PENDLETON — Representatives from Indiana Historical Bureau and Historic Fall Creek Pendleton Settlement gathered outside Carnegie Learning Center, 424 E. State St., Pendleton, recently to dedicate a historical marker honoring Walter Dorwin Teague, an industrial design pioneer who grew up in Pendleton.

“He attributed his success to the libraries that were here,” settlement member Bob Post said during a brief speech about Teague.

He said Teague often donated to local libraries and corresponded with local librarians.

[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]

Click here to purchase photos from this gallery

The historical marker recognizes “Teague’s lasting contributions to the field of industrial design,” Historical Marker Program Director Casey Elizabeth Pfeiffer wrote in an email prior to the ceremony, which she attended.

The marker program is overseen by Indiana Historical Bureau, a division of the Indiana State Library.

“Through his work, he showed that functionality and aesthetic went hand in hand in creating beautifully designed products and helped popularize the field,” Pfeiffer wrote.

The new marker states Teague advanced industrial design “through writings, lectures, the formation of The Society of Industrial Design, and a 1941 court case which established industrial design as a profession.

“By the mid-1940s, Teague had industrial design offices on the East and West Coasts. He supported his hometown through regular donations to the Pendleton Public Library.”

According to Pfeiffer, state historical markers commemorate significant individuals, organizations, places and events in Indiana history.

Teague’s marker is the sixth state historical marker in Madison County.

Two others exist in Pendleton. One, located on Pendleton Avenue north of the Fall Creek bridge, memorializes the 1824 murder of American Indians and the trial and conviction of white men for the crime.

Another marks an attack on abolitionists, including Frederick Douglass, who spoke against slavery locally on Sept. 16, 1843. They were attacked, but they were also protected by supporters and ultimately delivered their message at a church the next day.

For more about markers in the county, see in.gov/history/markers/3819.htm#madison.