Escapees March-April 2024

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Guests are Invited to Travel Back in Time Connor Praire in Indiana 13400 Allisonville Road, Fishers, IN 46038, 800-966-1836, www.connerprairie.org

A Prairietown “resident” pushes ahay cart.

the fi rst brick buildings built in central Indiana, seven of William and Elizabeth Conner’s ten children were born in the home. The house was used as a meeting place for the Hamilton County commissioners, other county of fi cials, the circuit court, and it contained a post of fi ce in the county’s early days. Subsequent owners lived in the house until 1934, when Eli Lilly Jr. purchased Conner’s former farm and the then-dilapidated home. Lilly, president, CEO of Eli Lilly and Company, and president of the Indiana Histor ical Society, intended to restore the house and turn it into a museum. Lilly donated the house and farm to Earlham College in 1963, and it became part of Conner Prairie. The home is on the National Register of Historic Places. The house offers exhibits and displays explaining life in the early 19th century and the family genealogy. Adjacent to the house is “Animal Encounters” and a massive barn where goats and their kids are intent on eating. The kids, tiny, fl uffy white, black and cinna mon-fur balls, bleat as they seek their mothers for a bit of lunch. In the pasture surrounding the barn are sheep, lambs, cattle and calves. Helpful animal caregivers offer insightful information about the breeds: what they eat, their habits and many unique characteristics.

“How old is this house?” a middle-aged man asks a woman dressed in a period costume. “It’s three years old,” she answers. He looks perplexed until his companion whispers, “It’s 1836.” W e’re visiting Conner Prairie, located a half hour from bustling Indianapolis. Knowl edgeable docents play their parts accord ing to the period of their surroundings, from an 1816 Lenape Indian Camp to an 1863 Civil War Journey. Conner Prairie’s 1859 Balloon Voyage is the fi rst adventure when you arrive at the historical attraction. The tethered helium balloon commemorates when, in 1859, a crowd of 20,000 gathered in Lafayette, Indiana, to watch the launch of the “Jupiter.” John Wise designed and piloted the balloon, and marked the fi rst successful airmail delivery in the U.S. The 377-foot-high view offers a perspective of the expansive size of Conner Prairie and the adventures that await you. My next stop is William Conner House. Constructed in 1823, it is a two-story, Federal-style brick residence on the west fork of the White River. Believed to be one of

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ESCAPEES Magazine March/April 2024