Collection Information
Biographical Sketch
Scope and Content Note
Box and Folder List
Cataloging Information
Processed
by:
Charles Latham
March 1986
Updated 19 May 2004
Manuscript and Visual Collections Department
William Henry Smith Memorial Library
Indiana Historical Society
450 West Ohio Street
Indianapolis, IN 46202-3269
4 manuscript boxes
Gift of Henry County Historical Society , New Castle, Indiana c1961, 1986
Albert Duret Ogborn (1864-1922) was born near Greens Fork, Wayne County, Indiana, the son of Edwin F. Ogborn, a blacksmith and farmer, and Jane Bradbury Ogborn. Ogborn was educated in the common schools of Wayne County. From 1883 to 1889 he held various positions as salesman and as storekeeper of the newly opened Northern Indiana Hospital for the Insane in Logansport. Having taught himself shorthand, he was appointed court reporter of Henry County, and held this position from 1889 to 1900. Meanwhile he studied law in the office of Mark E. Fortner, and was admitted to the bar in 1894.
During the Spanish-American War, Ogborn recruited Company G of the 161st Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and commanded the company in the South and in Cuba. He was an active Freemason and Knight of Pythias.
Ogborn became active in Republican politics in 1900. He served as state senator for Fayette, Henry, and Union Counties in the sessions of 1901 and 1903, and from 1900 to 1908 is said to have been secretary for Republican national committeeman Harry S. New. As state senator, he was chairman of the committees on military affairs and on enrolled bills.
Beginning in 1901, Ogborn was involved in the planning, financing, and building of an interurban line from Lawrence through Knightstown to New Castle, a predecessor of the Terre Haute, Indianapolis, and Eastern line which was incorporated in 1907.
In 1906 he married Laura Quick. They had two children.
Sources Materials in collection
Illustrated Indiana Weekly, 3-9-1901, p.7
Biederwolf, History of 161st Indiana Volunteer Infantry, p.366
Legislative and State Manual of Indiana, 1903, p.202
Monks, Courts and Lawyers of Indiana, vol. 3, p.1331
This collection came to Indiana Historical Society in two parts, one given about 1961 and the other in 1986. It consists mainly of letters addressed to Ogborn, with carbon copies of some of his replies. It is arranged chronologically.
The correspondence comes mainly from the period 1900-1903, when Ogborn was serving as a state senator and as secretary to national committeeman Harry S. New. At this same time he was active in the planning and construction of an interurban line connecting Greenfield, Knightstown, and New Castle to Indianapolis.
Ogborn's correspondence as senator includes several requests for positions in the Senate (as clerk, stenographer, doorkeeper), and letters on the merits of various pieces of legislation before the Senate. In the national Republican party, he had some correspondence with Senators Albert J. Beveridge and Charles W. Fairbanks, with Congressman James E. Watson, and with State Senator Frederick E. Matson of Indianapolis. This correspondence largely concerned appointments (judges and postmasters) and possible candidacies. There is little in this material to indicate any special relationship to Harry S. New.
As one of the proponents of the Knightstown-New Castle interurban line, Ogborn received letters from purveyors of all kinds of equipment, from cedar poles and railroad ties to storage batteries and electrical supplies. He also wrote several letters setting forth to potential investors the prospects of the line.
Through the period, Ogborn was also practicing as a lawyer. His business included insurance claims and a bankruptcy. He also handled pension claims for some former members of his infantry company.
BOX 1 |
Folder |
Early essay against drunkenness |
1 |
1894 2 |
|
1895 |
3 |
1897 |
4 |
1899 |
5 |
1900 January-May |
6 |
June-October |
7 |
November |
8 |
December |
9 |
BOX 2 |
Folder |
1901 January |
1 |
February |
2 |
March |
3 |
April |
4 |
May |
5 |
June |
6 |
July |
7 |
August |
8 |
September |
9 |
October |
10 |
November |
11 |
December |
12 |
BOX 3 |
Folder |
1902 January-June |
1 |
July-December |
2 |
1903 1-10 January |
3 |
11-20 January |
4 |
21-31 January |
5 |
1-10 February |
6 |
11-20 February |
7 |
21-28 February |
8 |
BOX 4 |
Folder |
1903 March |
1 |
April |
2 |
May |
3 |
June |
4 |
July |
5 |
August |
6 |
September |
7 |
October |
8 |
November |
9 |
December |
10 |
1907 |
11 |
n.d. |
12 |
Telegrams, no year |
13 |
Undated petitions regarding legislation |
14 |
Miscellaneous |
15 |
For additional information on this collection, including a list of subject headings that may lead you to related materials:
1. Go to the Indiana Historical Society's online catalog: http://157.91.92.2/
2. Click on the "Basic Search" icon.
3. Select "Call Number" from the "Search In:" box.
4. Search for the collection by its basic call number (in this case, M 0222).
5. When you find the collection, go to the "Full Record" screen for a list of headings that can be searched for related materials.