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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: June 12-18
From The Indianapolis Star, Thursday, June 17, 1920: The Kiwanis Club building fund for a hut on the Boy Scout reservation near Ft. Benjamin Harrison has been increased to $3,500 (2019: $45,409). The original plan of building a “bunk house” consisting of a large living room with a fireplace across … Read More
100 Years Ago: June 5-11
From The Indianapolis Star, Sunday, June 6, 1920: Indianapolis centennial celebrations began last night in Tomlinson Hall with hundreds of citizens from all over Hoosierdom assembled in an auditorium bedecked in flags and centennial colors. As the crowd gathered at the first big event of the five-day birthday party, the … Read More
“It’s not a home until it’s planted”
My father liked to garden — vegetables, flowers — it didn’t matter. Some said he had a “green thumb” and if he stuck a stick in the ground it would bloom. His vegetable garden was not exotic, just the usual tomatoes, bush green beans, cucumbers and zucchini. Oh, and he … Read More
100 Years Ago: May 22-June 4
From The Indianapolis Star, Thursday, May 27, 1920: The appointment by the mayor of an Indianapolis city planning commission was urged in remarks last night by Flavel Shurtleff, secretary of the National Conference of City Planning, before a meeting of the Architects’ Association and the Architectural League of Indianapolis. One … Read More
100 Years Ago: May 15-21
From The Indianapolis News, Tuesday, May 11, 1920: Ten thousand children in forty-eight Indianapolis public schools are now receiving a mid-morning lunch of a half-pint of milk and two Graham crackers through the work of Indianapolis School Lunch Association. For children who can afford to pay, the lunch costs 4 … Read More