By Heather Lusk
The Indiana State Historical Society has appointed Eric Spall as Boone County historian following the retirement of Zionsville resident Marianne Doyle, who held the role for 18 years.
Spall, a resident of Lebanon, is the local history specialist in the Ralph W. Stark Heritage Room of the Lebanon public library.
“There’s a lot of overlap between what I do (at the library) and what I do with the Historical Society,” Spall said. “There’s a lot of resources here that I work with every day which I think really helps prepare me for the position.”
Doyle agreed that working at the library is a “good connection” while serving as historian and enjoyed her time in the role.
“There’s not much to dislike about that job,” she said. “It’s time for someone else to do it.”
Spall earned a master’s degree in history from Ball State University in 2013 and his master’s inlLibrary science from IUPUI in 2015.
“I’ve really enjoyed reading stories out of history,” he said. “When I started at Ball State it really led me to an appreciation of how you analyze history.”
“It’s like working on a puzzle,” Spall said. “You see all these different pieces and you try to connect the dots together to figure out not only what happened, but how and why.”
In his new role, Spall will serve as the liaison between the State Historical Society and the many historical institutions in Boone County, including the SullivanMunce Cultural Center and the Zionsville Historical Society. He also will address questions from the public about Boone County.
Spall was raised in Fishers but his father and grandfather lived in Lebanon for an extended period of time. He has lived in Boone County since 2013.
