THINGS TO DO

Daughters of the American Revolution throw beer bash for weird historical object

Will Higgins
will.higgins@indystar.com

How long have you harbored fantasies of partying with the Daughters of the American Revolution?

Months? Years?

Friday is your chance. The local D.A.R. chapter, whose members can trace their lineage to people who fought in the Revolutionary War (on the right side), will be hostesses at a beer bash from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Indiana City Brewing Company. There’s no cover charge, but the point of the soiree is to raise money for rehabbing the East Washington Street obelisk, an odd bit of history made of limestone that you’ve likely driven past 1,000 times and never noticed.

It’s an eight-foot tall obelisk plunked down at the intersection of East Washington and Southeastern avenues by the D.A.R. in 1916, during Indiana’s centennial celebration, to commemorate Indianapolis’ crossroads-of-America status.

It served as a signpost, with an arrow pointing the way to Washington, D.C. The obelisk was moved at some point and pivoted carelessly so that it now indicates, incorrectly, that the nation’s capital is northeast of here. But that doesn’t matter because by now the obelisk is purely ornamental.

The D.A.R. hopes to raise $5,000 to restore the monument, doll up the landscaping around it and put up some flagpoles to draw attention to it.

Angie’s List, which has offices across the street from the obelisk, has pledged $500 toward the cause and has committed to maintain the monument and any new landscaping. The company previously demonstrated an interest in historic preservation by having offices in a nearby firehouse built in 1896.

The Indiana City Brewing Company has crafted a special beer for the event that it’s calling Forefathers Rye. The brewery will donate $1 for every beer sold to the obelisk. There’ll be food trucks, too and tunes from DJ Android.

Contact Star reporter Will Higgins at (317) 444-6043. Follow him on Twitter @WillRHiggins.

If you go

D.A.R. beer bash, 2 to 10 p.m., March 7, 2 to 10 p.m., Indiana City Brewing Company, 24 Shelby Street