Twilight at Conner Prairie

The Creation, Betrayal, and Rescue of a Museum

By (author) Berkley W. Duck

Publication date:

22 April 2011

Length of book:

240 pages

Publisher

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

ISBN-13: 9780759120105

Conner Prairie, among the finest outdoor history museums in the country, recreates life in 19th-century Indiana. It also was the site of one of the most significant controversies that an American museum has faced. Twilight at Conner Prairie follows the development of the museum, the conflicts of interest created by the terms of founder Eli Lilly's gifts, and the breakdown of the relationship between the museum and its trustee, Earlham College. Author Berkley Duck, who served on Conner Prairie's independent board of directors when the board and CEO were dismissed, provides an inside look at what went wrong at Conner Prairie and how it was put to right.

Twilight at Conner Prairie is essential reading for anyone concerned with the survival of museums and the ethical obligations of preserving America's past.

Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter 1. The Development of Conner Prairie
Chapter 2. The Development of Earlham's Endowment Management Policies
Chapter 3. The Origins of the Governance Dispute
Chapter 4. The Governance Discussions Shift to Autonomy for the Museum
Chapter 5. The Governance Discussions Become Confrontational
Chapter 6. The Mediation Effort
Chapter 7. The Negotiations with Earlham's Lawyers
Chapter 8. The Sun Goes Down over Conner Prairie
Chapter 9. Retreat and Reorganization
Chapter 10. The Issues Take Shape
Chapter 11. Waiting and Thinking
Chapter 12. The Attorney General Rolls Out His Strategy
Chapter 13. The Hamilton County Lawsuit
Chapter 14. Positioning the Dispute for Resolution
Chapter 15. Sunrise
Chapter 16. The Organization of New Conner Prairie
Chapter 17. Assessments
Epilogue
Appendix A. Operative Terms of the Lilly Gifts
Appendix B. Draft of Amicus Curiae Brief Prepared by Save the Prairie, Inc.
Index

In a narrative firmly grounded in the written record and argued with the keenness of a lawyer's brief, Berkley Duck leads his reader patiently and persuasively through the course of this complex tale-one in which the author himself played a substantial role. Along the way, he identifies the ways whereby a charitable arrangement can incrementally drift far from its original moorings; makes a vigorous case for the moral obligations inherent in a fiduciary relationship; and demonstrates that it is possible, but far from easy, to rectify a legal relationship gone wrong. The author does not shy away from arguing on behalf of his side; nonetheless, he readily and graciously acknowledges that the compromise which resolved this dispute made for good public policy-a position that has a refreshing ring given our current polarized society. Those who plan to give charitably, as well those whose responsibility it is to manage charitable gifts, should put Twilight at Conner Prairie at the top of their reading lists.