How Do We Remember Our Ugly Past?

July 09, 2020

25 years ago, a building contractor in Noblesville found an old trunk in a barn. When he opened it he found signatures. It was a membership list for the Ku Klux Klan during a period in the 1920's, all signatures of men who had lived in Hamilton County. But it was decided the documents would be concealed from the public. Now, for the first time, the documents are available.

We talk to a group of people who played different roles in this long, complicated story. What do the documents mean to people living in Noblesville? Why do we choose to conceal some chapters of our past, and who gets to make those decisions?

Produced by Drew Daudelin.

Read more:
Hamilton County Begins To Reconcile A Shameful Klan Past - Indianapolis Monthly
Old List of Klan Members Recalls Racist Past in an Indiana City - The New York Times

Guests:

Jim Madison
Professor of History Emeritus, Indiana University

Jody Blankenship
President and CEO, Indiana Historical Society

David Heighway
Hamilton County Historian

Bryan Glover
Member, Noblesville Diversity Coalition