Spring Mill State Park offers a look at the pioneer era amidst the wooded hills and spectacular beauty of southern Indiana’s limestone country.
As children and parents watched, a costumed interpreter took a stick in each hand, crossed the sticks and placed an embroidery hoop over them. When she uncrossed the sticks the hoop flew into the air. Laughing, the children tried to catch it. This was the pioneer game of graces, one of the many games, crafts and trades demonstrated in the pioneer village in Spring Mill State Park in Mitchell, Ind.
A lively pioneer village The park, located in one of the prettiest areas in southern Indiana’s limestone country, features a pioneer village built of logs and stone, several caves, a venerable inn faced with Indiana limestone, and trails that wind around a lake and through heavily wooded hills. Near the park entrance is a memorial to Mitchell’s own Virgil I. Grissom, America’s second astronaut in space. A small museum houses the Gemini III capsule and Grissom’s spacesuit, plus other memorabilia. The pioneer village developed around a three-story water-powered gristmill built by the Bullett brothers in 1816-17. They used local limestone for the lintels of the mill and built the flume and waterwheel of local hardwoods. In 1832, the Hamer brothers bought the village and mill. One of the park trails passes by the family cemetery. The CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) restored buildings, brought in additional log cabins and constructed a lake, shelters, roads and trails about the time the park opened in the early 1930s. Today, costumed interpreters demonstrate various activities like woodworking and weaving in the cabins daily April through October. Visitors can see the top two floors of the mill–which contain American Indian artifacts, old millstones, tools and other collections–and buy cornmeal that’s been ground on site.
A number of special events are held in the village. You can participate in Autumn Harvest Days Oct. 6–7; Autumn Crafts Day Nov. 10; and a Children’s Pioneer Christmas Dec. 8. Two of the most popular events are the Haunted Village Oct. 13–14, and Holiday in the Village Nov. 30–Dec. 1. Abundance of nature This part of Indiana has a number of limestone quarries and some 2,500 caves, so it’s not surprising that the park has many caves and sinkholes. A boat tour takes visitors about 500 feet into Twin Caves, where you may catch a glimpse of the northern blind cave fish. Interpretive naturalists lead cave tours, hikes, history talks and other activities. Hiking is popular in the park, which offers eight trails from accessible to fairly rugged. One of the moderate, one-mile trails circles the lake, while a rugged 2.5-mile hike winds past caves and sinkholes and through Donaldson Woods Nature Preserve, a tract purchased by Scotland immigrant George Donaldson in 1865. Some trees are now older than 300 years. You may see deer, raccoons, coyotes and skunks in and near the woods. Birdwatchers can look for black vultures, northern parulas, Louisiana water thrushes and summer tanagers. Wildflowers are particularly showy in spring. Dutchmen’s breeches, blue phlox and May apples carpet the forest floor beneath redbuds and dogwoods–a truly beautiful scene. Fall color is outstanding in October. An Olympic-sized swimming pool with a bathhouse and wading pool provide swimming facilities.
The park makes an interesting daytrip for students and visiting parents from nearby Indiana and DePauw universities in Bloomington and Greencastle, respectively, but to savor all the activities, a longer stay is necessary. Overnight accommodations include a campground with bathroom and shower facilities plus a camp store nearby. The pride of the park, however, is the handsome lodge faced with limestone that was completed in 1939. The wood-paneled interior includes three massive stone fireplaces, as well as an indoor-outdoor pool and a conference room overlooking the lake. The lodge’s restaurant is quite popular and may require a wait on busy weekends. More area attractions Lawrence County has enough sights and activities to satisfy a wide variety of interests. The town of Bedford has several attractions including Bluespring Caverns Park, Carousel Winery, Land of Limestone Museum, Lawrence County Museum of History and the Little Theater of Bedford. The historic Mitchell Opera House also offers a variety of entertainment, and collectors may want to visit the Turner Doll Factory in Heltonville, where dolls are handcrafted from start to finish. More shopping and dining options are in Bedford. Mitchell will host its annual Persimmon Festival Sept. 24–29. Try the persimmon pudding, browse arts and crafts booths, take a tour of the pioneer village and enjoy the carnival. The seasons bring both different events and different qualities to the natural setting–spring wildflowers, the cool shade of ancient trees in summer and fall colors. So plan a visit–and plan to return. Jinny Ravenscroft Danzer is a contributor from St. Louis, Mo. |
Sept/Oct 2007 Issue | |||||||
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