William Eastin English

From "Lexington" by Mary Wilson and Sharon Y. Asher, published sometime after 1975.

From the Indiana Historical Society - Manuscripts & Archives

William Eastin English (1850-1926) was the son of William Hayden English. William E. was born in "Englishton Park" near Lexington, Indiana (Scott Co.). He moved to Indianapolis in 1865 with his family, where he attended public and private schools. English received a law degree from Northwestern Christian University (present-day Butler University) in 1873. He was admitted to the bar the same year and practiced law in Indianapolis until 1882. In 1880, his father built English’s Opera House in Indianapolis, which William E. managed for a period of time. In 1930, the opera house’s name was changed to The English Theatre.

English served as a Democratic state representative (1880-1884), and was a delegate to the Democratic National Conventions of 1892 and 1896. In 1900, English joined the Republican Party. He served as captain and aide-de-camp to General Joseph Wheeler during the Spanish-American War. English was a delegate to the Republican National Convention of 1912, and was a Republican state senator from 1916 until his death in 1926.

English married Anna Josephine Desmond Fox (d. 1885) in 1880. After her death, he married Helen Orr Phaff in 1898; they had one child.

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