Press Releases

Documentary Showing at the La Porte County Historical Society Museum

March 20, 2026

Press Release

Join us on Saturday, April 4 at 2:00pm for a showing of the documentary Discovering Naomi Anderson by Rana Segal!

After the showing, there will be a Q & A session with Rana and others who were involved in the documentary.

We hope everyone will be able to stop by to see this wonderful film and chat with those who helped create it!

Below is a short bio of Naomi Anderson:

Naomi Bowman Talbert Anderson was born in Michigan City on March 1, 1843. She went to a public school there; she was the first black person to attend the school. Anderson spent her first 20 years in Michigan City. By 1868, Anderson and her husband, William Talbert, moved to Chicago. It was during this time that she became heavily involved in the temperance movement, working to protect POC and teenagers from the effects of alcohol.

In 1869, Anderson spoke at the first Women's Rights Conference in Chicago. She said, "Black women have no more rights now than they had before the abolition of slavery." This speech became very popular and was printed in newspapers across America. She continued to champion temperance and women's suffrage, even speaking with Susan B. Anthony. Anderson spoke at hundreds of events across the country. She also established three orphanages and fought so other young black girls could have the same educational opportunity she did. Anderson passed away on June 9, 1899.