Mark Bennett: Dana historian explores Indiana via tour of governors' graves

Jul. 13—If anything exemplifies the depth of Andy Chandler's interest in Hoosier history, it's probably his trip to Oak Hill Cemetery in Crawfordsville.

There, Chandler found the final resting place of Henry S. Lane, who served two days as Indiana's governor 162 years ago.

Chandler didn't find old Gov. Lane's grave by accident. The journey was part of a historical quest to visit the burial sites of all 45 deceased Indiana governors. His adventure, undertaken with his wife Marcia, stemmed from a similar pursuit to visit the graves of all 39 late U.S. presidents.

He completed the presidential grave odyssey in 2022. In May, the Chandlers visited the 49th and final governor tomb.

The project immersed Chandler in the backstories of his adopted home state.

"It was a walk through Indiana history," said Chandler, who lives in Dana, where he also serves as a tour guide and volunteer archivist at the Ernie Pyle World War II Museum.

Chandler learned about colorful Hoosier oddities such as Lane. "I have grown to love Henry Lane," Chandler said earlier this month.

Lane left his mark on Indiana and American politics as a staunch, nearly lifelong abolitionist who influenced Abraham Lincoln's nomination as the Republican Party's presidential candidate in 1860. Lane delivered the keynote address at his party's convention that year. His saga as Indiana governor, though, is more obscure.

The fledgling Republican Party's strategy to win Indiana elected offices put Lane on the 1860 ballot as the GOP gubernatorial candidate alongside lieutenant governor candidate Oliver P. Morton, according to an Indiana Historical Bureau account. Lane won by 1,000 votes, got sworn in and then resigned two days later, allowing the Indiana General Assembly to then elect Lane to the U.S. Senate. Morton then became governor.

"It was one of the most bizarre episodes in the history of Indiana politics," Chandler said. "The people of Indiana were really ticked off."

Chandler soaked in those twists while tracking down each of those 45 governors' graves. History is a passion for him and the governors and presidential gravesite project embodies that drive.

"Finally, that degree I got 20 years ago is being put to use," Chandler quipped of his Ball State University degree in museum science.

It also reflects an interest in civics, sparked by the process he experienced while gaining U.S. citizenship. Chandler was born in Hualien, Taiwan, and adopted by his missionary father, the late Philip Chandler, who took Andy and the family to local historical sites in the countries where he served.

That tradition inspired Chandler's quest. In 2017, after his father passed from cancer, Chandler whimsically visited the grave of William Henry Harrison on the summit of Mount Nebo overlooking the Ohio River in North Bend, Ohio. His dad was on his mind. In that moment, he thought, "Why not [visit] them all?"

He did. And, by starting with Harrison, Chandler's mission had multiple outcomes. Harrison was both a former president, and one of Indiana's four territorial governors. Thus, William Henry Harrison became the first step in locating the graves of all 45 deceased Indiana governors and all 39 late presidents, as well as many other historical sites and historical figures' graves.

His knowledge of Indiana and the rest of America has broadened, as has his connect to west-central Indiana.

"I'm really beginning to find myself planting roots in the Wabash Valley," he said. "The best way to learn about a place is to learn about the civic structures, the laws and the history."

"Indiana has a very bizarre and fascinating regional history that I found in researching these governors," Chandler added.

It also introduced Chandler to all corners of the state. "I've seen parts of Indiana I never knew existed," he said.

He and Marcia traveled to places like Kentland, Williamsport, West Lafayette, Vincennes and Clinton. The state's 23rd governor Claude Matthews — remembered for successfully pushing the state legislature to ban prize fighting and horse racing — rests in Riverside Cemetery in Clinton.

Chandler also conducted lots of research. The total number of Hoosier governors reflects his studies.

The state has seen 51 governorships if calculated in successive order, but 49 individuals overall. Two served split terms (like President Grover Cleveland) — Isaac P. Gray (the 18th and 20th governor) and Henry F. Schricker (No. 36 and No. 38). Three served as appointed territorial governors before Indiana's statehood in 1816 — Harrison, John Gibson and Thomas Posey. However, as a historian, Chandler counts as a territorial governor Arthur St. Clair, who governed the Northwest Territory prior to Indiana becoming a territory in 1800. Four Hoosier governors are still living — Evan Bayh, Mitch Daniels, Mike Pence and current Gov. Eric Holcomb.

Chandler reached all 41 of the deceased "constitutional" governors (those elected after statehood) by December 2021, including four buried in other states. "I thought to myself, 'Why not get the territorial governors too, and have some fun," he recalled.

That addition took Andy and Marcia outside Indiana's borders, again.

Posey rests in Shawneetown, Ill. Gibson lies in a Pittsburgh, Pa., cemetery. Harrison is entombed in North Bend, Ohio. And St. Clair, a key Revolutionary War general, is buried in St. Clair Park in Greensburg, Pa. The park was originally a cemetery, but most of its graves were later moved to other cemeteries. St. Clair's grave remained, even as the park added a playground, walking path and amphitheater, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

That oddity fascinated Chandler.

"Imagine for a minute if you took Fairbanks Park [in Terre Haute] and someone famous — maybe Charles Fairbanks himself — was buried only 50 yards away," Chandler speculated. "That's basically the situation."

Some governors went without graves until the state remedied the oversights. Indiana's first governor, Jonathan Jennings, had an unmarked grave until the General Assembly approved a marker in 1893. Some graves are big, like the hefty obelisk atop Gov. Alvin P. Hovey's grave in Mount Vernon. Others are less conspicuous, like that of Gov. Otis Bowen in Bremen Municipal Cemetery.

After World War II duty and decades in the Indiana Legislature, Bowen served two terms as governor from 1973 to 1981, then became President Ronald Reagan's secretary of Health and Human Services. In his HHS role, Bowen teamed with Surgeon General C. Everett Koop to raise awareness of AIDS.

Chandler compared Bowen's home-state popularity to that of "Father Christmas."

Yet, "his grave is really humble for someone with such a crazy resume," Chandler said.

Such stories of a state's rich history needn't pass away along with the history-makers.

Mark Bennett can be reached at 812-231-4377 or mark.bennett@tribstar.com.