Here’s a brief look back in time for this day, April 4.
In 1841, 1st Governor of the Indiana territory turned 9th U.S. President William Henry Harrison dies of pneumonia while in office. Harrison currently carries the unfortunate accolade of having the shortest presidential tenure – that only being 32 days. Heralded as the “Hero of Tippecanoe”, the Virginia native was as tenacious in battle as he was in politics, manifesting large, boisterous rallies against his opponents. He’s also currently the record holder for the longest inaugural speech for the U.S. presidency, having allotted around 2 hours. However, it’s widely believed this contributed to his death, as he stood in freezing cold temperatures for hours on end; all while wearing clothing incompatible with the weather. His grandson, Ohio native Benjamin Harrison, would become the 23rd U.S. President in 1889.
In 1960, the 1959 epic film Ben-Hur wins big at the Academy Awards on this year. In total, the film won 11 awards, ranging from best actor to best color cinematography. Its budget was the largest of any film at the time, having taken around $15 million (or $170 million in 2026) to produce. The film is based on the book titled Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ, which was written by Indiana native Lew Wallace. Wallace was a notable lawyer, general, and author whose study is featured prominently in Crawfordsville, IN. His final resting place is in Oak Hill Cemetery.
In 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated in Memphis, TN. Known as one of the most influential leaders of the Civil Rights Movement, he was a major proponent in desegregation policies between white and black Americans in everyday society. He’s perhaps most famously known for his “I Have A Dream” speech from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., which drew a crowd estimated to be around 250,000 people. He was in Memphis to prepare for a march in support of striking sanitation workers until a 40-year-old fugitive named James Earl Ray shot him while he stood from his hotel balcony. He was pronounced dead an hour later at a nearby hospital.