2024 Crown Hill Speaker Series

After much success in 2023, we are excited to announce that the Crown Hill Speaker Series is back for 2024. This year, we will be hosting talks beginning in January and running through June. We will cover topics ranging from cemetery symbolism, nature and tree care, and even the Underground Railroad. You won’t want to miss these unique opportunities!

January 25, 6 p.m.
Talk Title: A Grave Matter in Indiana
Tickets: https://event.ontaptickets.com/events/141381
Speaker: Jeannie Regan-Dinius, Director of Historic Preservation, Crown Hill Foundation

Cemeteries tell us much about who came before us. The size, shape and documentation vary from religious groups, time period, and location. The symbols and markings on headstones, markers and monuments reveal much about the individual and family. Jeannie R. Regan-Dinius, Director of Historic Preservation for Crown Hill Foundation, will discuss the understood meanings of the most common symbols found on tombstones in Indiana, how pop culture affects stones, and what you need to look for as you walk through a cemetery.

February 22, 6 p.m.
Talk Title: Building Backyard Habitat
Tickets: https://event.ontaptickets.com/events/142894
Speaker: Jessica Merkling, Urban Wildlife Biologist, Indiana Department of Natural Resources

Your backyard could be the perfect place for wildlife to call home. With the right habitat, you can help Indiana’s wildlife survive and thrive. Jessica Merkling, Urban Wildlife biologist with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, will explain what you can do to build a backyard habitat every critter wants to find.

March 7, 6 p.m.
Talk Title: Tree Planting 101
Tickets: https://event.ontaptickets.com/events/tree-planting-101-3-7-2024
Speaker: Carrie Tauscher, Arboretum Director, Crown Hill Foundation

International Society of Arboriculture certified arborist, Carrie Tauscher, will go over the important steps of selecting both the species of tree and where to plant it, for the best long-term survival and health of the tree. Carrie will cover the pros and cons of different types of tree stock, science-based practices and anecdotal recommendations so that you have the confidence to plant it yourself or hire the right professional.

March 21, 6 p.m.
Talk Title: Caring for Your Trees: Pruning and Landscape Practices
Tickets: https://event.ontaptickets.com/events/142898
Speaker: Carrie Tauscher, Arboretum Director, Crown Hill Foundation

From seedling to sentinel, International Society of Arboriculture certified arborist, Carrie Tauscher, will discuss the most common types of care your trees need to flourish in an urban landscape. This program will cover science-backed best management practices, seasonal tips, and refreshers on basic tree care/landscape practices that affect trees. This program will give you the knowledge you need to do it yourself or help you communicate with your tree care provider to get the best result for you and your trees.

April 11, 6 p.m.
Talk Title: Shifting Baselines — Indiana’s Natural Landscape of 1816 and Today
Tickets: https://event.ontaptickets.com/events/142900
Speaker: Mike Hoymoya, Indiana DNR State Botanist, Emeritus

What can the Indiana Department of Natural Resources’ former Botanist teach us about the degree of change that our natural environment has gone through since becoming a state? How can we come to see that what we today think of as “normal,” is skewed?

Indiana’s natural landscape has changed dramatically over the past 200 years and yet many people are unaware just how much change has occurred. We forget what used to be, and our normal has shifted from what was normal for our predecessors. Bison, elk, wolves, and even parakeets (now extinct) once occupied our land, as did vast prairies, forests and wetlands. This presentation will focus on “original” Indiana and how it was different from today. The talk aims to help people become aware of how dramatically Indiana’s natural environment has changed since statehood and to inspire action to protect the remaining remnants of “original” Indiana.

**This talk was made possible through a grant from Indiana Humanities and their Unearthed Speakers Bureau program. Indiana Humanities connects people, opens minds and enriches lives by creating and facilitating programs that encourage Hoosiers to think, read and talk. Indiana Humanities is funded in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities and Lilly Endowment, Inc. Learn more at www.indianahumanities.org.

June 20, 6 p.m.
Talk Title: The Underground Railroad and Crown Hill’s Connection
Tickets: https://event.ontaptickets.com/events/142902
Speaker: Jeannie Regan-Dinius, Director of Historic Preservation, Crown Hill Foundation

The UGRR was neither underground nor a railroad. Instead, it was a network of individuals and communities that helped fugitive slaves try to gain their freedom by fleeing north into states that did not allow slavery or into Canada. The UGRR was most active in Indiana between 1830 and 1865. Every Indiana community has oral histories about those individuals who participated in the Underground Railroad, but the nature of the network sometimes makes it difficult to find evidence to substantiate the stories. Learn about those buried in Crown Hill Cemetery and the role that they had in this important group.

To learn more about the Crown Hill Speaker Series, please visit our website at https://crownhillhf.org/tours-events/speaker-series/.