Kate Milner Rabb

(Aug. 9, 1866-July 3, 1937). Born in Rockport, Indiana, Kate Milner attended Rockport High School and received a B.A. and M.A. from Indiana University in 1886 and 1888, respectively. She taught at Rockport High School after college and married in 1891.

Always interested in writing, she submitted articles to the Rockport paper while still in college. She went on to publish National Epics in 1896, translated The Boer Boys in 1900, and edited The Wit And Humor Of America in 1907. She served as editor of Indiana Woman, a weekly Indianapolis newspaper from 1897 to 1898. She also wrote for Atlantic Monthly, Delineator, St. Nicholas, and Youth’s Companion.

Rabb’s interest in history began when she wrote the 1916 centennial pageant for Spencer County, Indiana. Following her husband’s death in 1918, she began a weekly column in the Indianapolis Star featuring the adventures of John Parsons, a fictional character based on her research. She published the series in 1920 as A Tour Through Indiana In 1840. She then wrote a thrice-weekly column entitled “The Old Town” that featured the history of Indianapolis.

Her most popular column, “The Hoosier Listening Post,” ran daily from July 20, 1920, until her death and featured local, state, and regional history. During this period, she co-edited, with William Herschell, An Account Of Indianapolis And Marion County (1924). In 1928, she edited Indiana Coverlets And Coverlet Weavers. She was appointed to the Indiana Historical Commission in 1924 and served for one year.

Rabb was also a member of the Indiana Historical Society, Phi Beta Kappa, Women’s Press Club of Indiana (which she served as president during 1929-1930), the Contemporary Club, and the Players Club, which she and her husband organized.

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