Tippecanoe County Public Library: Fill & Download for Free

Question Answered: We have recently moved to Indiana and we enjoy history. What parks or locations should we visit?I also like history, and I lived in Indiana for many years. I taught at Purdue and got one of my doctorates there; I also taught for 35 years at the University of Illinois, which is about 35 miles from the Indiana border, so I have some reasonable familiarity with Indiana. So, herewith, are some of the places in Indiana that I’ve enjoyed. I’ll begin in the Southern part and work my way North.New Harmony. A beautiful small town in Southern Indiana, New Harmony was originally founded by George Rapp as a home for the Harmonites. The Harmonites (aka Rappites) made furniture, so the surrounding forests offered a nice supply of wood, and they built a very nice town and became rather affluent. They used the river to ship their products east for sale in Ohio, Pennsylvania, etc. When they decided to go back to Pennsylvania they sold the town to Robert Owen, who tried to establish a kind of utopian community of artists, writers, intellectuals, and scientists. The Owenites created the state’s first library, a public school for all residents, and many other important institutions. Many famous scientists, artists, scholars, and writers lived there until the community collapsed. Today, many of the buildings these two groups built remain standing. Some are marked and open to the public, while others are private home. But, if you have an eye to architecture, they are easy to spot. The downtown is lovely and quite walkable. The museum is good and also is a place to register for guided walking tours of town (or pick up maps for self-guided tours, though the guided ones are more informative). It is a lovely and interesting place.While you are in the New Harmony area, it may be worth it to visit Angel Mounds State Historic Site, one of the places the mound builders lived. It isn’t as developed, as large, or as well studied as the Cahokia Mounds in Illinois, and the museum is smaller, but that doesn’t make it any less interesting. You can walk out through the mounds area (or at least some of them), the museum is very interesting, and the rangers very friendly and informative.If you go to this area you’ll also be near Evansville, which has a surprising number of museums and other things to do for a town of its size. On the historic side of things, though not ancient history, is the USS LST 325 Ship Memorial. It is the last operating LST from WWII. The ships were built in Evansville, and the tours will give you an appreciation for that enterprise, but the ship is interesting by itself too. Wesselman Woods Nature preserve is a nice, small place to visit in Evansville, and if you are willing to cross the river you should visit the Audubon State Park in Henderson, KY, just a few miles from Evansville. (I know it’s not Indiana, but it is worth the short trip.)Moving a bit North from New Harmony and Evansville, I think that Metamora is worth a visit. Another nice, small town with a lot of history still on display. An important attraction is the Whitewater Canal State Historic Site, where you can ride an old, horse drawn canal boat (called, I believe, the Ben Franklin) on a narrated tour of a canal segment that includes the Duck Creek Aqueduct, an overpass built for the canal to cross Duck Creek (obviously). As far as I know, it is the only aquatic overpass in the US. Metamora also has an old, operating grist mill, which is really interesting, but many places still have them, so maybe not so unique. This town can be touristy, and many of the shops in town show it (with many t-shirt and souvenir shops, the usual complement of fudge, taffy, and frozen custard shops, antique stores, etc.), but the town is quite lovely to walk through and enjoy the architecture and history. Lots of plaques tell you the story of the place. The town also has a surprising number of quite attractive churches that are usually open for visitors. There also is an antique train one can take from Metamora (mostly along the canal) to Connorsville, IN., where you can visit a nice bird sanctuary. Metamora is not too far from Cincinnati which also has lots of history and things to do.On the other side of the state is Brown County and Nashville, IN., an art colony set in wooded hills. It too has a lot of history as it has been an art colony for over a century, and the story of who and how it developed it quite interesting. That said, the focus on the art is much greater, and you have to search out the history. Nonetheless, it is really enjoyable, both in town itself and driving/biking around the area along the back roads to the various art studios.Heading further North I always liked Turkey Run State Park and the nearby towns. Turkey Run is a lovely park, free to Indiana residents, and is perhaps the most popular park in the state. It has trails, canoeing, and a lovely lodge. Here you are not far from Parke County, IN, which has more covered bridges remaining than any place I know. It is hilly and wooded, and has a locally famous Covered Bridge Festival that may be worth a trip sometime. We took our kids there when they were young, and they always enjoyed it. Besides the covered bridges, there is an old jail in Rockville that is restored and kind of fun, and a historic roller mill in Mansfield (where they also host a mushroom festival). Both are interesting for adults but also fun for kids.Of course the Indianapolis area has a ton of historic areas and lots to do. There are books on it, so I won’t go into Indianapolis too much. From this historic perspective, I like the Benjamin Harrison Presidential site, the cultural trail, the canal walk, and the Medical History Museum. But there are tons more things to do and see there. It is a surprisingly nice town, especially given its reputation. Connor Prairie is near Indy, and people really like it. It is a “living museum” and my kids really enjoyed it when they were young.In and around Lafayette you can visit Prophetstown State Park and the Tippecanoe Battlefield Museums, along the Tippecanoe River. History and nature in one visit. There’s also the Lily Nature Center which, while not historic, offers a very nice walk through the woods. You’ll also be near the Wolf Park, which is a wolf research facility in Battle Ground, Indiana, and well worth a visit. You can walk among wolf habitats and we learned a lot about wolves.In Terre Haute the Eugene Debs House is really interesting, with well educated tour guides. And, if you go, you also might stop at the Clabber Girl Museum which is much more interesting than it sounds. The National Road also runs through Terre Haute (as it runs across Indiana). The state has done a nice job with restoring long segments of the National Road, and many parts of it are walkable and bikeable. Watch for historic markers including the actual, old road markers. Eventually they plan to make it a bike/walking trail completely across the state.Fort Wayne offers a very nice Botanical Conservatory, Historic Fort Wayne. and Fort Wayne Trials. It also has a fairly nice aviation museum and a pretty good African American History Museum. The Cathedral Museum is also kind of interesting. (You can tell, I was not as taken with Fort Wayne as much. But don’t let that stop you. It has a lot of museums for a town this size, and in winter that is great and the winters there can be a bit cold. But, in general, I prefer to be outdoors, which explains my moderated enthusiasm.)Not historic, but Napanee, Indiana is home to Indiana’s largest Amish community and is quite scenic and interesting. You can tour an Amish farm and, of course, there are plenty of shops to buy everything from Amish food, trinkets, and furniture. But, in the case of furniture, shop around. It is lovely, but prices for similar things can vary a lot.Indiana Dunes is a lovely day trip. Ancient nature, I guess. It has thousands of acres of native forests, glacial dunes, swamps, and marshes. It is surprisingly not all that crowded. Also, if you are there, you are not far from either Chicago or Michigan’s shoreline along Lake Michigan. both are interesting and have tons to see and do.Although many consider the midwestern and Great Lake states to be “flyover country,” there are a lot of interesting things to do and see there. If we ignore the disappointing and immerse ourselves in the good parts of wherever we are I think we can learn to enjoy most places.