A day at the Indiana State Museum in Indianapolis, Indiana, will take you through a timeline of the state’s history with interactive displays throughout. The museum is located at 650 W. Washington St., in White River State Park. Check its website for current days, hours and admission charges.
Pre-History
It all starts with a geology lesson on how the Earth was formed. The highlight of this room is the 8-foot-tall multimedia globe where you can watch as the continents move and connect, view other planets of the solar system, or check out maps showing population density, education, or other data.
The skeleton of Fred the Mastodon, found near Fort Wayne, leads you to the next area, dominated by fossils and an ice age cave you may walk through. From there you move on to landscapes showing native wildlife, with buttons that allow you to hear the sounds made by various animals.
19th and 20th Century
After an introduction to the Native Americans of the area, go upstairs to the second floor. There, you see an overview of the times leading up to statehood in 1816, and life in the state in the 1800s. You can experience various types of early roads, try your hand at choosing supplies for a journey west, or get the feel of sawing and splitting firewood. Various artifacts from the period are explained, providing a sense of life at the time. A three-story diorama and a video describe the importance of the limestone industry in the southern part of the state.
Displays detailing Indiana’s connections to World War I, the Ku Klux Klan, and breweries lead you to more recent cultural exhibits, from World War II to the present day. You get to see how the war affected life back home in Indiana, which dealt with rationing and war bond drives. Then see artifacts of life from the 1950s through the end of the 20th century. Be sure to visit the Legacy Theater, where a perspective of the African-American experience in Indiana resides. Interactive panels give you a sense of what early African-American residents endured.
Next is a room dedicated to national cultural figures from 1900s Indiana, from Emmett Kelly to Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds. You can check out the display of photos and descriptions while a video montage plays on. You might discover popular figures you didn’t realize came from the state. The historical rundown concludes with a section on Indiana broadcasting. A video terminal explains various parts of the industry’s history, from early radio to the latest wireless go-anywhere-with-it video.
Traditions and Rotating Exhibits
A can’t-miss exhibit is surrounded by a circular staircase. A three-story Foucault pendulum that was at the center of the state museum’s former building still swings back and forth, demonstrating the Earth’s rotation as it knocks over small panels.
The third floor offers rotating exhibits, such as sculptures made of Lego blocks, works by Hoosier artists, or World War I propaganda posters and songs. If that’s not enough, the museum also houses the state’s largest IMAX screen; both documentaries and popular films are shown.
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