1827       Lew Wallace is born in Brookville, Indiana on April 10 to David and Esther Wallace

1832       The Wallace family moves to Covington, Indiana

1833       Esther Wallace dies of consumption

1836       David Wallace marries Zerelda Saunders

1837       David Wallace takes office at the 6^th Governor of Indiana; family moves to Indianapolis

1843       Lew begins working as a copyist for the Marion County Clerk and begins studying the law at night

1846       Lew serves as a 2^nd Lieutenant of the 1^st Indiana Volunteers in Mexican-American War, but sees little action

1849       Lew passes the bar exam

1850       Lew sets up law practice in Covington, Indiana

1852       Lew marries Susan Elston, daughter of Isaac Elston, on May 2

1853       Henry Lane Wallace is born in Covington and family moves to Crawfordsville

1856       Lew is elected to Indiana State Senate

Lew organizes the Montgomery Guards, a militia unit that gains him statewide notoriety

1861       Lew is appointed Adjutant General of Indiana to begin organizing Indiana’s soldiers

Lew becomes Colonel of the 11th Indiana Volunteer Infantry

1862       Lew promoted to Major General and commands troops in Tennessee battles of Forts Donelson and Henry and Shiloh

Lew organizes a successful defense of Cincinnati, Ohio

1864       Lew is appointed Commander of the 8^th Army Corps at Baltimore by President Lincoln

Lew leads troops in the Battle of Monocacy, which saves Washington, D.C. from Confederate assault

1865       Lew leads secret mission in Mexico to stop flow of goods into the Confederacy

Lew is appointed second in command of the Lincoln assassination trial

Lew is appointed President of the Court for the trial of Henry Wirz, the commander of Andersonville prison

1866       Lew returns to Mexico and supplies the Juaristas with arms in their successful attempt to overthrow Maximillian

1868       Lew returns to Crawfordsville and builds a two-story Victorian home on land originally owned by Susan’s father

1870       Lew unsuccessfully runs for Congress

1873       Lew’s first novel, The Fair God, is published

1878       Lew is appointed to serve as Governor of the New Mexico Territory by President Hayes

1880       Lew’s second novel, Ben-Hur, is published on November 12

1881       Lew is appointed United States Minister to Turkey by President Garfield

                Lew becomes good friends with Sultan Abdul Hamid II

1885       Lew returns to Crawfordsville

1893       Lew’s third novel, The Prince of India, is published

1895       Construction of Lew’s study begins in Crawfordsville

1899       Ben-Hur adapted into a stage play and opens at the Broadway Theater in New York City

1905       Lew dies on February 15 in Crawfordsville

1906       Lew’s self-titled autobiography published with help from Susan and Mary Hannah Krout

1907       Susan dies on October 1 in Crawfordsville

1910       A marble statue of Lew placed in Statuary Hall at the United States Capitol Building in Washington

A copy of the statue is placed on the Study grounds in Crawfordsville

1925       First full length motion picture of Ben-Hur released, starring Ramon Navarro

1959       Re-make of Ben-Hur starring Charlton Heston breaks box office records and garners a record eleven Academy awards