Wicked Columbus comes to Columbus Learning Center Oct. 25th

The next event in the Columbus, Past, Present and Future Series will take a wicked turn. The University Library of Columbus and Phi Theta Kappa at Ivy Tech are hosting a look at Columbus’ past next week featuring Paul Hoffman, author of Wicked Columbus Indiana.

Hoffman said he dug deep into archives of old newspaper clippings to find some of the seedier instances and places in Columbus history.

One of the seedy incidents in the city’s history came in 1877, when the Columbus mayor and the newspaper editor came to blows in downtown Columbus.

Hoffman said that the youngest mayor in Indiana, George Cooper, and the oldest newspaper editor in the state, Isaac M. Brown, came to blows over the paper’s news coverage. The fight, in 1877, ended up with violently trimmed beards and a cut finger.

Some of the darker moments in Columbus history included the Ku Klux Klan, Hoffman said.

The goal of the series of lectures is to entice people in the community to come visit the campus on Central Avenue.

The discussion will be at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 25th at the lecture hall at the Columbus Learning Center. Free deserts will be provided by Gramz Bakery & Cafe.