Witches, fairies, ninjas, oh my!

Written by Joanne Williams, program developer at Whitewater Canal State Historic Site
The Whitewater Canal State Historic Site was magically transformed on Oct. 17 and 24! The Ben Franklin III became a haunted pirate ship and our horses, Mike and Jerry, turned into Jack-O-Lanterns and walking skeletons. We were visited by witches, fairies, ninjas, clowns, princesses [...]

History was dead and crawling …

Written by Anne Fairchild, eastern region program manager for the State Historic Sites
This year, history was dead and crawling at the Lanier Mansion State Historic Site.
It is always fascinating to ponder the mysteries and beauty of architectural elements. But it turns out that it is way more fun to “spook up” your own architecture. And that’s just what we [...]

Unparalleled Paisley Shawls

Written by Christine Atkinson, arts program developer at T.C. Steele State Historic Site
It’s finally here! The Unparalleled Paisley Shawls exhibit has been installed at the T.C. Steele State Historic Site. Site staff was on hand to help Indiana State Museum curators reveal these beautiful textile pieces. The day went smoothly, despite some hitches with the [...]

Windows on history

Written by Mike Linderman, sectional archaeology manager at Angel Mounds State Historic Site
Angel Mounds staff is heading to Old Camp Breckenridge in Kentucky to retrieve windows from three army barracks that date back to World War I. The buildings are scheduled for demolition and our goal is to salvage these pieces to one day use in potential reconstructions [...]

Antiquing at Lanier

Written by Gerry Reilly, site manager at Lanier Mansion State Historic Site
After about a year of planning, the first Annual Madison Antiques Market was on Sunday, Oct. 4. There was a wide variety of items from the late 19th and the early 20th century offered by 35 dealers. Some of the treasures I saw were an early [...]

Have EP, will travel

Recently, the Emancipation Proclamation (EP) from the Lincoln Financial Foundation Collection had to travel from its home at the Indiana State Museum to the Allen County Public Library (ACPL) for an important event. The EP, along with one of the last completed portraits of Lincoln, were featured artifacts for the Lincoln Collection opening event at ACPL. [...]

Fresh from the Lab

Written by Michele Greenan, Natural History and Archaeology Collections Manager at the Indiana State Museum
Archaeology requires a lot of patience, sometimes tedious fieldwork and perhaps a little guesswork. So finds like this one are especially exciting and fun to work on.
We recovered a ceramic vessel in southern Indiana last year during excavations at what is often [...]

Backing, wrapping, encapsulation

Written by fine art collection manager Jeana Dallape
Behind every artifact exhibited at the museum, there is a team of people who helped get it there. Famous people have entourages to make them look effortlessly perfect in public, but in museums, it’s the famous (and not so famous) artifacts that have the entourages. The famous Lincoln [...]

More Than Just a Cup of Tea

Written by Angela Lucas, program developer at Vincennes State Historic Sites
Part of preparing for a living history event like Muster on the Wabash, is seeing the world through the eyes of those you are portraying. I represent the women’s view of military life in 1812. My alter ego, Lydia Bacon, traveled with her husband Josiah [...]

Why Restoration?

Written by Laura Minzes, deputy director Historic Sites Structures and Real Estate
 How do you return a building to a specific time period? Why would you do this?
The Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites is undertaking the restoration of the Lanier Mansion to its 1850. Why, you ask? Well, first and most important is that J. [...]