Historic preservation education projects receive $26,500 in grants

Indiana Humanities and Indiana Landmarks have awarded grants of up to $2,500 to 12 nonprofit organizations across Indiana. Grants totaling $26,530 were awarded to organizations located throughout the state from Dyer to Corydon.

The Historic Preservation Education Grant program has been in existence for more than 20 years and supports educational projects related to historic properties in Indiana. This year’s grants will fund a variety of projects including a guide to Vonnegut-related structures in Indianapolis, a student project/competition to re-imagine historic buildings in Ferdinand and a preservation workshop for owners of historic properties in Fort Wayne.

“We are proud to support projects throughout the state that encourage Hoosiers to better appreciate and understand the history behind Indiana’s incredible structures,” said Marsh Davis, president of Indiana Landmarks.  

2017 Historic Preservation Education Grantees are:

Kurt Vonnegut in Indianapolis Self-Guided Tour ($2,500)
Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library, Indianapolis
The Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library will create, publish and provide a free visually appealing self-guided tour booklet of Indianapolis locations connected to the renowned author and humanist Kurt Vonnegut. 

Madison’s Downtown Treasures Walking Tour Project ($2,476)
Lanier Mansion Foundation, Madison
The Lanier Mansion Foundation will work with community partners to create a walking tour of architecture and architectural remnants located along the newly developed Heritage Trail in downtown Madison. Products will include a paper map, an interactive treasure hunt booklet for children and a smartphone app.

Expressions of Joy: A Historic Restoration Series ($2,500)
Joy of All Who Sorrow Orthodox Christian Church, Indianapolis
Joy of All Who Sorrow Church will produce four short educational videos highlighting various historic preservation projects it has undertaken on its building—exploring the need, the challenges and how the restoration was completed using acceptable techniques. The church will distribute the videos to subscribers and post them on its website and other outlets.

Celebrating Columbus’s National Historic Landmarks ($1,623)
Columbus Area Arts Council, Columbus
This summer the Bartholomew County Public Library will host an exhibition titled The National Historic Landmarks of Columbus, Indiana. In conjunction, the Columbus Area Arts Council and community partners will present a panel discussion featuring architectural experts who will share insights into the seven extraordinary buildings highlighted in the show.

If These Walls Could Talk ($2,496)
Great Towns, Inc., Indianapolis/Ferdinand
Great Towns will sponsor an educational program/competition for high-school students in Ferdinand. Each student who takes part will research and write an essay about the background and potential reuse of a historic building in town, then the students will form teams to create videos about some of the structures. The videos will be projected on store-front windows in downtown Ferdinand.

ARCH Hands-On Workshops ($1,185)
ARCH, Fort Wayne
This summer ARCH (Architecture & Community Heritage) will offer four preservation-focused workshops for owners of historic properties and those interested in learning preservation trades. The workshops will address masonry repair, exterior painting, wood-floor repair and metal repair/refinishing.

Ideal Section Video Project ($2,500)
Dyer Historical Society, Dyer
The Dyer Historical Society will produce a short documentary about the Ideal Section of the Lincoln Highway—a 1.5 mile stretch built in 1923 as a model for road construction. The video, which will be posted online and distributed free to Lake County schools, will explore the Ideal Section’s history and significance and will highlight landmarks along the route.

Exhibit on Indianapolis Architects Rubush and Hunter ($2,500)
Indiana Historical Society, Indianapolis
This grant will support the Indiana Historical Society in researching, digitizing and exhibiting images of buildings designed by Rubush and Hunter, Indianapolis’s premier architects in the early 20th century. The IHS will present the images and accompanying research in its “Destination Indiana” gallery and online via its website.

Nine Historic Buildings ($2,500)
Historical Society of Harrison County, Corydon
Corydon served as Indiana’s capital from 1816 to 1825, and nine buildings from that era survive. This grant will help the Historical Society of Harrison County tell the history of these structures through booklets, tours and public presentations.

Historic Driving Tours of Van Buren and Jackson Townships ($1,250)
Brown County Historical Society, Nashville
The Brown County Historical Society has developed a driving tour featuring landmarks throughout Van Buren and Jackson Townships. It will use this grant to produce and publish a tour booklet featuring maps, illustrations, photographs and historic information about each stop along the tour.

Teacher’s Guide to Historic Garfield Park ($2,500)
Friends of Garfield Park, Inc., Indianapolis
The Friends of Garfield Park will develop a guide to help educators, park staff and after-school leaders teach K–12 students about the historic landmarks and landscapes in Indianapolis’s oldest city park. They’ll make the guide available online as a PDF download.

Historic Home Tour ($2,500)
Noblesville Preservation Alliance, Noblesville
This grant will help the Noblesville Preservation Alliance develop materials for its annual home tour, scheduled for September. Funds will support the research and publication of a booklet outlining the homes’ histories.

“It is encouraging to see such great ideas and interest around the state in historic preservation. We love the way these grants allow organizations to better connect with their communities to celebrate their past and imagine the future,” said Keira Amstutz, president and CEO of Indiana Humanities. 

Indiana Humanities provides two grant programs: Historic Preservation Education Grants, in partnership with Indiana Landmarks, and Humanities Initiative Grants, given to nonprofit organizations to conduct public programs emphasizing the humanities. Humanities Initiative Grants are awarded twice a year—the next deadline is July 31.

In the past five years Indiana Humanities, with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities, has awarded more than 130 grants totaling nearly $340,000 to nonprofit groups in more than 60 Indiana cities and towns.

In addition to Historic Preservation Education Grants, Indiana Landmarks operates three grant programs aimed at helping Hoosiers preserve historic places: African American Landmark Fund grants; Indiana Preservation Grants, which allow nonprofit groups to commission professional feasibility, structural and restoration studies; and, in cooperation with the Central Indiana Community Foundation, Marion County Preservation Fund grants.