget.

The Seneschal is Chaldea, Balseraph of Theft. Chaldea's role is as Chaldea Sellwood, Real Estate Agent. It was Chaldea who convinced the owners of the estate to put such a high price tag on it and the no-development, no farming clause in the contract, thus assuring it wouldn't be sold. Chaldea is tall, willowy, and a smooth talker. When she is not at the estate, taking care of things, she can be found at her nearby real estate office, from which she can the tether.

Wicked Goods

Japhet, Impudite of Lust, owner of Wicked Goods, an adult video and sex toy shop, and Tether to Andrealphus. Earth name: Javier Dixon. Bi-sexual and into BDSM. Usually a top. Currently has a sex-slave named Miroslav (not his real name), who is also a Soldier. Very people-intensive, has the ins on the swingers clubs in town, which is more essence and people-stuff. An office-holder in one of the clubs. Organizes play-parties and demos.

American Cabaret Theatre

The American Cabaret Theatre came to downtown Indianapolis in 1990 with a Dream and a Mission. Our dream was to save the 100-year-old Athenaeum Building from imminent destruction and turn it into an attractive, commercially viable showcase for the city's cultural arts. Our mission was to provide Indianapolis and Central Indiana with high-quality, original theatrical entertainment. We accomplished our dream by amassing several million dollars in brick-and-mortar funds from local businesses and foundations. The beautifully restored Athenaeum is now an anchor institution of Indianapolis' architectural heritage and a centerpiece of the emerging downtown arts milieu. The American Cabaret Theatre is the fastest-growing theatre in the Midwest and has now extended its touring reach to theatres throughout the country.

Athenaeum

This 1892 landmark began as a social club and illustrates the city's German heritage; indeed people with a German background still make up the city's largest ethnic group. The Rathskeller's dark wood and Faustian ambiance evoke an Old World feel; stop in for lunch and try the brats and sauerkraut. The Athenaeum now houses the American Cabaret Theatre and a YMCA.

Benjamin Harrison Home

Our country's 23rd president lived here from 1875 to 1901, and many of the original Victorian furnishings can be seen during a one-hour tour of the home. Knowledgeable guides will fill you in on the life of Benjamin Harrison as well. The Fourth of July Ice Cream Social is a popular summertime celebration. The president himself (well, a believable costumed interpreter) attends the annual community event.

Broad Ripple

Butler University

The Cathedral of SS. Peter and Paul

This regal structure on the northern edge of the Downtown district is center of the Indianapolis archdiocese and home of the Catholic archbishop. With a facade of Indiana limestone and an interior that includes marble statuary, mosaics an stained glass, the cathedral combines stateliness and spirituality. The cathedral serves as a parish, hosts special Masses, Confirmations and Holy Order ceremonies.

Christ Church Cathedral

At one time in the mid-19th century there were five churches on the Circle downtown, but by 1884, Christ Church was the only one left. Today, the beautiful Gothic church (the subject of Eli Lilly's book The Little Church on the Circle) is worth a quick peek or a formal tour, which are usually available after services or by calling ahead to schedule a group visit. The oldest Episcopal congregation in the city still worships here. Christ Church also conducts well-respected music programs and hosts the Annual Strawberry Festival in June. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

City Market

Completed in 1886, the historic central building still houses fruit stands, meat markets and a variety of specialty food stalls. Don't miss the Greek imports at Aesop's Kitchen & Cupboard, gourmet coffee and pastries at Cath Inc. and what may be the city's best coney dog at Libby's Deli. Though seating is limited, you can scout out a table on the upper level balcony and listen to midday concerts by local musicians. Or take your lunch outdoors and enjoy it on the plaza. Teens find the place entrancingly bohemian. The market is ope Monday through Friday, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday, 6 a.m to 5 p.m.

Civic Theater

Civic Theatre, founded in 1914, is the oldest continuously operating theatre in the United States. Each season it entertains more than 50,000 theatregoers with its seven mainstage productions. Of those 50,000 patrons, more than 10,000 are children who attend student matinees. Civic Theatre is located in Showalter Pavilion on the grounds of the Indianapolis Museum of Art, although the two institutions are independently operated and funded.

Crown Hill Cemetery

This is the nation's fifth largest cemetery, and its rolling, expansive grounds can provide a morning or afternoon's worth of history. You'll find the graves of bank robber John Dillinger, President Benjamin Harrison and Hoosier poet James Whitcomb Riley. In fact, Riley's memorial is atop Strawberry Hill (also known as "the crown"), the highest natural point in the city, one that offers a great view of the downtown skyline. You can pick up a tour map at the gatehouse; the grounds are open every day.

Edyvean Repertory Theatre

Through classical, musical and contemporary theatre of high artistic quality, the Edyvean Repertory Theatre illuminates the human journey by exploring its many dimensions and celebrating its possibilities.

Hilbert Circle Theatre

Built in 1916 and known originally as the this structure was prominent as the Midwest's best-known performance house for traveling entertainers, silent movies and, finally, talking motion pictures. With the advent of suburban multi-theater movie houses in mid-century, downtown theaters everywhere fell into neglect. The combined efforts of the Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indianapolis, the Commission for Downtown and the Indianapolis Power and Light rescued and refurbished the Hilbert Circle Theatre through a renovation-conversion project in 1982-84., following which it became the home of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. The Orchestra purchased the Theatre in 1990 and renamed it Hilbert Circle Theatre in 1996 to recognize a generous gift to the Orchestra's endowment fund by Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Hilbert that ensures that the Hilbert Circle Theatre will be maintained in top condition well into the next century.

Indiana Statehouse

Before its centennial renovation in 1988, prison inmates occasionally painted the Statehouse's interior walls a drab green, and little attention was given to its historic features. The renovation, which cost five times the original $2 million price tag, renewed the original hand-painted details, beautiful brass chandeliers and marble floors. From the governor's office, which features a desk made of teak decking from the USS Indiana, to the Supreme Court chambers with original brass spittoons, the Statehouse now evokes a feeling for the city's long history as a seat of government. The Indiana General Assembly still meets here beginning in early January each year for either a short or long session. Guided tours are available by appointment. Stop at the information desk on the rotunda's north side for pamphlets that provide a self-guided Statehouse tour. http://www.inoffice.com/statehouse/

Indiana Theatre Building

Home to the Indiana Repertory Theatre, the state's only professional resident theater company, the Spanish Baroque Indiana Theatre building was a 1920s movie palace. Now it features three stages and a variety of performances. The elaborate Indiana Roof ballroom on the sixth floor, with its star-studded domed "sky" and decor that recalls a Spanish village, is a wonderful place to enjoy a concert or dance to nostalgic Big Band music. New Year's Eve dinner-and-dancing celebrations are a great way to ring in the New Year. Tours of the IRT and "The Roof" are available by appointment.

The Indianapolis Children's Choir

Indianapolis Museum of Art

The Indianapolis Museum of Art, founded in 1883, is the nation's seventh-largest general art museum, featuring permanent collections of African, American, Asian, Contemporary and European art, as well as Prints, Drawings and Photographs, Decorative Arts, Textiles and Costumes. Among its most noted collections are the J.M.W. Turner Collection, the W.J. Holliday Collection of Neo-Impressionist Art, the Clowes Fund Collection and the Eli Lilly Collection of Chinese Art. The museum comprises four art pavilions, a theater, restaurant and shops on a 152-acre campus. The site is also home to Civic Theatre.

Indianapolis Opera

The Indianapolis Zoo

IUPUI (Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis)

Ivy Tech State College

James Whitcomb Riley Home and Lockerbie Square

Riley lived here for 23 years until his death in 1916 and penned much of his poetry here. The 1872 house is furnished with period pieces. Riley's room includes some of his personal effects: clothes, top hat, a self portrait and his pen, with which he may have composed such famous poems as "Little Orphant Annie" and "When the Frost is on the Punkin."

The surrounding Lockerbie Square neighborhood, with its cobblestone streets and charming homes, is considered one of the best Victorian restorations in the country and is bounded by Michigan, New York, Davidson and East streets.

Kemper House

Called "the wedding cake house," this 1873 home was built as a wedding present. This really will remind you of a wedding cake, with its many columns and gingerbread trim. Restored by Eli Lilly, the home now houses the offices of Historic Landmarks. Three small rooms are filled with Victorian furnishings and can be rented for meetings and such. Though the home doesn't open for tours, those who really want to view the interior can call to make special arrangements.

Marian College

Mansions at Marian College

Meridian Street

Morris-Butler House

This 1866 home was restored by Historic Landmarks and gives modern-day visitors a glimpse into a Victorian Indianapolis home, complete with lace curtains at the windows and an Indiana-made Wooton desk. A tour takes an hour. The home is closed on holidays and during January.

Murat Shrine Temple

Looking like you took a turn at the Athenaeum and ended up in the Sahara, this more than 85-year-old building on the National Register of Historic Places boasts a definite Middle Eastern motif, especially the Egyptian Room. Hour-long tours will guide you through the historic structure, which some say houses a resident ghost. Stories of a semitransparent spectre appearing in a box seat, footsteps crossing the stage, doors slamming shut and lights turning on by themselves have spooked visitors and workers alike. Some think it is the ghost of Elias J. Jacoby, a former potentate of the shrine. He died in 1935 while getting ready for the shrine's New Year's Eve Party. The lights that some insist they've seen have appeared to rise from Jacoby's favorite box seat. To try to see for yourself, call the shrine and arrange a visit.

Riley Hospital

Riley Hospital for Children is Indiana's only comprehensive pediatric hospital and is the largest intensive care children's hospital in the country. It includes the Herman B Wells Center for Pediatric Research, a Level I Trauma Center and the only pediatric burn unit in Indiana. Riley Hospital also is the only hospital in the state that provides organ transplantation for infants and children, surgery to correct cranial anomalies, pediatric renal dialysis, and an advanced technique called Extra Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) - a support system for newborns with serious lung disorders that allows their lungs to heal by breathing for them. A pediatric bone marrow transplant unit with ten dedicated beds was recently constructed at Riley to better accommodate the number and variety of pediatric patients with cancer and blood-related disorders. Riley is a national model for parental participation and education in the care of ill children.

Ronald McDonald House

St. John Catholic Church

Across the street from Pan Am Plaza, in the shadow of the Indiana Convention Center an RCA Dome, St. John is the city's oldest Catholic parish. Founded in 1840 as the Church of the Holy Cross, the church was given its present name in 1850. The present double-spired brick building was constructed between 1867 and 1871, and is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Saint Meinrad School of Theology

Scottish Rite Cathedral

Kids think this Tudor Gothic structure looks like a castle, and they're right. The impressive Masonic temple building, built in 1929, has been deemed by an international architectural association as one of the most beautiful buildings in the world. The temple's magnificent details, such as the ballroom's black-and-white walnut parquet floor and the rare Russian white oak used in the auditorium enhance the impressive architecture. An hour-long tour is available by checking in with the guide at the North Street door.

Symphony on the Prairie

Union Station

Built on the site of the nation's first Union station, the current building was erected in 1888. Though in disrepair when renovation began in the early 1980s, the station saw 200 trains a day during the busy years of WWII. Renovated as a festival marketplace with shops and restaurants, the facility struggled to find a niche among other downtown attractions and Circle Centre. While a few shops and restaurants remain, Union Station is not the hubbub it once was, and its future remains uncertain.

University of Indianapolis

Area Guide Indianapolis
indy.com - Your Guide To Indianapolis
City of Indianapolis/Marion County WCTY Channel 16 Hoosier History Series
indy.com - Neighborhoods
Indianapolis Comcast Online
Christ Cathedral History
MAGIC-- Metropolitan Association of Greater Indianapolis Communities
Other Indiana Websites
AITLC Guide to Indiana
AITLC Guide to Indiana State History
Heart of Indiana
Sites and city guide to Indianapolis
Indianapolis OnLine, the Community Network for central Indiana
http://www.indpls.com/
VisitIndiana.Net: Indiana's leading online Travel & Tourism web site
Indianapolis for Journalists
Indianapolis Maps
Daily Diffs: Indiana State Police: Press
City of Indianapolis Police Department HomePage
StarNews.com: The Indianapolis Star/The Indianapolis News
465.com
Find a Grave, Indiana

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