The Greatest Outrage: Military Park, Long Hospital, and Progressive Era Notions of Urban Space

Abstract

In 1911 Dr. Robert W. Long gave a gift of real estate to the state of Indiana and stipulated that the sale of the property would fund a teaching hospital for the Indiana School of Medicine. The state senator who sponsored the hospital bill suggested placing the proposed hospital within the boundaries of Military Park, the city’s oldest park. Indiana University trustees agreed, which led to Indianapolis Mayor Samuel Lewis Shank’s angry denunciation of the proposition as “one of the greatest outrages” proposed in recent years in Indianapolis. Three interested camps formed over the location of what became known as Long Hospital: the Indiana University trustees, who approved of placing the hospital in the park because of its proximity to downtown Indianapolis; lineage societies and veterans, who touted the park’s historical significance as a nationalistic message to all residents; and the state and city governments and local civic organizations, who promoted the health benefits of public parks and playgrounds. Through open debate, particularly in Indianapolis’ newspapers, each position supported Progressive era reform attitudes towards the use of civic space in terms of its relationships to public health, social morality, and nationalistic values.