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Author Biography
Steven R. Barnett is Executive Director at the Irvington Historical Society.
Steve Barnett was raised in Irvington. Steve attended School #57, Howe High School (’63), and received a degree from Purdue University (’70). He served in the Indiana National Guard. After a brief hiatus from Irvington, Steve returned to his home town in 1977 with his wife Sue so their three children could grow up in a family friendly environment.
Steve had the good fortune of working with U. S. Representative Andy Jacobs, Jr. and U. S. Representative Julia Carson in the Indianapolis Congressional District Office helping constituents.
After his retirement, Steve became the executive director of the Irvington Historical Society and curator of the Bona Thompson Memorial Center until 2025. Steve was commissioned a Kentucky Colonel by Gov. Wallace G. Wilkinson for service to veterans, and he was appointed a Sagamore of the Wabash by Gov. Joseph Kernan for service to Indiana. In 2016, Steve was named Marion County Historian.
Steven R. Barnett’s Story Archive
100 Years Ago This Week: Feb. 5-12
From The Indianapolis Star, Tuesday, February 8: Indianapolis opened its first public school exclusively for foreigners last night with the enrollment of more than sixty men and three women representing ten nationalities — Greek, Romanian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Hungarian, Turk, Armenian, Italian, German, and Montenegrin. The evening classes at School No. … Read More
Irvington’s Faulty Tower
Each day a multitude of vehicles pass by a 140 year old landmark on the southwest corner of South Emerson Avenue and Brookville Road. Once a grand Second Empire style house, today the Horner House stands as a poor shadow of its former glories. Abraham Horner, an Ohio Buckeye and … Read More
100 Years Ago This Week: Jan. 29-Feb. 4
From The Indianapolis News, Monday, January 31: Government-owned automobile mail service will begin in the city tomorrow, Tuesday, February 1. When the nine new brightly painted red motor cars are placed in service, Indianapolis will become the sixth city in the United States to have such a system. Mail service … Read More
World War 1 100 Years Ago: Jan. 29-Feb. 4
From The Indianapolis Star, Saturday, January 29: L. S. Ayres & Co, the William H. Block Co, the New York Store, H. O. Wasson & Co, and the Star Store have agreed to assist in helping clothe 2,000,000 destitute persons in Belgium and northern France with a special 10 per … Read More
100 Years Ago This Week: Jan. 22-29
From The Indianapolis News, Saturday, January 22: The Mercantile Garage, 125-31 S. Pennsylvania Street is now open to motorists not only from Indianapolis, but for tourist or out-of-town motorists. With 18,000 square feet of floor space, the garage provides accessibility to both the city’s wholesale and shopping districts with easy … Read More