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A Third History of Terre Haute, Indiana

A River City with a Vital and Colorful Past
by Dorothy Jerse

For almost two centuries, peoples from other parts of the nation and countries of the world have come to Terre Haute to make their homes. The original agriculture-based economy grew to include coal, railroads and a variety of industrial, business, medical and educational workplaces at which Terre Hauteans earned their living. Leisure-time choices always have included a large number of cultural, entertainment and sports activities. It was this diversity among the residents and their lifestyles which inspired the poet Max Ehrmann to write: "Here is the universe in miniature."

A basketful of facts ...

The Wabash, which was named Indiana's official state river in 1996, shaped the early history of this valley with Native Americans, traders and pioneers using its waters for transportation and its banks as sites for settlements. The high east bank of the Wabash River was the site of the Native American village of the Wea tribe and later the army outpost of Fort Harrison (1811) before the new town of Terre Haute ("high ground" in French) was platted as a real estate development in 1816.

In 1818, the city became the seat of Vigo County (pronounced: vee'-go) which had been named in honor of Francis Vigo, a supporter of George Rogers Clark in the campaign to capture the Northwest Territory from the British (1778-1779).

Chauncey Rose, prominent businessman and philanthropist, came to Vigo County in 1818. Choosing to fund charitable and educational needs, he commented, "Other people have trouble to make money, but my trouble is how to dispose of it."

The arrival of the National Road in 1834 and the coming of the Wabash & Erie Canal in 1849 and the railroads in the 1850s opened new markets and brought prosperity to the young city.

It is said the construction of Irishman's Covered Bridge was delayed in 1845 when a family took shelter in the structure while a woman gave birth to a baby. The bridge was moved from its original site over Honey Creek to Fowler Park in 1971.

Although often attributed to Horace Greeley, the saying, "Go West, young man," originated in an 1851 article by John B.L. Soule, a reporter for the Terre Haute EXPRESS.

Daniel Voorhees, the "Tall Sycamore of the Wabash," was elected to Congress in 1860 and was influential in establishing the Library of Congress.

One of the early pastors of the Allen Chapel AME Church was the Rev. Hiram Revels who, in 1870, became the first African-American to serve in the U.S. Senate.

Experiments at the Hudnut Hominy Mill in the 1880s produced the first oil extracted from corn and sold as Mazoil.

Eugene V. Debs, pioneer labor leader, founded the American Railway Union in 1893 and ran five times as the Socialist candidate for the U.S. presidency. His Terre Haute home, maintained by the Eugene V. Debs Foundation, is a National Historic Landmark.

Paul Dresser was a popular composer during the 1890s. His song, "On the Banks of the Wabash," was made the state song of Indiana in 1912. His Terre Haute birthplace has been preserved by the Vigo County Historical Society and relocated to Fairbanks Park, on the banks of the Wabash.

Dresser's brother, Theodore Dreiser, is one of the great American novelists. His works include Sister Carrie and An American Tragedy

This city, with its own opera house, was a popular stop on the theater and vaudeville circuit. Sarah Bernhardt and Edwin Booth were among the many stars who played here.

At the beginning of this century, Union Depot was equipped with indoor plumbing for use by transient passengers. To reduce use by the curious general public, local railway officials made the facilities into 5-cent pay toilets ~ a "first" which was soon adopted in other cities.

Harry, Louis, Julius and Clarence Johnson constructed and flew, in Vigo County, the first successful monoplane designed and built in the United States in 1910. These brothers later established Johnson Marine Motors in Waukegan, Ill.

The famous curvy Coca-Cola bottle was designed in Terre Haute in 1915 at the Root Glass Co. In keeping with tradition, Mayor James R. Jenkins received the first contoured can available to the market at a ceremony at the Vigo County Historical Museum in 1997.

Terre Haute became known as the "Crossroads of America" with the National Road (U.S. 40) and the Dixie Bee Highway (U.S. 41) crossing in the heart of downtown. In 1969, the "crossroads" moved a few miles south to the point where Interstate 70 crosses U.S. 41.

Virginia Jenckes, of Terre Haute, was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1932. She was the first woman from Indiana and the first woman nationally to be elected to Congress on her own merit.

Professional baseball was played in the city from 1883 to 1956. Recent players from this area who have played in the major leagues include Brian Dorsett and Tommy John Jr.

Jane Dabney Shackelford, a Terre Haute teacher, wrote the textbook, The Child's Story of the Negro , in 1938. It was used in schools across the nation.

In business for more than a century, Hulman and Co.'s best-known product is Clabber Girl Baking Powder. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway was purchased by the Hulman interests after World War II.

Hulman Regional Airport was dedicated in 1944 and the Indiana Air National Guard base was established there in 1954. In 1985, the site was selected for the state's only FAA automated flight service station.

Following a long tradition of horse and auto racing in the city, the Terre Haute Action Track opened at the Fairgrounds (now known as Vigo County Fairgrounds, managed by the Wabash Valley Fair Association) in 1952. The first Tony Hulman Classic was held there in 1971.

Hoosier hysteria was and remains alive and well in Terre Haute. Larry Bird, Terry Dischinger and Clyde Lovellette are three basketball stars with local ties.

In 1982, Terre Haute's Digital Audio Disc Corp. was the nation's first plant to produce compact discs.

There are hundreds of other stories about Terre Haute at the Terre Haute Tribune website and Vigo County Public Library written by Mike McCormick, a Wiley High School graduate.

For additional information, contact the Vigo County Historical Society and Museum at 1411 S. Sixth St., Terre Haute, IN 47802;
or call (812) 235-9717.