Monument to the 19th Indiana Infantry at Gettysburg
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About Us
The Indianapolis Civil War Round Table is
a group of amateur and professional historians in Central Indiana
dedicated to studying and understanding the 1861-1865 consflict between the North and South.
We welcome anyone interested in the American Civil War to join
the ICWRT. Annual dues are $30 for an individual, $35 for a
family, or $15 for a student. The dues are used to defray
production costs of our newsletter, Hardtack, and other
programs.
We invite you to attend a meeting as a guest and we feel that you
will enjoy your visit and enlist. To enlist for the upcoming
campaign,
Click Here
for a membership form
All Programs are Free & Open to the Public
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What: |
The Sultana Disaster
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| Who: |
Gene Eric Salecker |
| When: |
Monday
June 9 at 6:45 P.M. |
| Where: |
MCL Cafeteria - Township Line
(2370 West 86th Street) |
On April 27, 1865, the paddlewheel steamboat Sultana suffered a boiler explosion on the Mississippi River shortly after leaving Memphis, Tennessee. The severely overcrowded boat was carrying home recently released Union prisoners-of-war from camps in Georgia and Alabama. Although it is the worst maritime disaster in American history, few people have heard of the Sultana, largely because of numerous other historic events happening at the same time.
Gene Eric Salecker is a military historian whose seven published books include Destruction of the Steamboat Sultana: The Worst Maritime Disaster in American History (2022) and Typhoon Louise vs. the United States Navy: Catastrophe at Okinawa, October 9-10, 1945 (2023). He owned the largest collection of Sultana artifacts and memorabilia which he donated to the Sultana Disaster Museum in Marion, Arkansas. A graduate of Northeastern Illinois University, he is a retired police officer and retired middle school teacher currently acting as the historical consultant for the Sultana Disaster Museum. He lives in River Grove, Illinois with his wife, a cat, and dozens of tropical fish.
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2024-2025 Program Schedule
| September 9, 2024 |
Indiana University Contrinutions to the Civil War |
John Summerlot |
| October 14, 2024 |
Hoosiers at Gettysburg: The Story of Indiana & Her Sons in the Civil War's Greatest Battle |
Wayne Motts |
| November 11, 2024 |
Admiral David G. Farragut |
John Chalfin |
| December 9, 2024 |
Union General August Willich, 32nd IN |
Don Heitman |
| January 13, 2025 |
Civil War Show and Tell |
YOU! |
| February 10, 2025 |
Northern Prison Life |
Gerald Jones |
| March 10, 2025 |
Indiana Generals in the Civil War |
Carl Kramer |
| April 14, 2025 |
TBD |
TBD |
| May 12, 2025 |
Wilder's Lightning Brigade |
Scott Diezman |
| June 9, 2025 |
The Sultana Disaster |
Gene Eric Salecker |
Click here for a copy of the current Hardtack newsletter.
Click here
for information on a book describing the first 50 years of the Indianapolis Civil War Round Table
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