Indiana State Museum facts for kids
 |
|
Indiana State Museum in 2020
|
|
| Lua error in Module:Location_map at line 420: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). | |
| Established | 1869 |
|---|---|
| Location | White River State Park, Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. |
| Type | History museum |
| Architect | RATIO Design |
| Owner | State of Indiana |
| Public transit access |   8 |
The Indiana State Museum is a cool place in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. It's a museum where you can explore the science, art, culture, and history of Indiana. You'll find exhibits covering everything from ancient times to today!
Contents
Museum History: A Journey Through Time
The museum's story began in 1862. The State Librarian, R. Deloss Brown, started collecting interesting items. This first collection was like a "cabinet of curiosities," a room filled with unique objects.
In 1869, the Indiana General Assembly (Indiana's law-making group) passed a law. This law helped create a collection of rocks, minerals, and natural history items from Indiana. A state geologist was put in charge of organizing and labeling these collections. Over the years, the museum's collection grew. It added natural history items and things related to the American Civil War.
Moving from the Statehouse
The museum's collection was first shown on the third floor of the Indiana Statehouse. But in 1919, it moved to the basement to make space for another department. For almost 45 years, the collection was not well cared for. Many items were lost or damaged. Because of this, the museum even closed completely a couple of times.
In the late 1950s, Governor Harold W. Handley's team looked into the museum's problems. They suggested building a brand new museum. The Statehouse was just not a good home for it anymore.
A New Home: Old City Hall
Planning for a new location happened during Governor Matthew E. Welsh's time (1961–1965). They found a great spot: the old Indianapolis City Hall. This building was designed in 1910. After some updates, it became the museum's new home.
The museum officially opened in the old City Hall in 1967. It showed exhibits about Indiana's culture and nature. You could see Indiana art, political items, natural history samples, and Native American artifacts.
In 1976, the museum earned a special honor. It received "accreditation" from the American Association of Museums. This means the museum meets high standards for education, public service, and caring for its collections. The new location brought many visitors and new donations. Soon, the museum started to outgrow this space too!
Finding a Permanent Spot: White River State Park
In 1979, a group was formed to create White River State Park. This new park was meant to celebrate Indiana. A new home for the State Museum fit perfectly into these plans. In 1984, the museum decided to move to the park area.
In 1995, it was announced that an IMAX theater would be built at the museum site. The theater opened in December 1996. Later, in 1998, the IMAX theater became part of the museum's building design.
Construction for the museum building started in 1999. Local architects, Ratio Architects, designed the building. The Indiana State Museum finally opened its doors to the public on May 22, 2002. Governor Frank O'Bannon hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Six hundred schoolchildren and many other people attended the grand opening.
Exploring the Galleries
The museum has over 40,000 square feet (3,700 m2) of exhibit space! Its galleries cover Indiana's natural history, Native American history, cultural history, and even the future of the state. The museum equally shares its space between art, culture, and science.
Gov. Frank O'Bannon Great Hall
- Dean and Barbara White Auditorium
- Legacy Theater: The Indiana African American Experience
First Floor
- Gallery One
- Ancient Seas
- R.B. Annis Naturalist's Lab
- Frozen Reign
- First Nations
- Natural Regions
Second Floor
- Contested Territory
- 19th State
- The Hoosier Way
- Crossroads of America
- Enterprise Indiana
- Global Indiana
- American Originals
- Firefly Landing
Third Floor
- Rapp Reception Hall
- The Ford Gallery
- NiSource Gallery
- South Gallery
- Thomas A. King Bridge
- Lincoln Financial Foundation Gallery
Exhibit Design: A Story on Every Floor
In 1998, experts helped design the museum's exhibits. They decided that the museum's three main topics – art, culture, and science – should be shown in an exciting way. The idea was that visitors would discover Indiana's story as they moved up through the museum's three floors.
- The ground floor shows ancient prehistory and natural history.
- The second floor tells the story of Indiana's industrial and cultural history. It focuses on things made in Indiana and the people who made them.
- The third floor has art galleries. These galleries feature art and artists from Indiana on a rotating basis.
92 County Walk
The 92 County Walk is a special art display on the outside of the building. It celebrates Indiana's 92 counties. Each county has its own unique sculpture. These sculptures were made by 32 different artists. They use materials like limestone, aluminum, and glass to show what makes each Indiana county special.
L. S. Ayres Tea Room
The original Tea Room was a popular spot in the L. S. Ayres department store for almost 90 years. When it closed in 1990, the Ayres family and the museum decided to bring it back! Planners designed a special space on the museum's second floor. It has real old furniture and copies of the original drapes and carpets. The Tea Room opened with the new museum in 2002. Thousands of visitors enjoy it every year.
Museum Collections
The museum's collection includes items about Indiana's history, arts, and natural sciences. It has over 500,000 objects! These objects are grouped into six main areas, called "Centers of Excellence."
These special areas are:
- Ice Age paleontology (studying ancient life)
- Abraham Lincoln
- Indiana art and artists
- Quilts and textiles
- Indiana industry, technology, and agriculture
- Indiana archaeology (studying human history through digging up old things)
The Indiana State Museum also manages a huge collection of art by Indiana artists. It's one of the largest state-owned art collections in the country! The museum also takes care of the Indiana Governors' Portraits Collection. This collection has oil paintings of almost all of Indiana's governors. The museum is in charge of getting a new portrait painted for each new governor. Most of these portraits hang in government offices in the Indiana Statehouse.
Indiana State Historic Sites
The museum is part of a bigger group called the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites. This group runs the main museum and 11 other historic sites across the state. Each site helps tell the story of an important person, place, or event in Indiana's history.
Indiana State Historic Sites List
| Site Name | Image | Nearest City | County | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Angel Mounds State Historic Site | Evansville | Vanderburgh and Warrick | An archaeological site with large earthwork mounds. These were built by the Mississippian culture between 1000 and 1450 CE. | |
| Corydon Capitol State Historic Site | Corydon | Harrison | This historic area includes Indiana's first state capitol building and other early government buildings. | |
| Culbertson Mansion State Historic Site | New Albany | Floyd | A huge, fancy mansion built in 1867 by a rich businessman named William S. Culbertson. It has 25 rooms! | |
| Gene Stratton-Porter State Historic Site | Rome City | Noble | The second home of famous naturalist and author Gene Stratton-Porter. She lived here from 1914 to 1919. | |
| Lanier Mansion State Historic Site | Madison | Jefferson | A beautiful historic house museum next to the Ohio River. It was built in 1844 for a well-known banker, J.F.D. Lanier. | |
| Levi & Catharine Coffin State Historic Site | Fountain City | Wayne | This home was built by abolitionists Levi and Catharine Coffin. It was a very important stop on the Underground Railroad. | |
| Limberlost State Historic Site | Geneva | Adams | The log cabin home of Gene Stratton-Porter and her husband. It's near the Limberlost Swamp, which inspired many of her books. | |
| New Harmony State Historic Site | New Harmony | Posey | This historic town was founded by a group called the Harmony Society. It includes many old buildings. | |
| T. C. Steele State Historic Site | Nashville | Brown | The home and art studio of famous Indiana artist Theodore Clement Steele. It also has beautiful gardens. | |
| Vincennes State Historic Sites | Vincennes | Knox | Vincennes is Indiana's oldest city. This area has many important early buildings, like the first Indiana Territorial Capitol. | |
| Whitewater Canal State Historic Site | Metamora | Franklin | This site is part of the old Whitewater Canal. It has the Duck Creek Aqueduct, which is the only wooden aqueduct like it left in the United States. |
See also
- List of U.S. state historical societies and museums
- List of attractions and events in Indianapolis
- Indiana Register of Historic Sites and Structures
