Photos by jcurtis55
INDIANA SPIRIT QUEST #650 "Mr. Vice President"
This quest will bring you to the Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis. Crown Hill is the third largest public cemetery in the United States with over 188,000 burials. There are several other caches in Crown Hill cemetery. It would be quite easy to spend a day here. The grounds open at 8:00AM an close at either 5:00 or 6:00PM, depending on the time of year. I would advise you check the Crown Hill web site if you plan on visiting late in the afternoon.
The posted coordinates will take you to a mausoleum for Thomas Marshall and his wife Lois. Mr. Marshall is one of three United States Vice Presidents buried at Crown Hill. This is an offset cache. Stand at the front of the mausoleum at the front step. From there go 160 feet at 80 degrees.
Vice President Marshall
A native of North Manchester Indiana, Thomas Marshall attended Wabash College and passed the bar exam at the age of 21. He then practiced law at Columbia City Indiana. An Indiana Historical sign for Thomas Marshall can be found in Columbia City.
Mr. Marshall's first notable position in politics came when he served as Governor of Indiana from 1909-1913. A democrat, Mr. Marshall bucked the trends of the time and ordered state institutions not to implement newly passed forced sterilization laws. He was also strongly against capital punishment and no executions occurred during his term as Governor.
Promoted as a candidate for US President in the 1912 Democratic convention. It actually appeared for a time he might win the nomination, until William Jennings Bryan came out and endorsed Woodrow Wilson. Marshall was then proposed as the VP candidate and eventually won that office.
He served as Wilson's VP for two full terms, something that rarely happened in US political history. This was despite the fact that Marshall and Wilson did not particularly like each other. Marshall's time as VP became known for a couple of things. First, Wilson had a debilitating stroke in 1919, but Marshall refused to become the acting US President. The amendment to the constitution that clearly defines this process did not exist then, and he was concerned at the precedent it would set. Known for his quick wit, Marshall was presiding over a Senate session during a heated debate in which the opponents were arguing about what the country needed. Marshall quipped, "What this country needs is a good 5-cent cigar."
After his 2nd term ended, Marshall returned to Indiana and his law practice. He died during a return trip to Washington DC in 1925 and was buried in Crown Hill Cemetery.
The cache container is a pill bottle. If you go 60 feet south of the final cache, there is a LARGE geode.