Purchase a Gift Membership for a chance to Win!
Each area of Conner Prairie plays an important role in the engagement of curiosity, a source of understanding, and an invitation to explore. To exemplify these elements of culture and philosophy, our local artisans have meticulously handcrafted seven scarves that serve as a representation of our story.
Between November 1 and December 31, when you purchase a gift membership, you will automatically be entered in our drawing for a chance to win one of these beautifully designed scarves. The winners will be randomly selected.
Explore each scarf, the meaning behind the colors, and the relationship each design serves.
1836 Prairietown
The colors were chosen to represent the houses in the town. Brown, from walnuts, is the pathway leading through the community. The first building you come to is the white or natural color of the wool representing the Golden Eagle Inn. The blue, from Indigo, is the McClure Carpenter shop. Next is the green from dandelion overdyed with indigo to play out the grass in the yards as well as the Gregory Home. The yellow from onion skins reminds you of the gold of Dr. Campbell’s Home. The red, cochineal, is the Whitaker Store and the Barker’s Pottery Shop. Once again, the brown for the school, Sargent Hasting’s House and the Curtis’ Blacksmith Shop. The brighter yellow, this time from goldenrod, is the beautiful yellow of the Curtis Home.
Colorful, yet subtle, these colors all blend just as the lives of the people in this community unite to exhibit a neighborhood of early nineteenth-century Indiana.
The William Conner House
Red for the red bricks that were made on site to construct William Conner’s home in 1823. This red comes from the cochineal insect. Green, from an over-dye of dandelion blossoms then dyed with indigo, is the color of the shutters. The white, or natural color, is the trim and door colors. A striking and balanced twill weave seemed appropriate for the man who made an impact and influence on this area of Indiana.
1863 Civil War Journey
Was there really any question as to what colors we would use to represent this area of our grounds? Red of cochineal, blue of indigo, and the natural white are woven with the military strips and twill weave of a soldier and gentleman.
1859 Balloon Voyage
The previous look of our hot air balloon envelope was orange and white.
This is a reminder of what we all recognized and knew as one of the landmarks for Conner Prairie. The yellow comes from dandelion blossoms while the orange is from coreopsis flowers. The broken twill is the seam in the envelope and the white is the patterning found among the ropes that tether the balloon.
Lenape Indian Camp
The Lenape primary colors of use are black and red on white. You find the red and black on the mask of the Mesingw, found on the door of the barn leading to the Lenape area and also in the William Conner House. These are also the colors of the seal of the Delaware Tribe of Indians. The pattern that was woven was to remind the wearer of the beautiful beadwork done by the Lenape people.
Black is one of nature's hardest colors to obtain, insisting on several different dyes and over a period of several days. During the time of the dyeing process, these materials were not available to us, so we gave in to a chemical dye. The red is from cochineal insects. These tiny insects were traded from South America clear up to the Great Lakes region even before Europeans set foot on this continent. Of course, the white is the natural color of the wool that was used.
Treetop Outpost
The blue colors were chosen to signify the water of the White River running through the grounds of Conner Prairie as well as the beautiful blue sky that peeks through the trees during the year. Indigo provided us with those blues. The brown of walnuts is for the many trees that grow on the grounds and that surround the Treetop area. The yellow, from yarrow, is the sunlight filtering through along with the green of the leaves coming from the whole plant of yarrow with a copper sulfate mordant. You can almost envision the river running with the undulating twill of the weave structure.
Welcome Center
The Welcome Center is represented in this scarf with the blues, orange, yellow, and green. This is the indigo blue of the river and the sky. The orange from coreopsis and yellow of dandelion blossoms of the old balloon envelope are surrounded by the green of the whole yarrow plant, which speaks for all the grassy areas and trees that are in full leaf come spring and summer. The weave structure of a twill and reverse twill tell the story of the land mass itself with all the hills, valleys, and prairie.
