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Henry County Historical Society & Museum

Bringing history to life & life to history since 1887!

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HENRY COUNTY HISTORY FEED

About Us
Events
Support Us
Genealogy Library
Members Only
Shop
HENRY COUNTY HISTORY FEED

By adminNovember 7, 2018Category: Henry County StoriesTags: 2018, Armistice Day, Veterans, world war i, wwi

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Copyright 1887-2024 Henry County Historical Society, New Castle, Indiana

Bringing History to Life &
Life to History Since 1887!

Hours of Operation
Please contact us to schedule a tour and/or research during these hours:
Thursdays, Fridays, & Saturdays 11 a.m.-4 p.m.
If no appointment is made, tour and/or research cannot be guaranteed if no volunteers are available.
Open through early March to late December!

Admission Fees: None!

Call us: 765-529-4028
Email us:
[email protected]
Mail us:
606 South 14th Street, New Castle, IN 47362

4,780

Henry County Historical Society, Inc

Open early March through late December!
Open Thursdays, Fridays, & Saturdays
11 a.m.-4 p.m. ET
Please call ahead for tours and/or research so that we may schedule volunteers. If no appointment is made, tours and/or research cannot be guaranteed.

Henry County Historical Society, Inc

22 hours ago

On this day in history, May 14, 1883, Col. George Lennard was killed during the Civil War battle of Rescca. GAR Post 148 was named in his honor.Here is information on Lennard provided by the Henry County Genealogical Services website. George Lennard was born in Newark, Licking County, Ohio on May 5, 1825. He attended the Eclectic Medical Institute of Medicine at Cincinnati, Ohio. After graduation he came to New Castle, Indiana in 1851 to practice medicine. He gave up that practice a couple years later to purchase the New Castle Courier. On 10 Jan 1852, at the home of George Hazzard, he was married to Clarinda Woodward. To them were born two sons, Henry Rudical Lennard, Asahel Woodward Lennard, and one daughter, Gertrude Lennard. At the outbreak of the War of Rebellion, he was one of the first to volunteer. He joined Company C of the 36th Indiana Infantry Regiment and was promoted to 1st Lieutenant. He was later promoted to full Colonel by Indiana Governor Oliver Morton, and assigned to the 57th Regiment, Adjutant Corp. He was in the battles of Stone River, Missionary Ridge, Rocky Face Ridge and Resaca. At the battle at Resaca, on May 14. 1864, Col. Lennard was wounded by artillery fire that shattered his right knee that caused him to go into shock from which he never recovered. His last orders before he was taken from the battlefield were; "Now take good care of the boys Major." The Battle of Resaca had the second highest casualties of the entire Atlanta Campaign. George's wife, Clarinda Woodward Lennard died on June 1, 1879. They are both buried side-by-side in the Southmound Cemetery in New Castle. On April 1, 1883, the Grand Army of the Republic Post #148 was named in honor of Colonel George Washington Lennard in New Castle.DESTINATION HENRY COUNTY This Day In Henry County History is brought to you by Destination Henry County Indiana. Discover slam dunk experiences at www.HoopsInHenry.com. Visit the Facebook page at https;//www.Facebook.com/VisitHenryCounty.comCOME SEE US!Come visit the Henry County Historical Society Museum at 606 S. 14th St., New Castle. We're open Tuesday through Friday from 1-4:30 p.m. and ANYTIME by appointment. Call 529-4028 and leave a message. ... See MoreSee Less

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Henry County Historical Society, Inc

2 days ago

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Henry County Historical Society, Inc

2 days ago

On May 13, 1886, the U.S. Senate passed a resolution authorizing procurement of a marble bust honoring U.S. House Speaker and later Vice President Schuyler Colfax, a former Indiana resident. The bust was created by New Castle artist Frances M. Goodwin and it remains on display in the U.S. Senate Chamber.The photo here shows Mrs. Goodwin applying finishing touches to her work. Here is more about Frances Goodwin.By DARREL RADFORDHistorically SpeakingIn Steven Spielberg’s recent hit movie “Lincoln,” there are a couple of scenes that refer to House Speaker Schuyler Colfax, including a climactic one in which he asks that his name be called during the vote on the 13th Amendment abolishing slavery, an unusual move for a House leader, who normally votes only in the case of ties.The scene brought back into memory an interesting Henry County historical fact. Colfax, who was an Indiana congressman, went on to serve as U.S. vice president during President Ulysses S. Grant’s administration. Colfax’s bust is featured along with all those who served as U.S. vice president in our nation’s capitol.And it was sculpted by none other than New Castle’s own Frances Murphey Goodwin.From the Chicago World’s Fair to the Indiana Statehouse, Long Island, N.Y, to the nation’s capitol, Goodwin’s handiwork left unforgettable impressions.Born in 1855, little more than three decades after New Castle was founded, Frances Goodwin was one of Mr. and Mrs. George W. Goodwin’s five daughters. Her father was described as “one of the pioneers of Henry County.” She arguably had two of the most talented hands in New Castle history.From this small community, Goodwin went on to study in New York and the Chicago Art Institute. She was obviously a good student, as evidenced by the memorable sculptures her hands created in the years to follow.Unfortunately, two of her most prized works have disappeared. A statue of a seven-foot female figure called “Education” was exhibited during the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago and was a permanent fixture in the Indiana Statehouse until it mysteriously vanished in the 1930s.Goodwin’s sculpture of Robert Dale Owen, a former state legislator and congressman, was also stolen from the south entrance of the Indiana Statehouse. A limestone pedestal is all that remains.But perhaps her most acclaimed work remains in Washington, D.C.Schuyler Colfax had already died when Goodwin was requested by the Senate Committee on the Library to present a preliminary clay model of the late vice president. On the recommendation of Colfax’s widow, the committee approved Goodwin’s proposal.She was the second woman ever to be given a commission by the U.S. government. It was installed in the Senate chamber gallery in 1897.Her work can still be seen locally, however. A bust of poet and legislator Benjamin Parker is featured at the Henry County Historical Society Museum.Proof of the impact her life had came the day she died. Headlines not only here but in Richmond and Indianapolis newspapers saluted the New Castle artist.Her gifted hands were also compassionate ones. In an April 1988 celebration, she was described as one younger family members looked up to, almost like a second mother.One of her younger sisters added even more color to the family’s artistic endeavors, due in part to Goodwin’s influence. More on that in next week’s column.BASKETBALL LIVES HEREThis Day In Henry County history is brought to you by Destination Henry County Indiana. Discover slam dunk experiences at www.HoopsInHenry.com. Visit the Facebook page at www.Facebook.com/VisitHenryCounty.com.HELP US PRESERVE COMMUNITY HISTORYPlease join the Henry County Historical Society with a $25 annual membership. Visit our website at www.henrycountymuseum.orgCOME SEE US!We're open ANYTIME by appointment. Call 765-524-0530. ... See MoreSee Less

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Henry County Historical Society, Inc

3 days ago

On this day in Henry County History, May 12, 1864, a New Castle Courier editorial praised what it called "a valuable invention" by County Surveyor James Clements. The mathematical instrument was designed to determine the height and distance of "inaccessible objects."It is thought that in gunnery, where the range of the enemy is of great importance, that this instrument will be found of special utility, the editorial said.BASKETBALL LIVES HEREThis Day In Henry County history is brought to you by Destination Henry County Indiana. Discover slam dunk experiences at www.HoopsInHenry.com. Visit the Facebook page at www.Facebook.com/VisitHenryCounty.com.HELP US PRESERVE COMMUNITY HISTORYPlease join the Henry County Historical Society with a $25 annual membership. Visit our website at www.henrycountymuseum.orgCOME SEE US!We're open Tuesday through Friday from 1 to 4:30 p.m. and ANYTIME by appointment. Call us at 765-524-0530. ... See MoreSee Less

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Henry County Historical Society, Inc

4 days ago

On this Mother's Day, the Henry County Historical Society decided to highlight two grand matriarchs in local history -- Rebecca Grose and Amanda Bundy.Rebecca Grose (pictured left) was the wife of Civil War General William Grose. As we work each week in this grand building at 606 S. 14th St., one can't help but wonder what things were like when the Grose family lived here.Rebecca Needham Grose was the mother of ten children: Madison, Benton, Sarah, Almira Ella, John W., Adolphus, William Jr., Lititia, Frank and James Lincoln. She and Gen. Grose endured more than their share of heartbreak, as Lititia died at age 4, William Jr. and Frank each died at age 6, Benton died at age 12 and John W. died at age 23.Rebecca Grose died May 23, 1879 at age 60. The inscription on her grave reads "In Memory of a Christian Lady."Amanda Elliott Bundy (pictured right), wife of Martin Bundy, a founder of the Henry County Historical Society, was the mother of eight children: Eugene, Loring, Martin Jr,., James P., Omar, Olivia Jane, Emma H. and Lillian.Eugene joined his father in being a founder of the Henry County Historical Society. He also was the first Henry Circuit Court Judge and had the honor of introducing U.S. Vice President Charles Fairbanks when the cornerstone was laid at the Maxwell-Briscoe Auto Factory in 1907. Loring became a Connersville newspaper editor. Life took Martin L. Junior to Washington, D.C. while James P. went to Washington state. Olivia Jane married James L. Peed of Elwood. Emma H. became the wife of David W. Chambers and was grand matriarch of the family that ultimately created The Courier-Times, the eighth-oldest newspaper in the state of Indiana. Lillian, the eighth child, went to Mississippi with her husband, William H. Bouslog.Bur arguably, the most famous of Amanda's children was Omar, who grew up to be a World War I general. Historians say his refusal to retreat in the Battle of Belleau Wood "in all probability saved Paris from capture by the Germans" and turned the tide of the entire war.Amanda died in 1903. Part of her obituary read: "As wife, mother, friend, the purity of her heart and purpose shone steadfastly undimmed, she possessed all the elements that go to make up the sum of complete womanhood."There are no doubt many heroic stories you could share about your own mother. Feel free to share them here -- and happy Mother's Day from the Henry County Historical Society.BASKETBALL LIVES HEREThis Day In Henry County history is brought to you by Destination Henry County Indiana. Discover slam dunk experiences at www.HoopsInHenry.com. Visit the Facebook page at www.Facebook.com/VisitHenryCounty.com.HELP US PRESERVE COMMUNITY HISTORYPlease join the Henry County Historical Society with a $25 annual membership. Visit our website at www.henrycountymuseum.orgCOME SEE US!We're open ANYTIME by appointment. Call 765-524-0530. ... See MoreSee Less

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