The Overground Railroad Tour: Black History of Indianapolis, Indiana Avenue and IUPUI

Entries on This Tour

1. Marshall "Major" Taylor Historical Marker

This historic marker honors Indianapolis-born Marshall Walter Taylor, a champion cyclist of international fame who was often barred from competition due to the color of his skin. At the turn of the century, cycling was one of the most popular sports and Taylor may have been the fastest cyclist in the world. In 1896, for example, Taylor set two records at an Indianapolis track, only to be banned from future competition. Taylor was barred from competition with white cyclists in South. Even when he was allowed to participate in races in Northern cities like New York and Chicago, Taylor endured violent attacks by cycling fans and other competitors. The climate was less hostile in international competitions, allowing Taylor to set world records in Canada, Europe, and Australia. Marshall retired from professional racing in 1910.

2. 1907 Indiana Eugenics Law

This historical marker on the east lawn of the Indiana State Library presents the troubling history of the 1907 Indiana Eugenics Law. Believing that "heredity plays a most important part in the trans-mission of crime, idiocy and imbecility," this law legalized involuntary sterilization at state prisons, hospitals, and asylums throughout Indiana. The law, which was later found to be unconstitutional, was the first of its kind. From 1907 to 1974 (with a 1927 revised law), over 2,300 Indiana citizens were involuntarily sterilized. The idea that criminality and mental disability was hereditary was part of a psuedo-science called Eugenics. Building on this psuedo-science, advocates of eugenics suggested that sterilization of mentally and physically disabled people, criminals, would help to eliminate crime and disability.During the late 19th and early 20th century, some advocates of Eugenics also claimed that science proved that certain races were superior to others. Some even used eugenics to call for the sterilization of "inferior races" as a way to lead humanity to a higher and more pure state.

3. Ransom Place Historic District

Established in 1897, Ransom Place is the oldest African-American neighborhood in Indianapolis. Some writings suggest that the area was a largely African-American settlement as far back as the 1830s. Development in the mid-twentieth century led to the destruction of many such neighborhoods; Ransom Place is the most intact 19th century African-American neighborhood.

4. Crispus Attucks Museum (Crispus Attucks High School)

Crispus Attucks High School became the first segregated high school in Indiana when it opened in Indianapolis in 1927. Given the lack of employment options for African American educators, school administrators were able to maintain very high standards. In an era when many teachers had less than a bachelors degree, every teacher at Crispus Attucks High School had at either a M.A. or Ph.D.

5. Bethel A.M.E. Church (Indianapolis, Indiana)

Bethel A.M.E. Church was founded in Indianapolis in 1836. The congregation held services in a variety of homes and rented spaces prior to 1857, when the congregation built their own structure. The congregation sponsored a school, promoted the abolition of slavery, and even assisted efforts to support runaway slaves. During the Civil War, the congregation also supported efforts to recruit African American soldiers for the Union. Many men of the congregation served in the 28th Regiment of Colored Troops (28th Regiment USCT of Indiana). Unfortunately, during the same year of the 28th's formation (1864), the church was destroyed by arson. In 1867, the church purchased this lot and built the current church which was completed in 1869 and expanded in later years. This structure is the oldest African American church in the city and region. Throughout the 20th century, the church was active in numerous campaigns to promote equality and civil rights.

6. McArthur Conservatory, 1946-1963

From 1946 until 1963, Ruth McArthur operated the McArthur Conservatory at this location. The school occupied a three-story brick building with twenty rooms across from the Lockefield Gardens Housing Complex on Indiana Avenue. The school provided classes to both children and adults and was the first school in Indiana to offer a formal jazz program. In 1963, the school closed and the property was purchased by Indiana University.

7. Indiana Avenue Historical Marker

For much of the city's history, Indiana Avenue has been regarded as the heart of Indianapolis's African American community. The avenue was the location of some of the city's first African American businesses and was the home of numerous jazz clubs in the first half of the twentieth century.

8. Madame Walker Theatre Center

Named after the first female millionaire Madam C.J. Walker, the building was an important center of activity for the African American community for decades until the neighborhood began to decline in the 1950s. Mrs. Walker, originally named Sarah Breedlove; made a name for herself as a millionaire from selling hair-growth products and for her avid support for civil rights. She made her mark on the movement towards equality in the early years of the 1900s when she began a lawsuit to protest discrimination in a theater. In addition to the lawsuit she also urged the decry of lynchings in the south as well as join a delegation that went to Washington to protest the War Department's segregationist policies to President Woodrow Wilson.

9. Joseph Taylor, Taylor Hall, and the IUPUI School of Liberal Arts

Along with Cavanaugh Hall, Joseph T. Taylor Hall is one of the oldest remaining buildings of the original IUPUI campus. Named for Dr. Joseph T. Taylor, the first Dean of Liberal Arts and first African American leader of an academic unit at IUPUI, Taylor Hall was built in 1971 as University Library and has housed a variety of university services since then, including the primary university dining facility until 2008. Today, Taylor Hall is currently home to University College, the Bepko Learning Center, and a variety of other student services and classrooms.

10. Founding of Black Student Union at IUPUI (September 19, 1970)

On September 19, 1970, the Black Student Union of IUPUI met for the first time. The meeting took place in the Union Building roof lounge, a popular gathering spot on the IUPUI campus. The organization quickly became the most important and vocal student organization at IUPUI. The IUPUI Black Student Union (BSU) emerged at a time when African-American citizens were vocal in expressing disappointment and frustration at the slow progress being made in reducing racial discrimination and improving opportunities in the United States (excerpt from the introduction of the Ruth Lilly Special Collections and Archives).

This Tour is a Walking Tour.

The Overground Railroad Tour: Black History of Indianapolis, Indiana Avenue and IUPUI

Created by Joseph Tucker Edmonds on August 30th 2021, 6:34:12 pm.

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Description

This tour provides an engagement of Black History in downtown Indianapolis and the IUPUI campus. It is called the Overground Railroad Tour, because these important contributions are often in plain sight but little recognized and celebrated. This walkable tour of Indianapolis, Indiana Avenue, and IUPUI explicitly covers the contributions of the Black communities that shaped the downtown region and the historic contributions of Black students and faculty to IUPUI's campus.

Entries on This Tour

The Overground Railroad Tour: Black History of Indianapolis, Indiana Avenue and IUPUI

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