7 Things You Didn’t Expect to Find in Madison County, Indiana

There’s a view that the middle of the U.S. is nothing but farm fields.

Drive an hour or so northeast of the of the Indianapolis Airport, and you’ll find yourself in Madison County (not the one with the bridges). It has its share of agriculture, for sure, but there are also cultural and historical sites, and people passionate about things they make.

I bet you didn’t know you could find all this in Madison County, Indiana:

1. A performing arts theater that makes you feel like you’re sitting in a Spanish courtyard under a starry sky. The Paramount Theatre Centre is one of only a handful of remaining atmospheric theaters by architect John Eberson.

2. Large, 2000-year-old heaps of earth built up by mysterious ancient people(s) to align with heavenly bodies at Mounds State Park.

3. Free public wifi throughout downtown Anderson (the county seat), thanks to dozens of hotspots. (PDF map)

4. The House of Glass, a family-run artisan glass studio, which still crafts each piece by hand in the tradition of their French ancestors.

5. A gospel music recording studio that also serves insanely good house-made cakes, Pure & Simple Restaurant at Gaither Family Resources. (Phillip wants me to add that the pot roast skillet was also delicious. So was the chicken bacon mac and cheese.)

6. The first historic district to be added to the National Register of Historic Places – West Eighth Street Historic District. (Walking tour map)

7. The world’s largest ball of paint, a baseball that’s been coated in more than 24,000 layers of paint over the last 37 years and now weighs over 4,000 pounds.

Where to Stay

Our homebase while we explored Madison County was a suite at the conveniently-located Best Western Plus in Anderson, which included breakfast every morning and coffee all day. (Yeah!)

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A big thank you to Anderson Madison County Visitor and Convention Bureau! We were their guests at the Best Western Plus and at Pure & Simple Restaurant. But I wasn’t kidding about that cake.

August 6, 2015September 21, 2015

10 hours to sleep, eat, and sightsee: Indianapolis 2nd lap

The Marriott shuttle we had almost missed drove its very important flight crew passengers to the Courtyard Indianapolis Airport hotel and then took us down the street to the Fairfield Inn & Suites.

The lobby had a trendy little sitting area off to one side and a front desk with a rad goldfish cracker dispenser. When we checked in, the night clerk told us they’d upgraded our room. Nice but unnecessary, since we really just needed to crash. I was too tired by that time to worry about the details, though.

Our unnecessarily nice room had the same type of bold-patterned decor as the lobby. Beyond the coffee shelf, couch, and desk was what you’re really looking for after a long day of travel stuff: a comfortable bed.

In the morning (the actual morning, not our 2am check-in time, which only counts as “morning” on a technicality), we got our receipt and realized they charged us extra for the unrequested upgrade. Phillip was able to get it all sorted out with the goldfish desk. So it wasn’t a big deal in an otherwise good stay. I only bring it up to say this is why I double check everything.

Breakfast with Champions

Apparently, flight crews stay at the Courtyard; Little Leaguers stay at the Fairfield. Across the lobby from the goldfish desk was the breakfast buffet, and a few tables overflowing with 12-year-old boys in light blue baseball uniforms.

A couple of them ended up joining our table. They were in town for a tournament. We asked one of the boys what his goal was for the game that day, while he picked at the waffle his mom had stopped by to cut for him. He matter-of-factly answered, “hit three home runs.” His friend said the same. Gotta love big dreamers.

Squaring Up

While I finished getting ready, Phillip took the shuttle back to the airport to pick up our rental car. We managed to get loaded up and checked out with an hour or so to kill. Which is basically how we ended up in Fountain Square. It looked interesting, was on the way, and it happened to be the day of the annual Fountain Square Music Festival.

Neighborhoods have their own circadian rhythms. This one felt like it was still yawning and stretching and blinking in the sunlight. With the exception of a couple restaurants, most of the square was closed when we were there. The historic theater stood quiet with a lone employee hosing off the front sidewalk. The festival hadn’t started yet, and a handful of people were hanging banners and setting up. The place would probably be hopping in a couple of hours.

In the meantime, we had a pleasant walk among the historic buildings with vintagey signs and street art sprinkled in, listening to one of the bands warming up over the rhythmic splash of the fountain before getting back in the car and heading for Anderson.

– More info –

Fountain Square:

History
Fountain Square Theatre
Part of the Indy Cultural Trail
iMOCA: Indianapolis Museum of Contemporary Art
Graffiti murals
Saint Patrick Church – established in 1865 (One of the oldest in Indianapolis), the current Spanish Renaissance style building dates to 1929.
Wildwood Market –
Fountain Square Music Festival in early July
More signage photos

Our Indiana (Heartlandiana) trip

July 31, 2015

Our Indy Race (1st Lap)

It was just after 1am, and we were passing Indy cars like they were standing still.

Because they were. Phillip and I, on the other hand, were racing through the Indianapolis International Airport, dodging puzzled, groggy passengers.

When we were still waiting to get off the plane, I had called our hotel’s shuttle dispatch. They let me know we could take the one that was already en route – if we could make it to the stop in time. If not, it wouldn’t wait for us, because they were also picking up a flight crew, and we’d have to wait around for the 2am pickup.

Sitting halfway back on a plane with an aisle clogged with impatient passengers, we had just under 15 minutes, directions I’d already forgotten, and only carryon luggage. We decided to go for it.

So we ended up sprinting through the airport, not towards a flight but away from one, relying on ambiguous signage to guide us. Finally, we spotted the words “ground transportation” with an arrow pointing towards exterior doors.

We burst outside with a few minutes to spare, only to be greeted by air thick with humidy and mosquitoes, an empty curb, and a vague sense that we were not in the right place.

I redialed the shuttle dispatch. The same woman patiently explained again where we were actually supposed to be.

We rushed downstairs, out the door and across the street, and finally found our stop with the aforementioned flight crew sitting on nearby benches, waiting for the shuttle.

While I was trying to nonchalantly catch my breath in the heavy air, I realized this could possibly be the crew from our flight. In other words, they may have just calmly gotten off our plane after us and everyone else, strolled through the terminal, and arrived here sooner. Which would mean we could have done the same without all the panic, confusion, and mosquitoes.

But maybe it wasn’t them. In fact, let’s just say it wasn’t.

I didn’t look too closely.

Either way, we all made it onto the shuttle. The woman from dispatch even called the driver to check on us.

“Yep.” she replied, turning onto the ramp that lead from the airport to the freeway. “Everyone’s here.”

– More info –

Watch for at the Indianapolis Airport:

Classic racing cars on display. There is a rotating lineup on loan from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum.
Permanent and temporary art (PDF). I saw TBI Prayers by Stephanie Lewis Robertson, which is on display until August 30.
Free wifi.
Confusing signs! Ask for directions or check a map (PDF).

July 13, 2015March 14, 2020

Fountain Square Signs

We made it back from Indiana. The humidity wasn’t as bad as I’d worried it would be. The mosquitoes were surprisingly persistent, despite our super-strength deet. But the fireflies winked at us in the evenings, and we saw almost everyone we went out there to see.

At one point, we had just a little extra time to kill in Indianapolis, so we went and checked out the historic Fountain Square. Not much was open yet, but we did see some interesting architecture and vintage-looking signs I wanted to share – in case you’re as geeky about this stuff as I am.

Diamonds, anyone?

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June 29, 2015June 25, 2019

Indypendence Day

I’ve got a family reunion coming up in Indiana over the 4th of July weekend.

I tend to spend a fair amount of time while I’m there sitting on porches, catching up with great aunts and uncles and cousins, sipping sweet tea and eating really delicious pie.

This time, we’ll also be checking out some local sights and craft – and keeping an eye out for sweet corn stands.

If I don’t drown in the humidity, it should be a nice time.

I have posts scheduled to go up here while I’m gone, and you can follow our Indiana fun on Instagram (#heartlandiana).

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