William H. Blodgett scrapbooks
Collection
Identifier: L372
Scope and Contents
This collection consists of two scrapbooks from William H. Blodgett in Anderson, New Castle, and Richmond, Indiana; Illinois; and elsewhere in the United States, ranging from 1858 to 1895 and undated. The scrapbooks contain correspondence, checks, advertisement cards, newspaper clippings, programs, and a ribbon. The first scrapbook (1858-1884, 1895) concerns numerous topics, including politics, business, religion, crime, sports, temperance, police corruption, and other current and local events of that time period. The second scrapbook (circa 1876-1888) contains clippings regarding Blodgett, his family, his newspaper career, and the newspapers he worked for including the Anderson Review.
Dates
- 1858-1895
Creator
- Blodgett, William Henry, 1857-1924 (Person)
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
William Henry Blodgett was born on February 7, 1857, to William D. and Frances (Hubbard) Blodgett (1831-1910) on a houseboat operated by his father between La Salle and Chicago, Illinois. His parents had marital issues and Blodgett, his sister, and his mother moved to Anderson, Indiana, in 1876 to live with his maternal grandfather, Jacob Hubbard. Blodgett worked as a journalist in Anderson and became editor of the Anderson Review and later the Anderson Evening Star. He married Minnie Smith on December 15, 1880, in Anderson and they had two children, Coe (1881-1958) and Lewis D. (1887-1910). He cultivated a reputation for sensationalism as a journalist and strife in his personal life, including drunkenness and marital discord. About 1885, the Blodgetts moved to Richmond, Indiana, where William worked for the Richmond Sunday Register and the Richmond Telegram. The family moved to Indianapolis by 1900 where Blodgett worked as a reporter for the Indianapolis News. William H. Blodgett died of pneumonia on March 19, 1924, in Indianapolis and was buried in Crown Hill Cemetery.
Sources:
Items in the collection.
Ancestry.com. "William H. Blodgett." 1870 United States Federal Census. Accessed March 25, 2025. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "William H. Blodgett." 1880 United States Federal Census. Accessed March 25, 2025. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "William H. Blodgett." 1900 United States Federal Census. Accessed March 25, 2025. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "William H. Blodgett." 1910 United States Federal Census. Accessed March 25, 2025. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "William H. Blodgett." 1920 United States Federal Census. Accessed March 25, 2025. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "William H. Blodgett." Indiana, U.S., Death Certificates, 1899-2017. Accessed March 25, 2025. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "William H. Blodgett." Indiana, U.S., Select Marriages Index, 1748-1993. Accessed March 25, 2025. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Findagrave.com. "Coe S. Blodgett Brennan." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed March 25, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/120353240/coe-s-brennan.
Findagrave.com. "Frances Hubbard Blodgett." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed March 25, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/96259884/frances-blodgett.
Findagrave.com. "Lewis D. Blodgett." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed March 25, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/45882318/louis-d-blodgett.
Findagrave.com. "Minnie Blodgett." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed March 25, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/45882320/minnie-blodgett.
Findagrave.com. "W. D. Blodgett." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed March 25, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/45882321/w-d-blodgett.
Findagrave.com. "William Henry Blodgett." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed March 25, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/45882322/william-h-blodgett.
Sources:
Items in the collection.
Ancestry.com. "William H. Blodgett." 1870 United States Federal Census. Accessed March 25, 2025. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "William H. Blodgett." 1880 United States Federal Census. Accessed March 25, 2025. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "William H. Blodgett." 1900 United States Federal Census. Accessed March 25, 2025. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "William H. Blodgett." 1910 United States Federal Census. Accessed March 25, 2025. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "William H. Blodgett." 1920 United States Federal Census. Accessed March 25, 2025. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "William H. Blodgett." Indiana, U.S., Death Certificates, 1899-2017. Accessed March 25, 2025. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "William H. Blodgett." Indiana, U.S., Select Marriages Index, 1748-1993. Accessed March 25, 2025. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Findagrave.com. "Coe S. Blodgett Brennan." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed March 25, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/120353240/coe-s-brennan.
Findagrave.com. "Frances Hubbard Blodgett." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed March 25, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/96259884/frances-blodgett.
Findagrave.com. "Lewis D. Blodgett." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed March 25, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/45882318/louis-d-blodgett.
Findagrave.com. "Minnie Blodgett." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed March 25, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/45882320/minnie-blodgett.
Findagrave.com. "W. D. Blodgett." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed March 25, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/45882321/w-d-blodgett.
Findagrave.com. "William Henry Blodgett." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed March 25, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/45882322/william-h-blodgett.
Extent
0.3 Cubic Feet (1 manuscript box)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
This collection is arranged by subject.
Custodial History
This collection was received by Rare Books and Manuscripts as a donation.
Accruals
No further additions are expected.
Processing Information
Collection processing completed in 1999 by Philip N. Williams. EAD finding aid created 2018/05/04 by Lauren Patton. EAD finding aid revised 2025/03/25 by Brittany Kropf.
- Advertisements
- Alcohol
- Anderson (Ind.)
- Arctic regions -- Discovery and exploration
- Assassination -- United States -- History -- 19th century
- Boxing
- Business enterprises
- Chemistry
- Christianity
- Cincinnati (Ohio)
- Clippings
- Commencement ceremonies
- Correspondence
- Crime
- Criminals -- Indiana
- Dickens, Charles, 1812-1870
- Drug abuse
- Epworth League (U.S.)
- Garfield, James A. (James Abram), 1831-1881
- Guiteau, Charles J. (Charles Julius), 1841-1882
- Halloween
- Illinois
- Indianapolis News
- Interracial marriage
- Journalism
- Journalists
- Juvenile delinquency
- La Salle County (Ill.)
- Lady Franklin Bay Expedition (1881-1884)
- Law enforcement -- United States
- Madison County (Ind.)
- Miscegenation (Racist theory)
- Misogyny
- Murder
- New Castle (Ind.)
- Newspaper articles
- Newspaper editors -- Indiana
- Opera
- Opium
- Plainfield (Ind.)
- Poetry
- Police
- Politics and government
- Presidents -- United States
- Prisons
- Programs
- Religion
- Ribbons
- Richmond (Ind.)
- Riots
- Ryan, Paddy, 1851-1900
- Schools -- Indiana
- Scrapbooks
- Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616
- Spiritualists -- United States
- Sports
- Teachers
- Temperance
- Terre Haute (Ind.)
- Trials (Murder)
Creator
- Blodgett, William Henry, 1857-1924 (Person)
- Title
- William H. Blodgett 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
