(Jan. 6, 1815-Jan. 12, 1896). Born in New York City, Bingham migrated to the Midwest where he engaged in a wide variety of occupations. After serving as editor of the Lafayette Journal he moved to Indianapolis in 1856 and became editor in chief of the Indiana State Sentinel, purchasing an interest in the paper. He sold his interest in July 1865, but returned as editor when in April 1868, Richard J. Bright acquired ownership.

Shown is a four-story stone building with a turret on the left corner (which extends two stories above the roof line), and a flat, gabled roof with decorative eaves.
The Indianapolis Sentinel building located at 27-33 S. Illinois Street, 1904 Credit: Bass Photo Co Collection, Indiana Historical Society View Source

Bingham retired from newspaper work in 1874. He later served as deputy auditor of Indiana for two years, compiled and published books on Indiana statutes and laws, and from 1871 to 1887 served on the Indianapolis Board of School Commissioners.

Bingham, who was chair of the Democratic State Central Committee during the Civil War, was critical of both President Lincoln’s and Governor Oliver P. Morton’S administrations. He briefly joined the Sons of Liberty, a group considered treasonous by the state. Bingham was arrested in the fall of 1864 along with several others allegedly involved in a plot against the state (see Civil War Treason Trials). The charges against him were dropped prior to the trial, and he testified as a witness for the prosecution.

Revised February 2021
 

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