INDIANAPOLIS — Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a federal holiday that will be celebrated Monday, Jan. 15. As a federal holiday, all state, local, and national offices will be closed for business. There will be no mail service that day, and the Department of Public Works will operate on a slide schedule, with no trash or heavy trash pickups that day. Trash pickup will operate on a slide schedule.
If you have a day off, this would be a great day to visit White River State Parks attractions for only donations to Gleaners Food Bank. Canned good donations or cash donations will be accepted at the Indiana State Museum, Indianapolis Zoo, IMAX Theater, Eiteljorg Museum, and the NCAA Hall of Champions, all located near 801 W. Washington St. There will be complimentary parking that day as well. Visitors can park in the underground garage off Washington St., or in the surface parking lot next to the Park’s Visitor’s Center.
If you haven’t yet checked out the Kennedy-King Memorial at Dr. Martin Luther King Park, 601 E. 17th St., if weather and time permit, this would be a good day to visit the remarkable “Landmark for Peace” sculpture commemorating the site where Robert Kennedy delivered a speech on the night of King’s assassination in 1968. The sculpture was dedicated in 1995 by President Bill Clinton.
While all Indianapolis Public Library branches will be closed Jan. 15, the library’s online collections offer an opportunity for everyone to read and hear King’s speeches and other works anytime. Visit blog.indypl.org for a variety of materials on King and his importance in the Civil Rights movement. When open, visitors to Central Library, 40 E. St. Clair, can browse the stacks of the Center for Black Literature & Culture, a space dedicated to the vibrant heritage of African-American artists, writers, and poets. The space focuses on Indiana-connected individuals and their work. (Admission is free.)
