Crispus Attucks was an American whaler, sailor, and stevedore of African and Native American descent, who is traditionally regarded as the first person killed in the Boston Massacre, and as a result the first American killed in the American Revolution.
John Morton-Finney was an American civil rights activist, lawyer, and educator who earned eleven academic degrees, including five law degrees. He spent most of his career as an educator and lawyer after serving from 1911 to 1914 in the U.S. Army as a member of the 24th Infantry Regiment, better known as the Buffalo soldiers, and with the American Expeditionary Forces in France during World War I. Morton-Finney taught languages at Fisk University in Tennessee and at Lincoln University in Missouri, before moving to Indianapolis, Indiana, where he taught in the Indianapolis Public Schools for forty-seven years. Morton-Finney was a member of the original faculty at Indianapolis's Crispus Attucks High School when it opened in 1927 and later became head of its foreign language department. He also taught at Shortridge High School and at other IPS schools. Morton-Finney was admitted as a member of the Bar of the Indiana Supreme Court in 1935, as a member of the Bar of the U.S. District Court in 1941, and was admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court in 1972.
Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) is the largest school district in Indianapolis, and the second largest school district in the state of Indiana as of 2021, behind Fort Wayne Community Schools. The district's headquarters are in the John Morton-Finney Center for Educational Services.
Crispus Attucks High School is a public high school of Indianapolis Public Schools in Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. Its namesake, Crispus Attucks, was an African American patriot killed during the Boston Massacre. The school was built northwest of downtown Indianapolis near Indiana Avenue and opened on September 12, 1927, when it was the only public high school in the city designated specifically for African Americans.
William Herbert Hudnut III was an American author and politician who served as the 45th mayor of Indianapolis from 1976 to 1992. A Republican, his four terms made him the city's longest-serving mayor. He had previously represented the Indianapolis area in Congress from 1973 to 1975 but was defeated in his race for a second term.
Vanessa Joyce Summers is a Democratic member of the Indiana House of Representatives, representing the 99th District in her native Indianapolis since being appointed to the seat following the death of her father Del. Joseph W. Summers in 1991. Like her father, Vanessa Summers won re-election multiple times, and in 2012 became the first female as well as the first African-American to lead the Indiana House Democratic Caucus.
The Indianapolis Fire Department (IFD) provides fire and rescue protection and emergency medical services to the city of Indianapolis, Indiana. In total the department serves 278 square miles (720 km2).
Junius Alexander Bibbs, nicknamed "Rainey", was an American infielder in baseball's Negro leagues from about 1933 to 1944.
Ray Province Crowe was a basketball coach, educator, school administrator, and Republican politician in Indianapolis, Indiana. He was the head basketball coach of Crispus Attucks High School from 1950 to 1957, after which he served another decade as the school's athletic director. His teams won the Indiana state basketball championship in 1955 and 1956, becoming the first all-black school to win a state championship in the country, and the first Indianapolis team to win the Hoosier state title. Crowe coached numerous Indiana All-Star players, including Oscar Robertson, Hallie Bryant, and Willie Meriweather, and was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 1968.
Samuel Felrath Hines Jr. was an African American visual artist and art conservator. Hines served as a conservator at several institutions, including the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, D.C., and his paintings can be found in the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
Edwin Arthur Gibson was an American architect active in Indianapolis, Indiana from 1946 to 2002. His career was one of many firsts. Gibson was the first registered African American architect in the State of Indiana, first African-American architect to be appointed Indiana's State Architect, and first African-American architect in Indiana to own his own firm. His long career included work in both the public and private sector. Gibson overcame many obstacles to become successful and was generous in offering advice and helping younger architects achieve similar success.
Washington Street–Monument Circle Historic District is a national historic district located at Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, covering the first two blocks of East and West Washington and Market streets, the south side of the 100 block of East Ohio Street, Monument Circle, the first block of North and South Meridian Street, the first two blocks of North Pennsylvania Street, the west side of the first two blocks of North Delaware Street, the east side of the first block of North Capitol Avenue, and the first block of North Illinois Street. In total, the district encompasses 40 contributing buildings and 2 contributing structures in the central business district of Indianapolis centered on Monument Circle. It developed between about 1852 and 1946, and includes representative examples of Italianate, Greek Revival, and Art Deco style architecture.
Joseph W. Summers was a funeral director, community leader and Democrat who represented Indianapolis in the Indiana House of Representatives from 1977 until his death.
Nerissa Brokenburr Stickney, born Nerissa Lee Brokenburr, was an American pianist and music educator at Florida A&M University from 1935 to 1940.
The Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum gas explosion took place in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, on October 31, 1963; 81 people died and about 400 others were injured. It was one of the worst disasters in the history of the state.
Charles Atlas Walton was a lawyer and state legislator in Indiana.
Crispus Attucks Museum is a museum inside Crispus Attucks High School located in Indianapolis, Indiana. The museum is operated by the Indianapolis Public School (IPS) system and features exhibitions on local, state, national, and international African American history.
Erroll Grandy was an American jazz pianist.
Graham E. Martin was an officer in the United States Navy and one of the Navy's "Golden Thirteen."
