Craig family collection
Collection
Identifier: L496
Scope and Contents
This collection includes correspondence, papers, receipts, identification cards, a driver's license, certificates, pamphlets, ephemera, photographs, photographic film, and negatives from the Craig family in Indianapolis and Mooresville, Indiana, and other places in the United States, ranging from 1899 to 1973, regarding members of the family, their personal lives, military service, careers, and education.
There is also an oversize folder containing sewing patterns; the marriage license and certificate for Elwood Craig and Lillie Hurst on June 22, 1901; William Elwood Craig's completion certificate from William Penn School No. 49; and the November 19, 1930 marriage license and certificate of George N. Loucks and June Rose Geisendorfff (OBC168).
There is also an oversize folder containing sewing patterns; the marriage license and certificate for Elwood Craig and Lillie Hurst on June 22, 1901; William Elwood Craig's completion certificate from William Penn School No. 49; and the November 19, 1930 marriage license and certificate of George N. Loucks and June Rose Geisendorfff (OBC168).
Dates
- 1899-1973
Creator
- Craig family (Family)
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Legal title, copyright, and literary rights reside with Rare Books and Manuscripts, Indiana State Library, Indianapolis, IN. All requests to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to Rare Books and Manuscripts.
Biographical Note
Elwood Gleason Craig was born on April 8, 1882, to Sarah Elizabeth (Weedman) (1846-1893) and David Luther Craig (1839-1901) in Otwell, Pike County, Indiana. He married Lillie (also Lilly) Jane Hurst on June 22, 1902, in Pike County, and they had several children, including: Ermal Raual (1902-1962), Burl (also Beryl, Berl) David (1903-1982), Hattie Freda (1904-1927), Sorda (1905-), Marvin Jerome (1907-1974), Jessie Aileen (1908-1909), Roy Harlan "Monty" (1910-1962), and William Elwood (1912-1965). Craig worked as a machinist at an auto shop in Indianapolis in 1920 and was proprietor of tire and battery shop in 1930. By 1940, he was working as a farm laborer and lived in Hendricks County, Indiana, with his wife, son Roy, and Roy's wife, Grace. Most of his sons served in the military during World War II and often worked in blue collar industries, as machinists, laborers, and on assembly lines, often in the farming and automotive industries. Elwood G. Craig died on June 9, 1949, in Plainfield, Indiana, and is buried in Floral Park Cemetery in Indianapolis.
Sources:
Ancestry.com. "Burl Craig." 1940 United States Federal Census. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Elwood G. Craig." 1900 United States Federal Census. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Elwood G. Craig." 1910 United States Federal Census. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Elwood Craig." 1920 United States Federal Census. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Elwood Craig." 1930 United States Federal Census. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Elwood G. Craig." 1940 United States Federal Census. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Elwood G. Craig." Indiana, U.S., Death Certificates, 1899-2017. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Elwood G. Craig." Indiana, U.S., Marriage Certificates, 1960-2012. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Roy Craig." 1950 United States Federal Census. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Roy Harlan Craig." Indiana, U.S., Death Certificates, 1899-2017. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "William Elwood Craig." Indiana, U.S., Birth Certificates, 1907-1944. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "William E. Craig." Indiana, U.S., Death Certificates, 1899-2017. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "William E. Craig." U.S., World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Findagrave.com. "Elwood Gleason Craig." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed January 22, 2026. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/165352344/elwood_gleason-craig.
Sources:
Ancestry.com. "Burl Craig." 1940 United States Federal Census. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Elwood G. Craig." 1900 United States Federal Census. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Elwood G. Craig." 1910 United States Federal Census. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Elwood Craig." 1920 United States Federal Census. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Elwood Craig." 1930 United States Federal Census. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Elwood G. Craig." 1940 United States Federal Census. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Elwood G. Craig." Indiana, U.S., Death Certificates, 1899-2017. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Elwood G. Craig." Indiana, U.S., Marriage Certificates, 1960-2012. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Roy Craig." 1950 United States Federal Census. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "Roy Harlan Craig." Indiana, U.S., Death Certificates, 1899-2017. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "William Elwood Craig." Indiana, U.S., Birth Certificates, 1907-1944. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "William E. Craig." Indiana, U.S., Death Certificates, 1899-2017. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Ancestry.com. "William E. Craig." U.S., World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946. Accessed January 22, 2026. http://www.ancestryinstitution.com.
Findagrave.com. "Elwood Gleason Craig." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed January 22, 2026. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/165352344/elwood_gleason-craig.
Extent
0.36 Cubic Feet (1 manuscript box, 1 large oversize folder)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
This collection is arranged chronologically.
Custodial History
This collection was received by Rare Books and Manuscripts as a donation from F. Gerald Handfield on 2021/02/23.
Accruals
No further additions are expected.
Processing Information
Collection processing completed 2026/01/22 by Brittany Kropf. EAD finding aid created 2026/01/22 by Brittany Kropf.
- Certificates
- Clippings
- Contracts
- Craig, Burl David, 1903-1982
- Craig, Elwood Gleason, 1882-1949
- Craig, Lilly Hurst, 1881-1961
- Craig, Marvin Jerome, 1907-1974
- Craig, Roy Harlan, 1910-1962
- Craig, William Elwood, 1912-1965
- Dog tags, Military
- Education
- Education -- Indiana
- Fairs
- Identification cards
- Indianapolis (Ind.)
- Kammerer, John Robinson, 1910-1932
- Licenses
- Marriage certificates
- Mooresville (Ind.)
- Needlework
- Negatives
- Obituaries
- Photographs
- Postcards
- Real property
- Recipes
- Schools -- Indiana
- Sewing
- Tickets
- West, Letitia, 1870-1950
- World War, 1939-1945
Creator
- Craig family (Family)
- Title
- Craig family collection
- Status
- Completed
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Repository
Contact:
140 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 U.S.A.
317-232-3671
140 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 U.S.A.
317-232-3671
