Indiana Historical Society
Indianapolis, Indiana | |
Coordinates | 39°46′13.5″N 86°09′58″W / 39.770417°N 86.16611°W |
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Membership | 7,500 households |
President and CEO | Jody Blankenship |
31 members | |
Publication | Traces of Indiana and Midwestern History The Hoosier Genealogist: Connections |
Affiliations | Smithsonian, American Alliance of Museums, American Association for State and Local History |
Staff | 96 |
Website | www |
The Indiana Historical Society (IHS) is one of the United States' oldest and largest historical societies. It describes itself as "Indiana's Storyteller".
It is housed in the Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center at 450 West Ohio Street in
A private, nonprofit membership organization founded in 1830, the IHS maintains a research library and archives on the history of Indiana and the
History
The Indiana Historical Society was started on December 11, 1830, which was the fourteenth anniversary of the statehood of Indiana (December 11, 1816). A group of Indianapolis-area leaders sought to obtain objects relating to Indiana's history. Its purpose was to hold a "collection of all materials calculated to shed light on the natural, civil, and political history of Indiana, the promotion of useful knowledge and the friendly and profitable intercourse of such citizens of the state as are disposed to promote the aforesaid objects". The headquarters of the Indiana Historical Society has remained in Indianapolis.[4]
In 1831, the
In 1886, the IHS was reorganized under the direction of Jacob Piatt Dunn. With trusted associates, Dunn started the policy of annual meetings of the society that continue to this day. Dunn was able to enthuse Hoosiers of various occupations to gather resources for the society, focusing on editors, professional historians, lawyers, librarians, and writers. However, Dunn's attempt to allow women to join the society failed in 1888; it would not be until 1906 that a woman, editor Eliza Browning, would be admitted. Also thanks to Dunn, the Indiana Historical Society had an office at the state capitol building from 1888 to 1914.[5][6]
The Indiana Historical Society continued to affect and be affected by the activities of the
The bequest of philanthropist Delavan Smith in 1922 of a large sum of money and a sizable collection of books allowed the IHS to start its William Henry Smith Memorial Library.[5] During the 1940s, Howard Henry Peckham was the director of the IHS and established many professional standards in the field of public history.[7]
Beginning in the 1950s, the Indiana Historical Society started publishing works related to the history of Indiana. The most important of these works was the 1966 multi-volume set on the history of Indiana, in celebration of the sesquicentennial (150th) anniversary of Indiana's statehood. Other notable works included the Pulitzer Prize-winning The Old Northwest in 1950.[8] In 2009, the IHS celebrated the 20th anniversary of its award-winning popular history magazine, Traces of Indiana and Midwestern History. It also publishes the family history magazine, The Hoosier Genealogist: Connections, and a membership magazine, IN Perspective.
By 1970, the membership of the Indiana Historical Society had reached 5,000 members. The most noted of these was Eli Lilly, a longtime trustee, whose donations funded additional building additions in 1976. Lilly's bequest allowed the IHS to achieve its own identity with its offices and library occupying a floor in the addition. Also at this time, the IHS and Indiana Historical Bureau leadership was separated with the creation of the title of Executive Secretary being retained for the IHS leadership. By 1993, the membership had risen to 10,000, with forty percent of the society's members living in the Indianapolis metropolitan area.[8]
For years, the headquarters was in the
Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center
In December 2007, the IHS launched its Campaign for the Indiana Experience and renamed the building the Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center in honor of the Glicks' gift to the campaign. The History Center underwent renovations in 2009 and reopened with new program offerings in the spring of 2010.
The Indiana Experience now includes "You Are There!", an exhibit exploring various photos and documents in the IHS collection through "living history", the use of costumed historical interpreters to take visitors back in time and allow them to interact with history. Past exhibits include the history of organizations such as the
Operations
A 31-member board of trustees oversees the operation of the Indiana Historical Society, which includes a staff of approximately 96 people. There are a number of functional divisions within the IHS, including Administration, Collections, Conservation, Development, Publications, Marketing, and Education & Community Engagement. The organization continues to oversee actions that collect, preserve, interpret, and share the history of Indiana.
The current president and CEO of the Indiana Historical Society is Jody Blankenship. He was appointed by the board of trustees in January 2019.[9][10] The official membership of the IHS includes approximately 4,500 households across the United States.
Collection
The IHS's collections, accessible online through the society's website and at the William Henry Smith Memorial Library, is one of the largest archival repositories of material on the history of Indiana and the Old Northwest. The collection is composed of 1.7 million photographs (615 visual collections), 45,000 cataloged printed items (books, pamphlets, etc.), 14,000 pieces of sheet music, 5,450 processed manuscript collections, 3,300 artifacts, 1,700 cataloged maps, 800 broadsides, and 129 paintings. More than 70,000 digital images representing 61 collections are currently available through the IHS website.[11]
Among the items held by the society is a 130-year-old Bible used in 2008 to swear in Mayor
Subject strengths of the IHS's collection (especially as they relate to Indiana and the
Conservation
The Indiana Historical Society hosts a conservation lab for its paper-based collections that provides a variety of specialized treatments.[13] These treatments promote the long-term stability of the collections through stabilization techniques, cleanings, and repairs. Staff of the conservation lab also implement preventive measures to preserve collections; this includes ensuring the correct storage of items and proving customized housings for materials, monitoring the storage environment, implementing an integrated pest management plan, and maintaining a disaster recovery plan.[14]
See also
Sources
- In Memory of Howard Henry Peckham (PDF). The Quatro. 1995. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 29, 2015. Retrieved April 7, 2016.
References
- ^ "Most Popular Indianapolis-Area Attractions". Indianapolis Business Journal. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
- ^ Beck, Bill."Indiana historical society: oldest state historical society west of Allegheny Mountains celebrates 175 years." Indiana Business Magazine December 1, 2005
- ^ "Church lifts golden dome" Indianapolis Star, December 28, 2007
- ^ Bodenhamer, David. The Encyclopedia of Indianapolis p.739, 740
- ^ a b c Bodenhamer 739
- ^ a b Beck
- ^ The Clements Library Associates, 1995, p.4
- ^ a b Bodenhamer 740
- ^ "Indiana Historical Society names CEO to replace retiring Herbst". www.ibj.com. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
- ^ "Indiana Historical Society Names New President and CEO". Retrieved January 20, 2019.
- ^ "Our Collections". Indiana Historical Society. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
- ^ O'Shaughnessy, Brendan. "Ballard says crime will be top priority", Indianapolis Star, January 2, 2008
- Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved March 4, 2024.
- ^ "Conservation Lab". Indiana Historical Society. Retrieved March 4, 2024.