Franklin College will host an opening reception for The Honorable Roger Douglas Branigin Archives, an Indiana Bicentennial Legacy Project on the same night of the first of the new school year’s lectures on Sept. 15.
The reception for the archives will be at 5:30 p.m. Sept. 15 at the B.F. Hamilton Library.
Branigin was a 1923 graduate of Franklin College who served as the 42nd governor of Indiana from 1965 to 1969. The collection will include his official papers, rare books and personal memorabilia and will be permanently located on the third floor of the library.
Items of interest in the collection include signed letters from Martin Luther King Jr., J. Edgar Hoover and Bobby Kennedy; the 100 millionth telephone produced in the United States; and a Colt pistol from Indiana’s Sesquicentennial.
The archives will serve to raise public awareness of the significance of Indiana history and introduce visitors to Branigin’s life story, his achievements and his persona, according to a statement from the college.
To attend the reception, RSVP by Sept. 9 by calling 317-738-8040 or emailing [email protected]. After Sept. 15, the archives will be open for viewing by appointment only by calling 317-738-8160 or emailing dshorey@franklin college.edu. There will be no admission charge.
The first lecture in the college’s 2016-17 convocation lecture series will follow the opening reception.
James H. Madison, Ph.D., will present the lecture “Two Hundred Years of Indiana History: Stories from Our Hoosier Heritage,” beginning at 7 p.m. in the Branigin Room located in the Napolitan Student Center.
Madison is the Thomas and Kathryn Miller Emeritus of History at Indiana University and one of the state’s preeminent historians. He will present some of the key stories of Indiana’s past — from the pioneer era through the Civil War to the 21st century. His illustrated talk will focus on the Hoosier experience, highlight connections between past and present and help Hoosiers think about their future.
Admission to the lecture is free and open to the public.
