Southern Indiana Business Report
INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana Landmarks announced more than $140,000 in funding to help nonprofit organizations and cities around Indiana save meaningful places, and several of those grants are benefiting sites in Southern Indiana. Drawing from a variety of funds, these grants support efforts ranging from architectural assessments and repairs at historic houses of worship to digital walking tours and workshops, videos and summer programs for youth.
“Indiana Landmarks offers grants to help spark community revitalization and bolster preservation projects around the state,” says Marsh Davis, president of Indiana Landmarks. “We’re extremely grateful that with the support of many generous donors we’re able to offer this critical support to local preservation groups.”
Efroymson Family Endangered Places
Efroymson Family Endangered Places grants aid architectural and structural assessments, rehab cost analysis, reuse studies, and fundraising planning. In 2021, Indiana Landmarks made 14 grants totaling $36,100, with $17,500 of that money going to sites in Southern Indiana. The fund honors the Efroymson family for its significant support for our endangered places programs.
Southern Indiana recipients
Daviess County Historical Society, Washington: $2,500 for a feasibility study at the Daviess County Museum, located in the 1868/1888 Masonic Temple
Greene County: $2,500 for a structural analysis at the 1883 Richmond-Plummer Creek Covered Bridge, which suffered damage from an arson fire
Town of Oolitic: $2,500 to update a 2007 structural assessment of the 1919/1936 Oolitic High School
Town of Milltown: $2,500 for a feasibility study at the 1905 First National Bank, which houses town hall
Zoar United Methodist Church, Dubois County: $2,500 for a feasibility study of a one-room school built in 1897
Destination Georgetown, Georgetown: $2,500 for a feasibility study and conditions assessment at the endangered 1835 Wolfe Hotel
Indiana Manufactured Housing and Recreation Vehicle Legacy Foundation, Seymour: $2,500 for a feasibility study at the 1940 Shields Memorial Gymnasium, an entry on Indiana Landmarks’ 2021 10 Most Endangered List
Historic Preservation Education Grants
Indiana Landmarks and Indiana Humanities jointly award grants to nonprofits for programs and materials educating the public about historic places. In 2021, the organizations awarded $33,285 to fund 14 projects.
Southern Indiana recipients
City of Madison: $2,500 to create QR codes and a brochure providing history and photos of 11 historic sites throughout the community.
Landmark Columbus Foundation, Columbus: $2,500 to help create a website and event to raise awareness of the design history and preservation needs at the 1942 First Christian Church.
African American Heritage Grants
Indiana Landmarks’ African American Landmarks Committee awards grants to help preserve and raise awareness of historic African American places in Indiana. In 2021, the committee made four grants totaling $7,500. In Southern Indiana, Freeman Army Airfield Museum in Seymour received $2,000 for a state historical marker recognizing the 1945 uprising by African American soldiers against a segregated White officers club.