Listen to Hoosier History Live! at 11:30 a.m. each Saturday on WICR 88.7 FM. You also can listen online at the WICR website during the broadcast or you can join our new listening group at Bookmama's in Irvington to listen to, and discuss, the Saturday show. We invite you to visit our website!

June 19 show

Fishin' across Indiana with Skip Hess

Skip Hess with wide-mouth bass. It's fishin' time, and Hoosier History Live! is reeling in a catch as a guest. To offer tips about prime fishing spots across Indiana, share advice about techniques and maybe tell a whopper fish story or two, the "Outdoors" columnist for The Indianapolis Star, veteran journalist Skip Hess, will join Nelson in studio.

With Skip as our guide, we will explore the good, the bad and the unheralded about all things related to fishing, from the best bait to common mistakes by aspiring anglers.

Seizing the opportunity with his former colleague (Skip and Nelson sat next to each other for several years at the Star; before that, they worked together at the bygone Indianapolis News), Nelson will ask Skip to share some favorite fishing spots at the state's lakes, rivers, streams and reservoirs.

Deer swimming. Image courtesy Skip Hess. They also plan to discuss artificial baits, including ones manufacturers say are "guaranteed" to catch fish, as well as various "gimmicks" (Skip's word) that he says to avoid. Conceding that he can't resist eavesdropping on conversations in fishing-gear departments, Skip will share insights from his stealth work.

Noting that bass, crappie and bluegill are the favorite fish to catch in Indiana, Skip wll share tidbits about record catches and other kinds of fish that may not be as popular but nevertheless are a thrill to reel in from Hoosier waters. And he will share specifics about the cost of fishing licenses and related details.

His popular "Outdoors" column appears every other Sunday in the Star. You may have read Skip's recent column about sightings around the state of mountain lions now prowling Hoosier trails decades after they were thought to have vanished from the state.

Mountain lion in Greene County, Ind. According to Skip's column, even the Department of Natural Resources is conceding the big cats are out there after a camera installed along a Greene County trail captured some startling photos. This topic is too hot to ignore, even though water creatures will be the primary focus of the show. So Skip and Nelson will go with the flow and, at some point, move to dry land to explore the mountain lion sightings.

Some fun facts:

Crappie is pronounced "crop-ee," as Skip is quick to point out to fishing newbies (including city boy Nelson.)
For decades, Skip was a well-known, award-winning investigative reporter at the Indianapolis newspapers. In recent years, though, he's been following the call of the great outdoors with his prose. His statewide network of anglers and hunters keeps him posted from every corner of the Hoosier state.
According to McClane's New Standard Encyclopedia of Fishing, which includes a state-by-state analysis, Indiana's most sought game fish "is undoubtedly the large-mouth bass, and angling for this species is very good throughout most of the state. But if the large-mouth bass is most sought, the bluegill and crappie (black and white) are probably most caught."
The best trout fishing, according to McClane's, is found in northeastern Indiana's lakes and streams, particularly in LaGrange and Noble counties.
Of course, the Hoosier state also is renowned for catfish. McClane's gives its ultimate thumbs-up to the Tippecanoe River as a site for catching them, as well as for yielding various kinds of bass and pike.

History Mystery question

Painting of girl, by daughter of Thomas Taggart. The Hoosier History Trivia Mystery is a carry-over from last week, when there was no correct answer. The question concerns the family of Irish immigrant-turned-Indianapolis mayor and French Lick Springs Hotel owner Thomas Taggart. One of Taggart's daughters became a renowned artist. She studied art in New York City and had studios in the Taggart family homes both in Indianapolis and Hyannis Port, Mass. In the 1930s, she also began teaching at what was then called the John Herron Art Institute after earlier serving on its board.

Question: Name the Taggart daughter who became an influential Hoosier artist.

The call-in number for the correct answer is (317) 788-3314, and the prize is two adult and two youth tickets to the NCAA Hall of Champions, courtesy of the ICVA.

Roadtripper

Roadtripper Chris Gahl of the ICVA will call in with a surprise report.

Your friends in Hoosierdom,

Nelson Price, host and creative director

Molly Head, producer, (317) 927-9101

Chris Gahl, Roadtripper

Richard Sullivan, tech and web director

Garry Chilluffo, consultant

www.hoosierhistorylive.info

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Henry's Coffee Bistro on East, The Fadely Trust, Indiana Historical Society, Lucas Oil and Story Inn.

Acknowledgments to Scott Keller Fine Art and Antiques Appraisals, Print Resources, Indianapolis Marion County Public Library, Monomedia, Indiana Humanities Council, Indianapolis Convention & Visitors Association, WICR-FM, Fraizer Designs, Drew Pastorek and many other individuals and organizations. We are an independently produced program and are self-supporting through sponsorships and through individual tax-deductible contributions through the Indiana Humanities Council. Visit our website to learn more.

What's new with Hoosier History Live!

We welcome new sponsor Henry's Coffee Bistro, an independent coffee bistro on East Street just north of Massachusetts Avenue in downtown Indianapolis, and now with a new location at 1 N. Pennsylvania Street, also downtown, next to Flagstar Bank. Other new sponsors include the Indiana Historical Society and the Fadely Trust, a fund of the Central Indiana Community Foundation.

Please tell our sponsors that you appreciate their support of the program; we can't do it without our sponsors and our individual donors. Thanks also especially to the Indiana Humanities Council for serving as our 501 (c) 3.

Many people believe that we are funded by the University of Indianapolis. We are very grateful to radio station WICR 88.7 FM for carrying our program. And WICR is owned by the UIndy. However, we receive no funding from the university; we are a consortium of journalists, historians and professionals who work together to produce this program. We rely completely on sponsors, grants and donations to support the program. We hope to receive adequate funding to be able to audio archive all of our shows.

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June 26 show - encore presentation

County courthouses, with architect Jim Kienle

Bartholomew County Courthouse in Columbus, Ind. Photo by Molly Head. Everyone loves Indiana county courthouses. Those architectural gems known as "the magnificent 92," the majestic courthouses that dominate town squares across Indiana, will be the focus of our show. Nelson's distinguished guest will be Indianapolis architect and historic preservationist Jim Kienle, of Moody Nolan, who is known for his award-winning restoration work.

Last year, Jim restored the Orange County Courthouse in Paoli. Built in 1850, it is the state's second-oldest courthouse in continuous use and is seen annually by thousands of travelers who visit the nearby resort hotels in French Lick and West Baden. (Fun fact: The oldest still in use is the Ohio County Courthouse in Rising Sun, which was built in 1844. Like its Orange County counterpart, the Ohio County Courthouse was designed in Greek Revival style.)

Jim and Nelson also will discuss bygone courthouses, including the ornate Marion County Courthouse, which was demolished during the early 1960s (a major shame, if you ask Jim and other historic preservationists) to make way for the 28-floor City-County Building that stands on its site. And how can we talk about Indiana courthouses without mentioning the landmark Decatur County Courthouse in Greensburg, which has a tree growing at the top of its 115-foot clock tower? According to the book Oddball Indiana (2002), the tree atop the courthouse in Greensburg is now in its 12th generation.