Presentation by University of Indianapolis professor Michael G. Cartwright focuses on a pair of Bartholomew County educators whose lives stretched from the world of the pioneer college in Hartsville to the modern high school in Columbus. These two figures first met as students at Hartsville College in the 1870s. In 1911 the students of Columbus High School commissioned the artist T.C. Steele to paint Prof. Wertz's portrait and Marie Goth to paint the portrait of Mrs. Condo. The nostalgic story of how the paintings were lost and subsequently found has been told in Bartholomew County for more than a half century. Prof. Cartwright's presentation focuses on the remarkable lives behind the storied paintings.
The Main Library is located in the Cleo Rogers Memorial Library in downtown Columbus at 536 Fifth Street. Completed in 1969 and designed by architect I.M. Pei, it features library collections for children, teens, and adults. It also houses the Columbus Indiana Architectural Archives, Family and Local History collection, and BCPL Create studio.