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The official page for the Indiana Archives and Records Administration. To view IARA's social media policy, please visit here: https://www.in.gov/iara/3161.htm.

Welcome to the official page for public news and events at the Indiana Archives and Records Administration. For the official source of information about the Indiana Archives and Records Administration, please visit http://www.in.gov/iara.

04/06/2025

💻Register now for our civics-themed Wikipedia edit-a-thon: https://bit.ly/4lPxWxp

Join us Wednesday, July 2, at the Spades Park Branch of the Indianapolis Public Library

The Indiana State Archives, Indiana Historical Bureau and Wikimedians of Indiana are hosting a day of improving Wiki sites related to Indiana government and history. No experience needed. Training is provided and experienced editors will be on hand to help you get started. Snacks are also provided! 🍕

For many people, Wikipedia is where they start their research. By adding trusted primary source documents from the State Archives and partners to Wiki sites we’re helping to make that research more accurate and the sources more accessible.

So, let's edit!

26/05/2025

This Memorial Day we remember our fallen Hoosier heroes by looking back to the first “Decoration Day” at Crown Hill Cemetery in 1868. In a new blog post, archivist Vicki Casteel describes the tradition that began with 10,000 citizens, 80 orphaned children placing flowers, and a 13-gun salute. From its beginnings in the Civil War, Crown Hill Cemetery remains a sacred place where the sacrifice of veterans is never forgotten. Read More: https://bit.ly/4kekBh2

Do you want to find the grave of a veteran ancestor? The Indiana State Archives' Research Indiana Index helps you discover and locate veteran graves—you could even find a family hero you never knew about! Start your search today: https://bit.ly/3Ad6J4S

22/05/2025

And they're off! This 1860s court record book is racing into the spotlight just in time for May in Indianapolis! 🏁

Indiana State Archives conservator Elizabeth Hague made a wheely interesting discovery: this Marion County Court of Common Pleas Docket (1861-1862) [B100265042P] comes with its own tiny built-in wheels. These miniature rollers weren't for breaking speed records, but for helping clerks easily pull this heavy tome from courthouse shelves. Seems like Marion County knew a little something about speed long before the first cars roared around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Who knows what we’ll find next, but we’ve got the docs!

19/05/2025

📢 BIG NEWS: The IndyStar shares the details of the new Indiana State Archives building, opening 2026: https://bit.ly/3YKmTfa

The building will be a home for the state’s most important documents and a game-changer for all Hoosiers doing research on their families and communities or accessing important government and military records.

Located downtown between West Street and Senate Avenue (with canal views), the new facility will create a research corridor alongside the Indiana State Library and Indiana Historical Society As city archivist Jordan Ryan put it, this is "a researching nerd Super Bowl moment"!

The new building features:
• A glass-enclosed reading room overlooking the canal
• Expanded climate-controlled storage protecting 130,000 cubic feet of Indiana's treasures
• Conservation space for preserving fragile documents
• Areas to showcase parts of the collection

The archives hold YOUR history—from pioneer settlement records to prison files of John Dillinger, from the original Indiana constitutions to Beatles concert photos.

Just ask Judy Jones, who discovered her pioneer ancestry, or Eunice Trotter, who accessed court records of her great-great-great grandmother Mary Bateman Clark's landmark legal victory over slavery.
"That's what genealogists are looking for—the real part of them, of who they are," says Barbara Cline Hutchinson, president of the Marion County Genealogical Society.

We can't wait to help you discover your own "exhilarating spiritual lift" when you find that your story mattered in Indiana's history.

16/05/2025

🗺️ Hands on Archives: Jeffersonian Democracy Meets French Vincennes

Our latest Hands on Archives video explores a fascinating volume of Public Land System Survey maps - where American innovation met French colonial history right here in Indiana.

Thomas Jefferson's revolutionary grid system transformed American land mapping, but the system hit a snag when it reached Vincennes. Instead of erasing history, surveyors preserved the unique French Seigneurial boundaries (established under Catholic leader and statesman Cardinal Richelieu) AND granted land donations to local farmers who had been leasing under French rule.

Watch now to see these remarkable maps that show where two worlds collided on Hoosier soil: https://youtu.be/hnVOpAgO-Es

And learn more about land records at the Archives here: https://bit.ly/432j4Vd
# IndianaArchives

07/05/2025

Imagine buying a bomber plane for a song. Records from the Governor Henry Schricker Papers (B100268647G) show a couple of creative Hoosiers who did just that during World War II.
Plymouth farmer William Piper sent the governor $1 and proposed that Hoosiers with “no children in the service” should contribute to buying an aircraft named Indiana which would give them “a more personal interest in the war for freedom.”

After reading about Piper’s idea in the newspaper, Muncie resident Olive Maynard of Muncie also wrote the governor, suggesting a song titled “Indiana I’m So Proud of You” could be composed, sold to newspapers and radio stations, and further fund the $350,000 aircraft Indiana.

Though Hoosiers across the state contributed, the U.S. Treasury Department couldn't accept funds for specific purposes and encouraged Hoosiers to buy War Bonds and Stamps instead. Schricker’s office returned the donations.

We’ve got the docs! Learn more about the papers of Indiana Governors at the Indiana State Archives: https://bit.ly/4jlYlRg
[Postcard image: Charlestown-Clark County Public Library]

01/05/2025

Save the date: Wednesday, July 2, Civics Season Wiki Edit-a-thon, Spades Park Branch Indianapolis Public Library

The Indiana State Archives and Wikimedians of Indiana are hosting a day of improving Wiki sites related to Indiana government and history. No experience needed. Training is provided and experienced editors will be on hand to help you get started. Snacks are also provided!

For many people, Wikipedia is where they start their research. By adding trusted primary source documents from the State Archives and partners to Wiki sites we’re helping to make that research more accurate and the sources more accessible.

Register now: https://bit.ly/4lPxWxp

25/04/2025

Millions of Americans have an ancestor who served in the Civil War and with Indiana contributing the second highest number of Union soldiers of any state (in proportion to population), you might too! Find out how to get started with your search in this episode of Hands on Archives: https://youtu.be/bMJ2wBbl0Rw

An archivist will also show you the original, delicate, and rarely seen muster rolls of Indiana Civil War soldiers. You’ll also learn how these records became a searchable database of Indiana’s Civil War veterans that you can explore now: https://bit.ly/3Ad6J4S

23/04/2025

Text messages, emails, and social media posts are public records too!

Which electronic records should be kept? Where should they be stored? And for how long?

This webinar from IARA’s Records and Information Management (RIM) division will help local, county, and state government employees manage the task: https://bit.ly/42YMVxC

15/04/2025

Only TWO spots remain for IARA’s next Mending and Cleaning Workshop, Wednesday, April 30th from 9:00-noon at the Indiana State Archives, 6440 E. 30th Street, Indianapolis, IN 46219.

Learn to care for your family’s historical documents and photographs at this FREE hands-on event. You’ll learn how to dry-clean and mend dirty, torn documents without using tape. Each person will also receive a toolkit to take home with them and a list of resources for purchasing archival supplies for their own projects.

Email IARA Conservator Elizabeth Hague at [email protected] to reserve your spot.

11/04/2025

What is good records management and why does it matter? And how can you move your records from chaos to clarity?

As we continue celebrating Records and Information Management (RIM) Month, learn why solid records management is essential for success with this new one-page guide (downloadable PDF):https://www.in.gov/iara/files/RIM-One-Sheet.pdf

10/04/2025

Happy birthday to Lew Wallace, born April 10, 1827, in Brookville, Indiana. You probably know him as a Civil War General and the author of Ben Hur. But this telegram is a rare record of the few days that Wallace served as Indiana’s Adjutant General.

In the immediate aftermath of the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861, Wallace agreed to serve as Adjutant General, organizing Indiana for war. Wallace’s job was to find recruits for the Union army, and he filled the state’s quota within a week. He then took command of the 11th Indiana Volunteer Regiment and received a commission as colonel. The second telegram documents his service in that position.

You can view more IARA Civil War telegrams from the Governor Morton Telegraph Books and Slips Collection digitized in partnership with IUI University Library: https://bit.ly/43NMYNK
And learn more about the IARA’s Military Records: https://bit.ly/3G52RW7

Address

Opening Hours

Monday	09:00 - 16:00
Tuesday	09:00 - 16:00
Wednesday	09:00 - 16:00
Thursday	09:00 - 16:00
Friday	09:00 - 16:00

Telephone

+13175915222

Website

http://www.in.gov/iara/

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