CROWN HILL HERITAGE FOUNDATION INC

What CROWN HILL HERITAGE FOUNDATION INC does

Crown Hill Heritage Foundation Inc is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1863 and headquartered at 700 West 38th Street in Indianapolis, Indiana. Its mission is to preserve and celebrate the architectural, cultural, and natural heritage of Crown Hill Cemetery, a 555-acre urban greenspace that is the third largest non-government cemetery in the United States and has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1973. The foundation's underlying assets include 225,000+ monuments and tombstones, 88 family mausoleums, the burial sites of notable figures such as President Benjamin Harrison and poet James Whitcomb Riley, and a Level II accredited arboretum with 11,000+ inventoried trees across 137 species.

The foundation's product portfolio spans public guided tours (Heritage, Racing Legends, Civil War, Dillinger, Bicentennial), private group tours capped at 30 people, self-guided tours via a GPS-enabled mobile app with satellite mapping, a paid Speaker Series, premium after-hours events such as Behind Closed Doors, K-12 standards-based field trips, and tree planting and conservation programs. It also conducts historic preservation and restoration of mausoleums and monuments, including the 2023 restoration of the Severin and Fisher Family mausoleums. Outreach is delivered through a monthly newsletter, social media, downloadable tour PDFs, and partnerships with the Smithsonian, The Cultural Landscape Foundation, Indiana Landmarks, Indiana Historical Society, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields.

Revenue is generated through ticket sales for tours and events (e.g., $15/person Heritage Tours, $125/person Behind Closed Doors, $30/person workshops, $10 Speaker Series), donations, and memorial tree planting contributions. Funeral, burial, and cemetery lot transactions are handled separately by the affiliated Crown Hill Funeral Home rather than the foundation. The organization is governed by a board that includes designees from the Mayor of Indianapolis, Indiana Landmarks, and Indiana Historical Society, and is supported by a volunteer program and a small staff of program directors across advancement, arboretum, historic preservation, and education.

Name

CROWN HILL HERITAGE FOUNDATION INC

Legal name

Crown Hill Heritage Foundation Inc

Website

https://crownhillfoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1863

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Crown Hill Heritage Foundation Inc is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that preserves and interprets Indianapolis's 555-acre Crown Hill Cemetery, the third largest non-government cemetery in the U.S. It serves the public, K-12 schools, donors, and heritage tourists through guided tours, a GPS-enabled tour app, educational programs, arboretum management, and mausoleum restoration.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Heritage Preservation Services

NAICS

Historical Sites (71212), Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (71219)

akta.pro primary industry

Historic Preservation & Landmarks Conservation (BPAGAHAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Monuments, Statues & Memorials (THAJACAB), Conservation Parks & Private Nature Reserves (Visitor Operations) (THAAAFAB), Arts, Culture & Humanities Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAJ)

Keywords

• Heritage preservation services
• Historical cemetery tours
• Arboretum conservation programs
• Monument restoration services
• Cultural heritage education

Headquarters

HQ city

Indianapolis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Tour and Event Fees: Revenue from ticketed tours including Heritage Tours ($15/person), Racing Legends Tours, Behind Closed Doors events ($125/person), and workshops. Tickets must be purchased online in advance with no gate sales.
2. Donations and Gifts: The foundation relies heavily on charitable donations to support preservation projects, educational programs, and ongoing maintenance. Donations help fund tombstone restoration, mausoleum preservation, and tree planting programs.
3. Tree Planting Program: Donations for tree planting in honor or memory of loved ones. The arboretum director works with donors to select trees and locations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Crown Hill Heritage Foundation Inc preserves and interprets the architectural, cultural, and natural heritage of Crown Hill Cemetery, a 555-acre historic urban green space in Indianapolis. The foundation delivers guided tours, educational programs, monument and mausoleum preservation, and arboretum management. It is supported through tour and event fees, charitable donations, and memorial tree planting programs.

Product overview

Crown Hill Heritage Foundation Inc operates as a nonprofit heritage preservation organization managing Crown Hill Cemetery, offering a diverse portfolio of services organized around three core pillars: tours and educational programs, historic preservation, and arboretum management. The core tour offerings include Public Guided Tours, Private Group Tours, and Self-Guided Tours (with an associated Tour App), complemented by a Speaker Series. Education services encompass K-12 field trips and homeschool programs. Preservation services include restoration of mausoleums, monuments, and tombstones. The organization maintains a Level II accredited arboretum with tree planting and conservation programs. Additional engagement programs include newsletter, volunteer opportunities, and donation support. The portfolio is unified under the foundation's mission to preserve and celebrate the architectural, cultural, and natural heritage of the city's oldest urban green space.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Public Guided Tours
• Private Group Tours
• Self-Guided Tours
• Crown Hill Speaker Series
• K-12 Educational Field Trips
• Crown Hill Arboretum
• Historic Preservation Services
• Tour App
• Tree Planting Program
• Trees in Need Program

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 200 tombstones and monuments cleaned annually by volunteers
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Indianapolis Motor SpeedwaycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndianapolis Motor Speedway participated in the preservation of the Fisher Family Mausoleum in 2023. Carl Fisher was one of the four founders of IMS and is buried at Crown Hill. The partnership supports preservation of racing heritage shared between both institutions.
• Head ConstructionminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerHead Construction out of Dallas, TX was the contractor for the Severin Mausoleum restoration in 2023. They performed exterior cleaning, caulking, roof repairs, and interior restoration work.
• ArbNet Arboretum Accreditation ProgramcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerArbNet certified Crown Hill as a Level II accredited arboretum. The accreditation requires meeting standards for arboretum plan, public access, collection policy, professional arborist, committee oversight, and educational programming.
• Smithsonian InstitutionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Smithsonian Art Inventories Catalog includes Crown Hill Cemetery sculptures, monuments, and artworks, recognizing the cemetery's collection as significant cultural heritage.
• The Cultural Landscape FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTCLF includes Crown Hill Cemetery in their cultural landscapes documentation, recognizing it as part of national heritage providing sense of place and identity.
• Indiana LandmarksminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndiana Landmarks designates representatives to the Crown Hill Foundation Board of Directors. Historic Landmarks of Indiana previously restored the Waiting Station between 1970-1971.
• Indiana Historical SocietyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndiana Historical Society designates a representative to the Crown Hill Foundation Board of Directors and partners on educational programming.
• Genealogical Society of Marion CountyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerReferral partnership for genealogy research. The foundation directs visitors seeking deeper genealogical information to the Genealogical Society of Marion County website.
• Indianapolis Museum of Art - NewfieldsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint docent-led tour program highlighting Hoosier artists and patrons of the arts whose histories connect Crown Hill Cemetery with the Indianapolis Museum of Art.
• Mayor's Office of IndianapolisminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Mayor of Indianapolis designates a representative (Cordelia Lewis-Burks) to the Crown Hill Foundation Board of Directors.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum: Cincinnati-based 733-acre historic cemetery and accredited arboretum operating public tours, educational programs, and preservation services. Highly comparable in scale, arboretum accreditation, and tour/education programming.
• Indiana Landmarks: Statewide nonprofit historic preservation organization that designates a representative to Crown Hill's board and previously restored Crown Hill's Waiting Station. Operates adjacent preservation and advocacy mission across Indiana's historic sites.
• Green-Wood Cemetery: Brooklyn-based 478-acre historic cemetery and National Historic Landmark operating public tours, educational programs, an art and history collection, and a Level II accredited arboretum. Directly comparable in mission, scale, programming mix (tours, education, preservation), and revenue model.
• Forest Hills Cemetery: Boston-area historic garden cemetery founded 1848 with active tours, arts programming, and arboretum characteristics. Operates similar public-facing heritage programming and faces analogous preservation and education missions.
• Mount Auburn Cemetery: Cambridge, MA-based 175-acre historic cemetery founded in 1831, designated National Historic Landmark, with public guided tours, arts programming, and a significant tree collection. Closely comparable as a heritage cemetery with comparable educational and conservation programming.
• Congressional Cemetery: Washington, D.C.-based historic cemetery operating public tours, educational programming, and dog-walking/heritage hybrid programming. Comparable as a nonprofit historic cemetery with active preservation and education mission.

Broad incumbents

• Arlington National Cemetery: Federally operated national cemetery with extensive public visitation, tours, and educational programming. While government-operated and far larger in scope, it anchors public expectations for cemetery heritage tourism and competes for the same visitor mindshare.
• National Trust for Historic Preservation: National nonprofit operating preservation grants, advocacy, and heritage site programs across the U.S. Indirectly comparable as the broader umbrella funder and convener of heritage preservation work in which Crown Hill participates.

Regional players

• Newfields (Indianapolis Museum of Art): Indianapolis-based cultural campus with museum, gardens, and nature park. Already partners with Crown Hill on joint docent tours highlighting Hoosier artists and patrons, indicating direct programmatic comparability in heritage interpretation and education in the same geography.

Others

• Historic Landscape Preservation Foundation: Adjacent nonprofit sector in cultural landscape and historic preservation funding. Comparable as an ecosystem participant in the same heritage preservation space, though focused on grantmaking rather than site operation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/crown-hill-heritage-foundation-inc

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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