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The Encyclopedia of Indianapolis is a home for knowledge about the Circle City’s past and present.

09/21/2026

Broad Ripple began as two separate canal communities in 1837 before incorporating as a town in 1884. Connected to Indianapolis by rail, streetcars, and interurban lines, it became a popular summertime destination from 1890 to 1930. Indianapolis annexed Broad Ripple in 1922, and over time the neighborhood evolved into one of the city’s best-known hubs for shopping, dining, entertainment, and recreation.

Learn More: https://indyencyclopedia.org/broad-ripple/
Image: The Vogue, now a venue for live music, was a former first-run movie theater, 1950; Image Credit: IndyStar

09/18/2026

The Denison Hotel stood at the corner of Ohio and Pennsylvania streets from 1880 to 1933. With 250 rooms, dining facilities, and strong ties to Indiana politics, it became a gathering place for party leaders and legislative negotiations. After the hotel was demolished in 1933, the site became Denison Service Parking, one of the earliest paid parking facilities in the United States.

Learn More: https://indyencyclopedia.org/denison-hotel/
Image: Denison Hotel interior, ca. 1916; Image Credit: The Indiana Album: Evan Finch Collection

09/16/2026

📣New entry spotlight: Grisel Barajas-Espinoza was an Indianapolis broadcaster and Latino community advocate during the 2010s. She served as the program director for Radio One’s La Grande 105.1 FM, a station highlighting traditional music from Mexico. Alongside her work hosting that station’s popular “El Relajo de la Tarde” program, she hosted a Spanish-language television program on Urban One’s Telemundo Indy. Barajas-Espinoza used her local visibility to promote higher education to Latino youth and to broaden knowledge of Latino culture within the Indianapolis region.

Learn More: https://indyencyclopedia.org/grisel-barajas-espinoza/
Image: Grisel Barajas, ca. 2020; Image Credit: Radio One

09/14/2026

Bridgeport was founded in 1831 along the National Road in Wayne Township and developed as a small transportation and trade center west of Indianapolis. The community was also home to Sunnyside and West Parkview, African American settlements established around the turn of the 20th century. Residents worked to bring services and infrastructure to the area, including electricity, roads, and a community clubhouse.

Learn More: https://indyencyclopedia.org/bridgeport/
Image: Early employees of the Bridgeport brass plant), 1942; Image Credit: Indiana Historical Society

09/09/2026

📣New entry spotlight: Founded in Lafayette in 1999 by entrepreneur Rosa Gaeta Montoya, Mamá Inés Mexican Bakery set out to bring authentic Mexican baked goods to a community that lacked traditional panaderías. After winning over both Latine and non-Latine customers, the beloved bakery expanded to Indianapolis in 2006 and has since opened multiple locations across the city.

Learn More: https://indyencyclopedia.org/mama-ines-mexican-bakery/
Image: Rosa Gaeta (from right), Ines Cornejo, Jessica Montoya and her daughter Victoria at Mama Ines Bakery at 38th Street and Georgetown Road, 2022; Credit: © Jenna Watson/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK

09/07/2026

Here's a fun Labor Day fact: while we celebrate on the first Monday in September today, Indianapolis' first Labor Day celebration in 1886 was held on September 19 to accommodate the schedules of visiting speakers.

Learn More: https://indyencyclopedia.org/labor-day-celebrations/
Image: News headline about the Indianapolis Labor Day celebration, 1886; Image Credit: Indianapolis Journal, Sept. 20, 1886

09/04/2026

Mark your calendars!!

Join us in the Indianapolis Special Collections Room at Central Library on Tuesday, September 29, from 6–7:30 p.m. to hear from EOI's interns, Amelia Simpson and Hannah Cortes, about their research behind the Encyclopedia of Indianapolis's upcoming feature highlighting Indianapolis Latine history.

Central Library, 6th Floor ISCR
Tuesday, September 29 | 6–7:30 p.m.
Space is limited and registration is required. Reserve your spot today: https://attend.indypl.org/event/16795214

09/02/2026

📣New entry spotlight: Mamie “Peanut” Johnson, a player for the Indianapolis-Clowns professional baseball team, was the first and only woman to pitch in the Negro Leagues. She compiled a 33–8 win-loss record over three seasons.

Learn More: https://indyencyclopedia.org/mamie-johnson/
Image: Mamie Johnson, ca. 1953; Image Credit: Negro League Baseball Museum

08/31/2026

On this day in 1984, hundreds of LGBTQ+ Hoosiers gathered on Monument Circle for the final “Gay Knights” protest. For weeks, community members had rallied against police harassment while advocating for visibility, equal treatment, and justice. On August 31, activists celebrated a milestone when Mayor William Hudnut publicly affirmed a commitment to "an absence of anti-gay bias in all police matters”—the first known positive public statement about Indianapolis’s gay community by a city mayor.

Learn More: https://indyencyclopedia.org/gay-knights-on-the-circle/
Image: Flyer for the last Gay Knights on the Circle protest event, 1984 Credit: Indiana University Indianapolis

08/28/2026

Did you know Brendonwood is one of Indianapolis’ most distinctive historic neighborhoods? Developed beginning in 1917, the 350-acre community was designed to blend homes, winding roads, and natural landscapes into a park-like setting. Learn more about the history of this unique Northside neighborhood: https://indyencyclopedia.org/brendonwood/

Image: Illustration of the Brendonwood neighborhood, showing the Mall near its entrance, 1917; Image Credit: Indiana Historical Society

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2450 N. Meridian Street
Indianapolis, IN
46208

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http://indyencyclopedia.org/

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