12 Jan Processing Wellness Workshops
2025 marks the 100 year anniversary of the D. C. Stephenson trial and conviction at the Hamilton County Historic Courthouse. Noblesville Creates, Gal’s Guide Library, Copper Z Creative Wellness, Hamilton County Historical Society, and other local partners are commemorating this occasion with special events, workshops, and resources throughout the year. Come back to this post often for updated information. If you would like to participate in any of these events, sponsor an event, or assist us in planning observation of this trial, please contact Aili at amcgill@noblesvillecreates.org.
Processing Wellness Workshops
Copper Z Creative Wellness, in conjunction with Noblesville Creates, is offering workshops dedicated to helping adults and families encounter and process the story of Madge Oberholzer’s death and the D.C. Stephenson Trial. Each workshop will reflect on a noble act highlighted through Madge’s life and work. Click the link above to learn more specifics and to register..
There are 4 workshops open to the Community.
April 14th 6:00pm (Noble Act of Resilience)
August 9th 1:00pm to 2:30pm (Noble Act of Community)
May 3rd, 1:00pm to 2:30pm (Noble Act of Forgiveness)
July 12th, 1:00pm to 2:30pm (Noble Act of Service)
Upcoming Events
Gal’s Guide Podcast: Madge Saved Lives
3/15/25- Available wherever you like to listen to podcasts. Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, and more. Also available at galsguide.org
D.C. Stephenson Trial Exhibit & Tours
Tour Dates: April 25th, May 23rd, June 20th, July 18th, August 15th, September 12th, October 10th, November 7th
For more information, visit Hamilton County Historical Society.
Madge: Empathy and Wisdom, 100 years later – A Conversation with Charlotte Halsinger Ottinger, author of Madge
April 14th- For more information, visit Gal’s Guide Library.
Presentation by Local Historian David Heighway: David will discuss the trial, judges, and jury in the original courtroom. May 10- For more information, visit…
Processing a Hundred Years: Artists Reactions to the D. C. Stephenson Trial and the Death of Madge Oberholzer
August 1st-30th at Hamilton County Artists’ Association
For more information, visit Noblesville Creates
Noblesville Diversity Coalition Community Conversation: Exploring Our History
August , For more information, visit the Noblesville Diversity Coalition.
Persistent Destroyer One Act Play
This one act play about the jurors in the Stephenson trial. This play is written by Noblesville playwright Ian Hauer and will be performed in the original courtroom. November 14th through 16th -For more Information contact info@noblesvillecreates.org
Resources
You can purchase a Mandala Art Wellness Workbook (square link) designed by Lindsay Zehren of Copper Z Creative Wellness and local artist Jessica Hancock. This book provides reflection questions tied to unique coloring pages based around different themes of empowerment. Digital files of individual pages will be available.
Story Walk Guide (need more information)
List of Central Indiana Programs & Resources (hyperlink)
Wellness & Process Reading List (attach PDF)
History Reading List (attach PDF)
Health & Wellness List (attach PDF)
Volunteer List (attach PDF)
List of Locations (attach PDF)
Processing 100 Years: The D.C. Stephenson Trial and Its Legacy
By Alithir McGill
On April 14th, 1925, Madge Oberholtzer died at her home in Irvington from injuries she received at the hand of D.C. Stephenson, the Grand Dragon of the Indiana Ku Klux Klan. Her signed statement, taken upon her deathbed, was read in court and was used as the primary piece of evidence to convict one of the most powerful men in America to life in prison for second degree murder. That trial – the trial that triggered the collapse of the Indiana Klan – took place here in Noblesville, in the historic courthouse in a courtroom that is still in use today.
One hundred years later, we are all still affected by the ripples from this seismic event. Madge reported that Stephenson had no fear of retribution for her kidnapping because, he said, “I am the law in Indiana,” and the vast network of police, sheriff’s offices, elected officials, and community leaders that were on his payroll or in his debt undermined the confidence in Indiana’s political system for years. Hamilton County’s reputation is still shadowed by the Klan’s activities here, and Noblesville is nationally recognized as the place where twelve white male jurors ended D.C. Stephenson’s power and influence, proving that he was not, in fact, the law. The trial and Madge’s testimony are both still referenced in law schools across the country as precedent for murder trials and victim’s rights.
As we approach this dubious anniversary, we at Noblesville Creates have been working with several other Central Indiana cultural organizations to determine the most effective ways to commemorate and process this story.
In many circles, any mention of the Klan triggers anxiety and concern. Some may fear that this anniversary could encourage reemergence of the Klan’s hatred, violence, and rampant discrimination. Some could be concerned that probing into this story could reveal that their own family and friends may have been part of the Klan, whether by choice or by coercion. Some could find the horrific details of Madge’s final days to be too painful to discuss.
However, to gloss over this landmark event, with its sordid details and its intricate connections to so many aspects of American life in the 1920s, would be to take something away from the victims in the story, and, indeed, to today’s citizens of Noblesville.
It’s a cliche to say that those who don’t learn from the past are doomed to repeat it, and I’m sure that many who are familiar with this story can find echoes of it in modern America. But that’s not all that observation of this centennial is about: it is also about remembering the ordinary, everyday people whose lives were forever changed by Madge’s murder, Stephenson’s conviction, and the collapse of the Klan.
