Here is one view of the Syracuse-Wawasee Historical Museum’s interior featuring some of the American Indian artifacts, as well as some of Ken Harkless’s artwork.

SYRACUSE — Syracuse-Wawasee Historical Museum received a $17,000 Heritage Support Grant from the Indiana Historical Society made possible by Lilly Endowment Inc. It will be used to curate the American Indian artifact collection during 2018.

It was made possible by a matching fund of $3,550 contributed by local residents, for which the museum board and staff are very grateful. The total available to be spent is $20,550.

In collaboration with Ball State University’s Applied Anthropology Laboratories, artifacts in the collection will be digitized, categorized, identified, labeled, cataloged and information entered into a database accessible to the public.

Museum patrons will be able to touch ancient history as 3-D models of representative examples of each major artifact class and time period will be created. Many who grew up in Syracuse in the 1940s and 1950s may remember gazing in awe at the “Indian Cabinet” artifacts in the basement of the Syracuse Public Library.

Now displayed at the Syracuse-Wawasee Museum, this collection of more than 600 items was gathered from the area by J.P. Dolan, an influential local educator and community leader. He began this in 1873 and continued his entire life. The collection represents the full range of prehistoric artifacts manufactured by the aboriginal inhabitants of northern Indiana.

In the 1920s and 1930s, Eli Lilly viewed the cabinet of artifacts numerous times during his summers at Lake Wawasee. Those visits sparked Lilly’s lifelong interest in archaeology from which the state of Indiana benefited greatly. This collection has significant ties to the development of the science of Indiana archaeology. The grant is an extension of both Lilly’s legacy and Dolan’s intent to further the public good.

The grant was applied for by board member Ann Garceau. Other volunteer board members are Peggy Genshaw, president; Patrick Appenzeller, vice-president; Mary Hursh, secretary; Lera Reinholt, treasurer; Jack Darr, John Heckaman, Mike Mock, Garry Ringler, Mike Smith and Martha Stoelting. Jamie Clemons is the director.

The museum is located inside the Syracuse Community Center, 1013 N. Long Drive. Museum hours are 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday except holidays.

Here are some of the American Indian artifacts gathered by Syracuse resident J.P. Dolan beginning in 1873. Syracuse-Wawasee Historical Museum was awarded a grant from the Indiana Historical Society through the LIlly Endowment Inc. It will benefit the artifact collection.