Deborah B. Markisohn - indyencyclopedia.org

ENCYCLOPEDIA AUTHOR

Deborah B. Markisohn

Articles:

A. H. M. Graves Company, Inc.

Graves Realtors began in 1924 when A. H. Merriam Graves teamed with fraternity brother William L. Bridges to form the Bridges & Graves Company. A. H. M. Graves Company, Inc.… Read More »A. H. M. Graves Company, Inc.

Agriculture and Agribusiness

Indianapolis has a long history of producing crops and livestock and continues to be one of Indiana’s largest agricultural contributors. Early History, 1820s-1850s Agriculture was necessary for the survival of… Read More »Agriculture and Agribusiness

Air Quality

There is little evidence that air pollution was ever considered a significant problem in Indianapolis from the late 1800s through World War II, although there were some organized efforts at… Read More »Air Quality

American Red Ball Transit Company

In 1914 Ward B. Hiner began selling automobile insurance in Indianapolis, soon adding insurance for motor transport shipments. Within a couple of years he organized his own group of livestock… Read More »American Red Ball Transit Company

Anacomp

In 1968 Indianapolis native Ronald D. Palamara teamed with fellow Purdue professors Albert R. Sadaka and J. Melvin Ebbert to found the computer services firm Anacomp (analyze and compute). The… Read More »Anacomp

Arts For Learning

Nonprofit community-based arts education program affiliated with Young Audiences/Arts for Learning, Inc., a national arts education organization. Indianapolis-based Arts for Learning was founded in 1961 to educate school-age children about… Read More »Arts For Learning

Associated Employers of Indianapolis

In 1904 local businessmen established the Employers Association of Indianapolis to combat labor strikes in the city. Membership grew steadily over the next decade. In 1914 the organization absorbed a… Read More »Associated Employers of Indianapolis

Barbasol

In 1919 Frank Shields, an Indianapolis chemical engineer, began manufacturing a brushless shaving cream, naming it Barbasol after red-bearded medieval German emperor Frederick Barbarossa. Two years later Shields and partner… Read More »Barbasol

Board of Trade

In 1853, 36 of the city’s leading businessmen formed the Indianapolis Board of Trade to promote the benefits of Indianapolis. The next year the board published a circular detailing the… Read More »Board of Trade

Charles Mayer and Company

Charles Mayer left his native Germany at age 19 to start his own business after he had learned retailing as an apprentice merchant. In 1840 Mayer settled in Indianapolis after… Read More »Charles Mayer and Company

City Securities Corporation

City Securities is an Indianapolis-based investment banking firm specializing in tax-free municipal bonds for public works projects. City Securities traces its origins to 1906 when municipal bonds salesman Dick Miller… Read More »City Securities Corporation

Conseco, Inc.

In 1979, Stephen Hilbert and David Deeds started the Security National of Indiana Corporation to acquire and manage existing life insurance companies. Four years later, after several acquisitions and mergers,… Read More »Conseco, Inc.

Corteva Agriscience

Corteva Agriscience is a successor company to DowElanco, an agribusiness that was formed in 1989 as a joint venture between the Dow Chemical Company and Eli Lilly And Company. Dow,… Read More »Corteva Agriscience

Countrymark Cooperative

In the early 1920s, the Indiana Farm Bureau (INFB), originally known as the Indiana Federation of Farmers’ Associations, joined with the Indiana State Grange and the Indiana Farmers Grain Dealers… Read More »Countrymark Cooperative

Duke Realty

In 1972, Phillip R. Duke, John Rosebrough, and John Wynne formed the construction and development firm P. R. Duke & Associates. Shortly after its inception, the team purchased the struggling… Read More »Duke Realty

Roy C. Echols

(Apr. 22, 1903-Dec. 25, 1993). Echols was born in Hubbard City, Texas. At age 14, he hitchhiked to find work and send money home. In 1919, Echols began working as… Read More »Roy C. Echols

Geisendorff Mill

In 1847, Maryland-born brothers Christian E. and George W. Geisendorff opened a woolen mill in the abandoned Indianapolis Steam Mill Company building. Five years later, they left the site and… Read More »Geisendorff Mill

George F. Cram Company

The George F. Cram Company was a globe and map manufacturer. In 1862, George F. Cram enlisted in the Union army, where he probably worked as a topographer during the… Read More »George F. Cram Company

Great Depression

During the 10 months preceding the stock market crash in October 1929, the Indiana Business Review concluded that there was a high level of industrial activity in Indianapolis and that… Read More »Great Depression

H. P. Wasson and Company

In 1870, the Bee Hive Dry Goods Company opened at 2 West Washington Street. The store underwent several changes in ownership before Hiram P. Wasson bought into the business in… Read More »H. P. Wasson and Company

Haag Drug Company

In 1876, German-born brothers Louis and Julius Haag opened a moderately successful drugstore at 802 Massachusetts Avenue. To increase sales, they turned to high-volume business, cutting prices on popular items… Read More »Haag Drug Company

Howard W. Sams and Company

Indianapolis salesman Howard W. Sams worked at Goodyear, General Battery, and P. R. Mallory Company. At Mallory, he handled sales literature, got involved with technical instructions, and developed the Radio… Read More »Howard W. Sams and Company

Indiana Convention Center

Opened in 1972 at a cost of $26 million, the Indiana Convention Center was constructed to increase the city’s capacity to host large meetings and events for the tourism industry.… Read More »Indiana Convention Center

Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance

In 1934, Hoosiers dissatisfied with the insurance available through State Farm Mutual of Illinois chartered the Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance. Automobile insurance for 3,341 cars and trucks was sold that… Read More »Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance

Indianapolis Home Show

The Indianapolis Home Show is the oldest as well as one of the largest home shows in the country. The first Indianapolis Home Complete Exposition, its early name, was held… Read More »Indianapolis Home Show

Indianapolis Life Insurance Company

Six businessmen–Frank Manly, Albert Goslee, and brothers Charles, Edward, George, and Joseph Raub–organized Indianapolis Life on July 4, 1905. Six days later, Indianapolis Life was incorporated as a mutual life… Read More »Indianapolis Life Insurance Company

Indianapolis Medical Society

The Indianapolis Medical Society (IMS) was founded in 1848 as the city’s first local medical organization. With an initial membership of 21 physicians, Dr. John H. Sanders served as the… Read More »Indianapolis Medical Society

Indianapolis Steam Mill Company

In 1828 several leading citizens of early Indianapolis, including james blake, Nicholas Mccarty, Noah Noble, James M. Ray William Sanders, and Daniel Yandes incorporated the Indianapolis Steam Mill Company. The… Read More »Indianapolis Steam Mill Company

Inland Container Corporation

In March 1925, Herman Krannert founded the Inland Box Corporation in Indianapolis, operating out of the old Nordyke And Marmon factory until the company’s new plant and offices at 700… Read More »Inland Container Corporation

Jehovah’s Witnesses

In the early 1870s founder Charles Taze Russell organized the International Bible Student’s Association (IBSA), an offshoot of the 19th-century Adventist movement. The group adopted its current name, Jehovah’s Witnesses,… Read More »Jehovah’s Witnesses

Laughner’s Cafeterias

In 1888, Jonathon Wesley Laughner opened a candy store, the Boston Confectionery, at 4 Indiana Avenue. About 1900 the confectionery was remodeled and renamed Laughner’s Dairy Lunch. The restaurant was… Read More »Laughner’s Cafeterias

Lilly Industries

Lilly Industries was the outgrowth of a varnish company started by Henry B. Mears in 1865. Two years later, J. O. D. Lilly (no relation to the pharmaceutical family) joined… Read More »Lilly Industries

Link-Belt Company

In 1874, William Dana Ewart, an Iowa agricultural tool dealer, patented his idea of a detachable square-link chain for harvest equipment that could be easily repaired by farmers in the… Read More »Link-Belt Company

Mayflower Transit Company

In 1927, trucker Conrad M. Gentry, formerly of Red Ball Transit Company, and International Harvester truck salesman Don F. Kenworthy started the Mayflower Transit Company in Indianapolis with two trucks.… Read More »Mayflower Transit Company

MCL Cafeterias

In 1950, Indianapolis cousins Charles McGaughey and George Laughner founded MCL. They were cousins to the founder of MCL’s competitor Laughner’S Cafeterias. A third partner, Charles Chandler, later joined them.… Read More »MCL Cafeterias

Merchants National Bank

Businessmen David Macy, Volney T. Malott, Alexander Metzger, and brothers Henry and Augustus Schnull founded Merchants National Bank on January 17, 1865, with Henry Schnull as president of Merchants’ first… Read More »Merchants National Bank

MIBOR Realtor® Association

In January 1912, 43 real estate brokers organized as the Indiana Real Estate Board to pool resources and provide guidelines for local realtors. In 1914, the board introduced the city’s… Read More »MIBOR Realtor® Association

Navistar International Transportation Corporation

Chicago-based International Harvester grew out of Cyrus Hall McCormick’s 1831 invention of the mechanical reaper. In 1904, the farm machinery business began manufacturing trucks, and, in 1937, Harvester consolidated motor… Read More »Navistar International Transportation Corporation

Bridgeport Brass

Olin Brass began as Bridgeport Brass, which was founded in 1865 in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The company remained in that state until the early 1940s when it designed and built the… Read More »Bridgeport Brass

Ronald D. Palamara

(Jan. 13, 1939-Jan. 23, 1985). An Indianapolis native, Palamara graduated from Cathedral High School before earning his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering at General Motors Institute in Flint, Michigan, in… Read More »Ronald D. Palamara

Peoples Bank

In 1891, Tennessee native Felix Tony McWhirter opened an office at 122 East Market Street, providing banking operations for clients awaiting real estate transactions. McWhirter soon focused exclusively on banking,… Read More »Peoples Bank

Plymouth Congregational Church

Plymouth Church, organized in 1857 as the first Congregational church in Indianapolis, was one of the five original churches on Monument Circle. Plymouth’s 31 original members from the American Home… Read More »Plymouth Congregational Church

William Henderson Remy

(Dec. 18, 1892-Sept. 2, 1968). Born in Columbus, Indiana, Remy attended public schools in Indianapolis, graduating from manual high school in 1910. Admitted to the bar in 1915 after completing… Read More »William Henderson Remy

Resort Condominiums International

Indianapolis-based Resort Condominiums International (RCI), a leisure services company, was founded in Indianapolis in 1974 by Jon and Christel DeHaan, working from their northside home. RCI’s revenues for that first… Read More »Resort Condominiums International

Roche Diagnostics GmbH

The history of Roche Diagnostics GmbH in Indianapolis began in the garage of Willard (Bill) Eason, who left his position as a chemical engineer at the Ford Motor Company to… Read More »Roche Diagnostics GmbH

Rock Island Refining Corporation

In 1940, Oklahoma and Kansas businessmen L. E. Kincannon, L. E. Winkler, and L. B. Simmons built Indianapolis’ only oil refinery, which began processing crude oil in October 1941. By… Read More »Rock Island Refining Corporation

Slogans and Nicknames

Geographic location, publicity and advertising campaigns, and even rival cities, among other sources, have provided numerous slogans and nicknames for Indiana’s capital. These monikers are frequently descriptive (“The Capital City”),… Read More »Slogans and Nicknames

St. Elmo Steak House

In October 1902, nautical buff Joe Stahr opened St. Elmo Steak House on South Illinois Street, naming his restaurant for the patron saint of sailors. Stahr sold the restaurant in… Read More »St. Elmo Steak House

St. John Catholic Church

Rev. Vincent Bacquelin, an itinerant priest who split his time between Indianapolis and two other central Indiana parishes, founded the forerunner of St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in November… Read More »St. John Catholic Church

Stewart and Bowen

Stewart and Bowen had its beginnings in 1833 when two Cincinnati men opened a bookstore in Indianapolis (Hubbard and Edmands). The business changed hands 10 times before 1853 when it… Read More »Stewart and Bowen

Stewart-Carey

Stewart-Carey, a glass wholesaler and retailer, began as a combination glass and drug store in Greensburg, Indiana, in 1840. Founder Daniel Stewart moved his business to Indianapolis in 1863 with… Read More »Stewart-Carey

Stewart-Warner

In 1937, Chicago-based Stewart-Warner Corporation, which manufactured automobile and aeronautic heaters, purchased the old Nordyke-Marmon plant at 1514 Drover Street on the city’s near southside. Early the next year, the… Read More »Stewart-Warner

Stout’s Shoe Store

In 1886, Harry Stout and William Bristor opened a small off-the-shelf shoe store at 318 Massachusetts Avenue that specialized in hard-to-find sizes. The store was a family affair from the… Read More »Stout’s Shoe Store

Union Federal Savings Bank

Union Federal Savings Bank traces its origins to 1887 when it began as the Indianola Building and Loan Association. The business converted to a federal savings and loan association 50… Read More »Union Federal Savings Bank

Visit Indy

Visit Indy is a nonprofit organization that serves as the official sales and marketing arm for the city of Indianapolis and the Indiana Convention Center. In 1923, local businessmen founded… Read More »Visit Indy

Walker

Dorothy “Tommie” Walker could never have imagined what she was starting when she began going door-to-door conducting surveys in 1939. Her first project was for her husband, a banker who… Read More »Walker

Wheaton World Wide Moving

Ohio native Earnest S. Wheaton founded Wheaton Van Lines in 1945. He had entered the moving business in 1916 with a job at the Cotter Transfer and Storage Company in… Read More »Wheaton World Wide Moving

William H. Block Company

In 1896, Herman Wilhelm Bloch, who later anglicized his name to William H. Block, opened a small department store at 9 East Washington Street. Block had emigrated to New York… Read More »William H. Block Company

Edward Henry Ziegner

(Aug. 8, 1920 -June 22, 1993). An Indianapolis native, Edward Henry Ziegner graduated from Shortridge High School in 1938 and attended Wabash College as well as Indiana University. He began… Read More »Edward Henry Ziegner

A product of the Indianapolis Bicentennial effort (2020–21), the digital Encyclopedia of Indianapolis integrates and accesses the explosion and fragmentation of knowledge created both as born-digital information and as a large new digital archive.

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