Indiana State Museum

Indiana State Museum in 2020
Location within Indianapolis Show map of Indianapolis Indiana State Museum (Indiana) Show map of Indiana Indiana State Museum (the United States) Show map of the United States
Established	1869
Location	White River State Park, Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
Coordinates	39°46′7″N 86°10′9″W / 39.76861°N 86.16917°W / 39.76861; -86.16917
Type	History museum
Director	Cathy Ferree (CEO)
Curator	Susannah Koerber
Architect	RATIO Design[1]
Owner	State of Indiana
Public transit access	8
Website	www.indianamuseum.org

The Indiana State Museum is a museum located in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. The museum houses exhibits on the science, art, culture, and history of Indiana from prehistoric times to the present day.

Galleries

With more than 40,000 square feet (4,000 m²) of exhibit space, the museum's galleries cover the history of the natural world, Native Americans, cultural history, and the future of Indiana.^[2]

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

92 County Walk

The 92 County Walk is an art experience incorporated into the building's façade that spotlights Indiana's 92 counties by featuring an original sculpture for each county.^[3] The sculptures are made of limestone, aluminum, glass, and other materials, and represent the uniqueness of each Indiana county.^[4]

Collections

The museum's collection consists of items relating to Indiana's history, arts, and natural sciences. The collection of more than 500,000 objects contains six focus areas, which the museum refers to as "Centers of Excellence." These areas are Ice Age paleontology, Abraham Lincoln, Indiana art and artists, quilts and textiles, Indiana industry, technology, and agriculture, and Indiana archaeology.^[5]

The museum is in charge of the care and maintenance of the Indiana Governors' Portraits Collection, which consists of oil portraits (and one pastel portrait) of almost all of the governors of Indiana.^[6] The Indiana State Museum is responsible for commissioning the painting of an oil portrait for each new governor and the inclusion of that painting into the permanent collection.^[7] Most of the portraits currently hang in government offices in the Indiana Statehouse.^[7]>

State Historic Sites

The museum is part of the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites. This statewide institution maintains the museum and 11 state historic sites. Each site interprets the history of an important person, place, or event in Indiana's history.

Indiana State Historic Sites

Site name	Image	Nearest city	County	Description
Angel Mounds State Historic Site		Evansville	Vanderburgh and Warrick	Archaeological site with surviving major earthwork mounds that was constructed and inhabited by the Mississippian culture between 1000 and 1450CE. The site was later excavated by noted archaeologist Glenn A. Black.[8][9]
Corydon Capitol State Historic Site		Corydon	Harrison	Historic district that includes Indiana's original state capitol, the first state office building, and Governor William Hendricks' Headquarters.
Culbertson Mansion State Historic Site		New Albany	Floyd	Second Empire-style mansion built by industrialist William S. Culbertson in 1867 at a cost of $120,000. It contains 25-rooms within 20,000 square feet (1,900 m2) and was completed in November 1869.[10]
Gene Stratton-Porter State Historic Site		Rome City	Noble	Second home of naturalist and author Gene Stratton-Porter located along Sylvan Lake where she lived from 1914 to 1919 prior to relocating to California.
Lanier Mansion State Historic Site		Madison	Jefferson	Historic house museum situated along the Ohio River built by J.F.D. Lanier, a prominent banker, railroad financier, and co-founder of Winslow, Lanier & Co. The mansion was designed by noted architect Francis Costigan and completed in 1844.[11]
Levi & Catharine Coffin State Historic Site		Fountain City	Wayne	Home built by abolitionists Catharine and Levi Coffin in 1838–1839, later known as the "Grand Central Station of the Underground Railroad."[12]
Limberlost State Historic Site		Geneva	Adams	Log cabin home built by Gene Stratton-Porter and her husband Charles Porter in 1895 that derives its name from its location near the Limberlost Swamp, which served as inspiration for many of Stratton-Porter's novels.[13]
New Harmony State Historic Site		New Harmony	Posey	District in the historic town of New Harmony founded by the Harmony Society, including buildings such as the Mattias Scholle House. Later inhabited by Robert Owen and his Owenites.
T. C. Steele State Historic Site		Nashville	Brown	Picturesque property containing the home and studio of Hoosier Group artist Theodore Clement Steele and his second wife, Selma Neubacher Steele, as well as formal gardens and other natural features.
Vincennes State Historic Sites		Vincennes	Knox	Vincennes is Indiana's oldest city and original territorial capital. This district contains many early important buildings including the Indiana Territorial Capitol, Old State Bank, and Brouillet House.[14]
Whitewater Canal State Historic Site		Metamora	Franklin	Part of the Whitewater Canal that spanned 76 miles from Lawrenceburg, Indiana to Hagerstown, Indiana, this site contains the Duck Creek Aqueduct in Metamora, which is the only remaining wooden aqueduct in the United States.[15]