Originally published in Traces of Indiana and Midwestern History (Indiana Historical Society), Spring 2023: 5-13. By 1900 there were vibrant Arabic-speaking communities across Indiana, including in Indianapolis, Terre Haute, and Michigan City. But Fort Wayne was special, at least according to its Syrian residents. Alixa Naff, who developed the Smithsonian Institution’s collection on Arab American history, wrote that Fort Wayne “was among the largest and … Continue reading “The Largest Syrian Colony Outside New York”: Syrian-Lebanese Immigration to Fort Wayne, Indiana