Three generations of Indiana storytellers — in advertising, on the air, and in print.
Howard Caldwell Sr. wrote down his life. His son Howard Jr. — the longtime anchor of WRTV Channel 6 in Indianapolis — preserved it, and added his own. Now Ginny Caldwell Hingst, sportswriter turned family historian, is opening the archives.
This site gathers their letters, news articles, photographs, and written works — a record of ordinary and extraordinary Hoosier life across more than a hundred years.
Advertising man & memoirist
Grew up in Lewisville, Indiana; a 1911 graduate of Spiceland Academy and a 1915 graduate of Butler College. In 1917 he made his way to Kokomo to work for Elwood Haynes, served in the Navy from 1918 to 1919, and built a career in advertising — president of the board of the Caldwell-Van Riper Ad Agency at the time of his death.
Broadcast journalist, WRTV Channel 6
Grew up in Irvington, a neighborhood of Indianapolis; a 1944 graduate of Howe High School. He served in the Navy, graduated from Butler University in 1950, and became one of Indianapolis's most trusted voices as longtime anchor at WRTV Channel 6 — all while writing his own story and preserving his father's.
Sportswriter, author & keeper of the archive
Grew up in Indianapolis; graduated from Lawrence Central High School in 1977 and Indiana University in 1982, then made her way to Kokomo as a sportswriter for the local newspaper. Now retired, she reads through her Dad's and Grandfather's archives, leads Bible study, and earned her master's in cultural apologetics from Houston Christian University in 2024.
Drawn from a century of family papers, Ginny Caldwell Hingst's book tells the story of Howard Caldwell Sr. and a friendship that shaped his life — told in his own words and hers.
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Howard Sr. grew up in Lewisville, Indiana, and came of age with the new century — Spiceland Academy, Butler College, a job with automotive pioneer Elwood Haynes, and Navy service in the First World War. He spent his career in advertising, rising to president of the board of the Caldwell-Van Riper Ad Agency. He loved fishing in Canada and northern Michigan, and he loved writing down his life experiences — the habit that made this archive possible.
Howard Jr. grew up in Irvington on the east side of Indianapolis, graduated from Howe High School in 1944, and served in the Navy before earning his degree from Butler University in 1950. He became a fixture of Indiana broadcast journalism as the longtime anchor at WRTV Channel 6. Off the air he followed Butler basketball and Indianapolis Indians baseball — and, like his father, wrote down his life experiences while carefully preserving his father's.
41 columns · Indianapolis Prime Times, 2001–2005
His look back at the Indianapolis he grew up in — the theaters, the big bands, the paper routes, the Navy, and early television — transcribed in full with the original photographs.
1935 – 1940 · hand-made, age 9 to 15
The Weekly News, Daily News, The News, and Sports News — the newspapers young Howard wrote, lettered, and drew by hand, shown page by page exactly as he made them.
After retiring from the anchor desk, Howard looked back at the Indianapolis he grew up in. Click a headline to read the column, transcribed from his clipping file.
“Howard Caldwell ‘Remembers’” — the front-page notice announcing the column: “Veteran news journalist Howard Caldwell joins Indianapolis Prime Times with a regular column looking back at the city’s history and some of its more interesting people and happenings… Find out why one of his teachers believed, ‘Howard knows much more than he tells us.’”
“Flying Ace Weir Cook” — the front-page teaser for column No. 23, now in the archive along with Howard’s original photograph of Colonel Cook and his own Pennant Flying Corps Manual.
Column No. 42 — on the Indianapolis Olympians, the city’s early NBA team — is the one column still to be added. (Its subject is known from the correction Howard ran in his final column, No. 43.)
Decades before the anchor desk, nine-year-old Howard hand-lettered his own newspapers — the Weekly News, a short-lived Daily News, The News, and Sports News — complete with movie listings, radio picks, serials, comics, riddles, and ads for Pennant Syrup, his father's real radio sponsor. He bound them into volumes and kept them all his life. Every page is shown exactly as he made it — click an issue below to leaf through the actual pages, hand-lettering, pencil drawings and all.
The family archive holds 263 photographed pages of Howard's boyhood papers — from the second issue ever (April 7, 1935) through Sports News in November 1940. Wherever Howard's own page numbers make the sets clear, the pages are grouped into complete issues; issues he made in both a pencil draft and an inked final are kept as separate copies, just as he left them.
Ginny grew up in Indianapolis, graduated from Lawrence Central High School in 1977 and Indiana University in 1982, then made her way to Kokomo to work as a sportswriter for the local newspaper. Now retired, she spends her time reading through her Dad's and Grandfather's archives and leading Bible study. In 2024 she earned her master's degree in cultural apologetics from Houston Christian University. She makes her home in Kokomo — and in 2025 published Irreplaceable, the first book drawn from the family archive.
Written by Ginny Caldwell Hingst and drawn from the family archive her father spent a lifetime preserving, Irreplaceable tells the story of Howard Caldwell Sr. and a friendship that shaped his life — from Lewisville and Spiceland Academy through Butler College, Kokomo, and beyond.
The book weaves together Howard Sr.'s own writings, Howard Jr.'s recollections, and Ginny's research — three authors, one family, which is why Ginny calls them her Dream Team.
Get the Book on BlurbThe Caldwell family has meant so much to so many of us, and in truth to all of our city and state. The book filled in many gaps in my knowledge of the family history, and I previously knew nothing of his close friendship with Mr. Ostrander and its tragic ending. The photos in particular were terrific, and moving.”
With Irreplaceable, Ginny Caldwell Hingst has claimed her place in the line of legendary Caldwell communicators. Meticulously sourced under Ginny's careful and respectful approach, the book is indeed ‘a tribute to her grandfather (Howard Caldwell Sr.) and his friend’ and, by inference, a tribute to her father, Howard Caldwell Jr., who instilled in her a love of history. Ginny has turned a long-forgotten cache of letters into a warm and personal look at a world of collegiate bonhomie upended by war and plague more than 100 years ago. Knowing there are more letters — and more stories to tell, readers can look forward to the next installment of the Caldwell family's history warmly told by the family's latest storyteller.”
Irreplaceable will motivate you to be a better steward of family history! The handwritten letters included are special. As a tribute, grab pen and paper and write to someone important in your life!”
What a tremendous insight into the lives of two great friends during a formative time in our nation's history. This takes me back in time as I remember my own family history. I had the pleasure of meeting Howard Caldwell Jr. so being able to place a known person in the story makes it even better.”
Irreplaceable offers the reader charming pictures and an interesting family history, which as an archivist I love. But, the more important element is the portrayal of the strength of a friendship. Ginny's writing style is easy to read. The pictures and quotes she chose made me wish I could have met her grandfather.”
Irreplaceable is Ginny Caldwell Hingst's lovingly told story of the importance and lasting nature of family, friendship, and community. It also touches on how fate and chance can impact future generations in ways that are impossible to discern at the time of their occurrence. Though the subjects are the Caldwell and Ostrander families, we can see our own families in these stories. And, that makes them all the more relatable and timeless.”
Irreplaceable is a charming book. Through Ginny's photos, maps and descriptions, the story is easy to follow. I felt a very personal connection to all of the individuals. I can only imagine how cherished Irreplaceable is to the family members.”
I love Irvington, I love history and I love nostalgia. I also love to read. I consider it an honor to have a copy of your book.”
I couldn't put the book down once I started reading. I thought about my own parents and how they experienced some of the same things.”
I am envious of Howard Sr. and Joe's friendship. Because of this book, I want to start writing letters again!”
You did an amazing job collecting all the information, and to think, all that priceless information could have gone missing!”
A person is blessed to have a friendship as Joe and Popo did. What a beautiful tribute to your family.”
I felt a connection to Joe, knowing he came to Albuquerque to heal from his TB. I can relate to how he felt because it is so different from Indiana.”
What an amazing treasure Ginny found in those ‘suitcase letters’ hidden in plain sight in the family attic. Howard Caldwell Sr. could not have known that his granddaughter would discover, value, and write the story of a lasting friendship between Caldwell and Joe Ostrander. Such a treat for the rest of us that she chose to share this piece of history.”
If you are a history buff, especially early 20th century American history, you will thoroughly appreciate Irreplaceable. If you enjoy gripping stories of enduring friendship, you will be deeply moved by this story. If you like both of these things, you will absolutely love this book!”