Historical Marker Ahead
LightNews LightNews
banner
historicalmarker.bsky.social
Historical Marker Ahead
@historicalmarker.bsky.social
2.4K followers 1.7K following 4.8K posts
Yes, I’m pulling the car over to look at plaques. I’ll be just a minute. Not a historian, but did minor in history at Indiana University. Formerly notgoingpro on other socials.
Posts Replies Media Videos
Pinned
historicalmarker.bsky.social
Historical Marker Ahead @historicalmarker.bsky.social · Jul 21
A good primer on historical markers: how they’re researched, approved and made. And, why they matter, and the biggest threats to their existence. Thanks for the tip, @grrlherstorian.bsky.social! indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/07/21/i...
Inside Indiana’s 'best-kept secret,’ historical markers • Indiana Capital Chronicle
The Indiana State Historical Marker Program began in 1946 and has administered more than 750 historical markers across the state.
indianacapitalchronicle.com
Reposted by Historical Marker Ahead
abgutman.bsky.social
BREAKING: federal judge orders the Trump admin to restore slavery exhibits to the President’s House.

The opinion opens with “As if the Ministry of Truth in George Orwell’s 1984 now existed…”

With @fallonroth.bsky.social
Federal judge orders Trump admin to restore slavery exhibits to the President’s House
The order does not give the federal government a deadline for restoring the President's House site.
www.inquirer.com
February 16, 2026 at 6:55 PM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
Your library is a treasure trove of local history and local history events!
February 16, 2026 at 4:16 AM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
As it turns out, Gordon Lightfoot could’ve made a career writing about all the Great Lakes shipwrecks.
theguardian.com The Guardian @theguardian.com · 20h
Searchers find missing ship in Lake Michigan, over 150 years after it sunk
Searchers find missing ship in Lake Michigan, over 150 years after it sunk
Shipwreck hunter found Lac La Belle steamer, one of ‘most sought-after missing ships’, after nearly 60-year search Searchers recently discovered the wreck of one of the “most sought-after missing ships” in Lake Michigan, that had sunk to the bottom of the lake over 150 years ago. A shipwreck hunter and scuba diver named Paul Ehorn made the discovery after having searched for the Lac La Belle passenger steamer for nearly 60 years. Shipwreck World, a group that works to locate shipwrecks around the globe, announced on Friday that the team led by Ehorn found the wreck about 20 miles (32km) offshore between Racine and Kenosha, Wisconsin. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
February 16, 2026 at 3:18 AM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
20 minutes from the Lincoln Highway spot below in Dyer, Ind., takes you to Homewood, Ill., and another Carl Fisher co-creation: the Dixie Highway. Part of a burgeoning Good Roads movement in the 1910s, it also made it easier to get to Fisher’s properties in Miami Beach bsky.app/profile/hist...
Dixie Highway historical marker in Homewood, Illinois. It reads: Dixie Highway was the first national road linking industrial northern states to agricultural southern states. Several governors met in 1915 to consider an improved road to Miami. Ten states lobbied for inclusion, resulting in eastern and western divisions. In Illinois, the road started in Chicago, traveled through Blue Island, Homewood, and Chicago Heights, then followed what is today Route 1 down to Danville. There it turned east toward Indiana. By 1923, the official map of Dixie Highway covered a network of 6,000 improved roadway miles. The Dixie Highway Association took over work begun by the governors. Many counties funded and built the highway while poorer counties required private and federal aid. Citizens took brushes in hand to paint "DH" in red and white on poles, marking the way for travelers. Gas stations and mechanics were rare. Motorists carried extra gas and tools. Travelers packed tents or rented rooms. Soon tourist camps, cabins, roadside diners, and service garages sprouted. The road was a significant supply route during both world wars. Dixie Highway follows one of the oldest, most historic Illinois trails. Native Americans and trapper-traders traced a path worn by animals along the eastern Illinois border. In the 1820s, Gurdon Saltonstall Hubbard established trading posts along the trail, identified as Hubbard's Trace and Vincennes Trail on old maps. In 1835, the Illinois General Assembly ordered that a state road be established and mile markers placed thereon. Erected 2003 by Village of Homewood Heritage Committee, the Homewood Historical Society, and the Illinois State Historical Society. Map of the original Dixie Highway on a marker in Homewood, Illinois. Starting in Mackinaw City, Michigan, it is a 3-pronged route that follows roughly what is now U.S. 31 and Interstate 75. A spur route that roughly follows Illinois Route 1 goes through Danville to Chicago. The road become one route in north Georgia and goes through Atlanta, Tallahassee, Jacksonville and then down the Atlantic Coast to Miami. A “Welcome to Homewood” sign in Homewood, Illinois, that show distance to other cities along the Dixie Highway. The cities: Pointing north: Chicago 24 miles Pointing south: Indianapolis 168 miles Louisville 271 miles Chattanooga 585 miles Atlanta 701 miles Miami 1,363 miles Old-timey Dixie Highway street sign in downtown Homewood, Illinois. The old road still carries the Dixie Highway name south of Interstate 294 through Chicago’s south suburbs.
February 16, 2026 at 2:16 AM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
How was your Valentine’s Day?
historicalmarker.bsky.social Historical Marker Ahead @historicalmarker.bsky.social · 1d
Spent today at Purdue-Northwest’s John Friend Court for a doubleheader between the host Pride and my late father’s alma mater, Northern Michigan. NMU won the women’s game, PNW the men’s.

PNW has a krazy gym sponsor extremely familiar to anyone who drives 80-94 through Hammond.
Plaque at Purdue University-Northwest in Hammond, Indiana. It includes a photo of a white man with a crew cut that, as Abe Simpson said, you could set your watch to. It reads: John Friend Court On November 16, 2017, Purdue University Northwest named the Fitness and Recreation Center basketball court in honor of John Friend, a man whose strong leadership, tremendous vision and amazing contributions guided the development of Purdue University Northwest Athletics. (Friend was athletic director at Purdue-Northwest from 1980 to 2001, back when the school was called Purdue-Calumet.) John Friend Court, Purdue-Northwest A break in the action at the Purdue-Northwest vs Northern Michigan women’s basketball game, Hammond, Indiana, February 14, 2026 This game brought to you by Krazy Kaplan’s Fireworks in Hammond.
February 15, 2026 at 7:46 PM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
Spent today at Purdue-Northwest’s John Friend Court for a doubleheader between the host Pride and my late father’s alma mater, Northern Michigan. NMU won the women’s game, PNW the men’s.

PNW has a krazy gym sponsor extremely familiar to anyone who drives 80-94 through Hammond.
Plaque at Purdue University-Northwest in Hammond, Indiana. It includes a photo of a white man with a crew cut that, as Abe Simpson said, you could set your watch to. It reads: John Friend Court On November 16, 2017, Purdue University Northwest named the Fitness and Recreation Center basketball court in honor of John Friend, a man whose strong leadership, tremendous vision and amazing contributions guided the development of Purdue University Northwest Athletics. (Friend was athletic director at Purdue-Northwest from 1980 to 2001, back when the school was called Purdue-Calumet.) John Friend Court, Purdue-Northwest A break in the action at the Purdue-Northwest vs Northern Michigan women’s basketball game, Hammond, Indiana, February 14, 2026 This game brought to you by Krazy Kaplan’s Fireworks in Hammond.
February 15, 2026 at 5:47 AM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
People think US punk was born at CBGB and moved outward. But there were proto-punk movements popping up all over the country. Cleveland’s pretty famous, Indianapolis/Bloomington was active, and here we have Oklahoma. There was at least one band in every town letting it rip like this around 1975-76
February 14, 2026 at 6:02 AM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
An incredible story of a man who shipped himself from slavery to freedom: Henry “Box” Brown, who spent 27 hours in a crate going from Virginia to Philly in 1849. After the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 passed, he moved to England, then to Toronto, where he died and where the plaque below sits.
lanrickbennett.bsky.social Lanrick Bennett @lanrickbennett.bsky.social · 3d
Feb 13th of #BHM

"Henry Box Brown, North Star Way, Cy McLean Heritage Plaque Unveilings tookplace on Monday, Feb 2, 2026, at the Inglenook School. They represented 3 different aspects of Black history: the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, the struggles for emancipation, and the achievements..."

/End
Chris Moise - Honoring Toronto’s Black History. 🖤🧱🎶 Join us this afternoon at 4:00 PM at the historic Inglenook School (19 Sackville Street) as we unveil three new heritage plaques that mark significant chapters in our city’s story. Today, we honor the legacy of resilience and achievement in our community. From the fight for freedom represented by Henry Box Brown and the North Star, to the musical barriers broken by Cy McLean, these plaques ensure that these stories remain a visible part of our city’s landscape. We will be honoring: Henry Box Brown Lane & North Star Way – Commemorating the struggles for emancipation and the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. Cy McLean – Celebrating Canada’s first full-scale Black bandleader who broke barriers during the era of segregation. Come witness history as we are joined by Cy McLean’s descendants and Heritage Toronto for this special dedication. Image of multiple at the plaque unveiling “HENRY “BOX" BROWN circa 1815-1897 Henry Brown mailed himself from Virginia to Philadelphia in a box — a courageous act that secured his freedom from slavery and earned him a lifelong nickname. Brown was born and lived enslaved in Louisa County, Virginia. After his wife and help of some friends and the Pennsylvania Ant, Saver planned his escape with the On March 23, 1849, Brown climbed into a wooden box with three small air holes, a gimlet tool for cutting more holes by hand, and a container of water. The box was to be shipped by boat, train, and wagon for about 21 hours. During this time, Brown had to stay silent and completely still to avoid detection. Following his successful arrival in Philadelphia, Brown moved to Boston, then New York City. He married Jane Floyd in England in 1855, and they had three children. Brown performed as a magician, hypnotist, ventriloquist, and singer to make a living. His shows confronted slavery and told stories of the Underground Railroad. He also practiced the pseudosciences of phrenology — reading bumps on the human skull to predict mental habits — and animal magnetism, which promised medical relief though an invisible natural force that surrounds all living things. In 1886, Brown and his family moved to Toronto. A noted anti-slavery activist, he was part of many community events, including pertorming with his family in a concert at St. Lawrence Hall. Brown spent some of his final years living on Bright Street near here. He is buried in the Toronto Necropolis cemetery. HERITAGE TORONTO 2025”
February 14, 2026 at 5:57 AM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
Note that this 2019 marker in South Carolina for a Black soldier blinded by police in 1946, an incident that inspired Truman to desegregate the military two years late, also is in Braille
bambooshooti.bsky.social Shooti @bambooshooti.bsky.social · 3d
In November 1946, Shull was tried in federal court but acquitted by an all-white jury after less than 30 minutes of deliberation. Woodard moved to the Bronx, where he lived until his death in 1992. In 2019, the town of Batesburg-Leesville acknowledged the injustice with a historical marker. /end
Historical marker honoring Isaac Woodard and acknowledging the injustice of his brutal beating.
February 14, 2026 at 5:52 AM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
A note about Lake Zurich, Illinois, home of our heroic high school puncher. The town isn’t just some Chicago burb. Its founder “(Seth) Paine was a soaring, high-spirited radical. A zealot. A passionate 19th century Don Quixote with big plans.” That ain’t the half of it. jwcmedia.com/in-search-of...
historicalmarker.bsky.social Historical Marker Ahead @historicalmarker.bsky.social · Aug 13
There are multiple Illinois markers titled “Thy Wondrous Story.” The first graf of each is about the same, with local lore allotted space. But not enough to hear about Lake Zurich founder Seth Paine, an abolitionist who also considered marriage and taxes to be slavery. A school is named after him.
“Thy Wondrous Story, lllinois” historical marker in Lake Zurich, Illinois. It reads: The fertile prairies in Illinois attracted the attention of French trader Louis Jolliet and Father Jacques Marquette as they explored the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers in 1673. France claimed this region until 1763 when she surrendered it to Great Britain by the Treaty of Paris. During the American Revolution George Rogers Clark and his small army scored a bloodless victory when they captured Kaskaskia for the Commonwealth of Virginia. Illinois then became a county of Virginia. This area was ceded to the United States in 1784, and became in turn a part of the Northwest Territory and the Indiana Territory before a separate Illinois Territory was created. On December 3, 1818, Illinois entered the Union as the twenty-first state. The fourteen northern counties of Illinois, including the site of Chicago, were made a part of the state through the foresight of Nathaniel Pope, congressional delegate from the Illinois Territory. His amendment to the statehood act moved the upper boundary from an east-west line through the tip of Lake Michigan to the present location. Before the first settlers came, lands in this vicinity were hunting grounds for the Potawatomi Indians, who traded furs with hunters coming up the Fox River. Lake Zurich was founded by Seth Paine, abolitionist and free-thinker, who settled there in 1836 and constructed the building which he called a "Stable of Humanity." It included a meeting hall, school, and store, and provided lodging for unfortunate families. At one time Paine considered all civil law, including marriage and taxes, a form of slavery. In later life he went to Chicago where he continued his philanthropy. Erected 1976 by the Illinois Department of Transportation and the Illinois State Historical Society.
February 14, 2026 at 2:48 AM
Reposted by Historical Marker Ahead
civilwarmemory.bsky.social
Black Newspapers Were There When Richmond's Confederate Monuments Went Up and They Were There When They Came Down #BlackHistoryMonth 🗃️ open.substack.com/pub/kevinmle...
Black Newspapers Were There When Richmond's Confederate Monuments Went Up and They Were There When They Came Down
Today it is being reported that after thirty-four years the Richmond Free Press will cease publication. The final edition of the newspaper will mark the end of an impressive run and will leave a signi...
open.substack.com
February 13, 2026 at 1:31 PM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
You: watching NBA All-Star weekend

Me: watching England metal detecting club all-star weekends
February 13, 2026 at 7:28 PM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
New (at least to me) frontier in local organizing: a group in Indianapolis is setting up an armed protest for Second Amendment rights BUT… this is an anti-ICE response to what Trump and Republicans said about Alex Pretti carrying. www.strongneighbor.com?fbclid=IwVER...
February 13, 2026 at 6:15 PM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
New omissions to the Medgar Evers home tour include why there are bloodstains in the driveway, and who killed him, and why mississippitoday.org/2026/02/12/m...
Medgar Evers home visitors question omissions to his story - Mississippi Today
Medgar Evers home visitors said park rangers told them they can no longer discuss bloodstains on the driveway or refer to his assassin as a racist.
mississippitoday.org
February 13, 2026 at 2:35 PM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
Tribute to Irish socialist and revolutionary James Connolly: statue at Union Park in Chicago; replica of the 1916 Proclamation of the Irish Republic in Killarney; record of his (and other Easter Rising leaders) death in Dublin’s Kilmainham Gaol; cross in Kilmainham where he was shot, already dying
Statue of James Connolly in Chicago’s Union Park, placed in 2008 by the Irish American Labor Council of Chicago Plaque with the 1916 Proclamation of the Irish Republic, signed by James Connolly and others, on display in Killarney, Ireland. The Easter Rising of 1916 didn’t throw out the British but laid the groundwork for Irish independence in 1922. Plaque in Dublin’s Kilmainham Gaol listing all the Easter Rising leaders and arrestees the British executed on the prison grounds. A cross in the Kilmainham yard shows the corner where James Connolly was executed. It was on the opposite end of the yard from where others involved in the Easter Rising were executed. Famously, he was already severely wounded by soldiers, was dragged out, and tied to a chair so he could stay upright to be shot.
February 13, 2026 at 4:48 AM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
Haha the NBA couldn’t fine the Pacers for sitting out their best players last night to trot out the Noblesville Boom because they’d also have to fine the Nets for losing at home to them
February 13, 2026 at 1:36 AM
Reposted by Historical Marker Ahead
wendylrouse.bsky.social
It's important to remember that these types of visible demonstrations resisting historical erasure are especially important because of the long, painful (and continuous) history of efforts to purge LGBTQ+ people from public life.
🏳️‍🌈 🏳️‍⚧️ 🍎
bradlander.bsky.social Brad Lander @bradlander.bsky.social · 3d
The Pride flag at the Stonewall Monument is re-raised!

New Yorkers won’t let Donald Trump erase LGBTQ+ history, or trample the rights of our LGBTQ+ neighbors.
February 12, 2026 at 11:07 PM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
I’ve talked a lot about @eji.org’s historical marker work but if you know the organization, you know it’s hardly about only calling out past injustices
eji.org Equal Justice Initiative @eji.org · 3d
Last week, the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals reversed EJI client Warren Hardy's capital murder conviction and death sentence after finding that his trial was unfair.
Alabama Appeals Court Orders New Trial for EJI Client Warren Hardy
Warren Hardy’s capital murder conviction and death sentence were reversed.
eji.org
February 12, 2026 at 11:11 PM
Reposted by Historical Marker Ahead
akgrl33.bsky.social
One of us! One of Us!! One of Us!!

@historicalmarker.bsky.social
I brake for historical markers bumper sticker
February 12, 2026 at 9:37 PM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
The whole thread below gets into it brilliantly, and adds context to what I and others have said repeatedly. Where are the protests? Everywhere. Instead of massive single-day single-city events protests have fanned out and brought more people in - as organizers, too. bsky.app/profile/hist...
chenoweth.bsky.social Erica Chenoweth @chenoweth.bsky.social · 4d
Overall, we have tallied 4x more protests through Jan 31, 2026 than we had through Jan 31, 2018
Line graph that shows a blue line of # protests since Trump's 2nd inauguration surpassed, showing these to have exceeded 42k by the end of Jan 2026. A green line counts # of protests during the same time period in Trump's first term and just exceeds 10k.
February 12, 2026 at 9:51 PM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
As @eji.org has done, Virginia is set to add more historical markers at lynching sites. Today a state agency announced 15 will go up, in addition to others placed since 2019. Upset alert: this comes from a law signed by Virginia’s previous governor www.wric.com/hidden-histo...
Virginia DHR to place state historical highway markers near sites of lynchings
The Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) announced on Wednesday that it will place roughly 15 historical highway markers near sites of lynchings that occurred throughout the Commonwealth…
www.wric.com
February 12, 2026 at 7:38 PM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
Thanks to @allthebeset.bsky.social for pointing out the Underground Railroad marker by the Maywood, Ill., McDonald’s. Feel free to tag me when you share a historical marker! (And use alt text in your photos. It helps with accessibility and allows you to add information that won’t fit in your skeet!)
indeedagem.blacksky.app indeedagem.blacksky.app @indeedagem.blacksky.app · 4d
There’s a Harriet Tubman quote on the marker that says:

If ya' wanna be free, keep a goin'
If ya' tired, keep a goin'
If ya' scared, keep a goin'
If ya hungry, keep a goin'
If ya' wanna taste freedom, keep a goin'
February 12, 2026 at 3:55 PM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
Who wants to clean and polish some historical markers?
ncph.bsky.social National Council on Public History @ncph.bsky.social · 4d
Have you noticed a #HistoricalMarker in your community that could use a little care? Join this webinar with the William G. Pomeroy Foundation to learn about how you can care for that marker during National Historic Marker Weekend. https://community.ncph.org/event/HistoricMarkerWeekend #LocalHistory
February 25. 1 pm Eastern. Join the webinar to learn how you can make local history "shine" as a national historic marker weekend volunteer. Logos for the William G. Pomeroy Foundation and the National Council on Public History.
February 12, 2026 at 3:40 AM
historicalmarker.bsky.social
It’s working
historicalmarker.bsky.social Historical Marker Ahead @historicalmarker.bsky.social · 4d
Brooklyn halftime strategy is how to not win so hard
February 12, 2026 at 2:38 AM
Reposted by Historical Marker Ahead
ipacers.bsky.social
Quinn Buckner has given us two “And then depression sets in” lines this season and 0 “smothered chickens”
February 12, 2026 at 2:17 AM