Abe Martin

Call him the old-school Donald Trump: Elwood native Wendell Willkie won the GOP presidential nomination in 1940 by emphasizing his business cred as a CEO. Merrie Melodies used Willkie as a punchline a few years later, when Bugs Bunny said, “IT AIN’T VENDELL VILLKIE!”

Starting now, Hoosiers will mark two centuries of Indiana history with a yearlong party. But what, exactly, are we commemorating?