Published September 13, 2019

Celebrate boundless curiosity at the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites during Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day

Have you ever wanted to feed your curiosity at the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites? What if you could visit for FREE?

Well, on Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day – Saturday, Sept. 21 – you can do just that with a Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day ticket. One Museum Day ticket allows general museum entry for two people at most of our 12 locations from 10 am. to 5 p.m.

At the Indiana State Museum in downtown Indianapolis, find your place in Indiana’s story by exploring three levels of one-of-a-kind, interactive experiences about the real people, places and things that shaped the Hoosier state into what it is today. You’ll also be able to experience our newest exhibit, A•MAZE•D: The Puzzling World of Dave Phillips, for free, where you can see if you’re a true maze master.

Around the state, you’ll find 11 historic sites to help satisfy your endless curiosity – and need for a weekend road trip destination. See the actual places where Hoosiers shaped Indiana history throughout the state during your visit to any of the below locations.

Angel Mounds State Historic Site

Experience one of the best-preserved, pre-contact Native American sites in North America at Angel Mounds State Historic Site in Evansville, plus find out about the work of Hoosier archaeologist Glenn A. Black in the visitor center. (Please note: Admission to the Four Winds Native American Show is not included with Museum Day entry.)

Vincennes State Historic Sites & Corydon Capital State Historic Site

Explore Indiana’s oldest city and territorial capital during your visit to Vincennes State Historic Sites, or visit Indiana’s first state capitol and tour the state’s original capitol building at Corydon Capitol State Historic Site.

New Harmony State Historic Site

Check out an early utopian community and discover the legacy left behind by these groups during an open house at New Harmony State Historic Site’s Fauntleroy Home from 6 to 8 p.m., plus enjoy a special musical performance in honor of Smithsonian Magazine’s Museum Day. (Please note: Guided tours of Historic New Harmony are not included with a Museum Day ticket.)

Levi and Catharine Coffin State Historic Site

Learn the story of a Quaker couple who helped more than 1,000 freedom seekers during their journeys, and tour the home that was known as the “Grand Central Station” of the Underground Railroad at the Levi and Catharine Coffin State Historic Site in Fountain City.

Whitewater Canal State Historic Site

Find out about an early mode of transportation in the Hoosier state during your visit to Whitewater Canal State Historic Site in Metamora. Tour the historic Metamora Grist Mill, then take a FREE boat ride on the Ben Franklin III Canal Boat during a run from noon to 4 p.m. (weather permitting).

Lanier Mansion State Historic Site & Culbertson Mansion State Historic Site

Tour one of the best examples of Greek Revival architecture and find out about the man helped Indiana stay in the Civil War on the side of the Union at Lanier Mansion State Historic Site in Madison. Or, discover amazing architecture and stories about the once-richest man whose generosity continues to impact the local community at Culbertson Mansion State Historic Site in New Albany.

Gene Stratton-Porter State Historic Site & Limberlost State Historic Site

Learn about Gene Stratton-Porter, Indiana’s most widely read female author, and discover more about this Hoosier naturalist, photographer and author at one of her homes at Gene Stratton-Porter State Historic Site in Rome City, or Limberlost State Historic Site in Geneva.

T.C. Steele State Historic Site

Get up close to original paintings by noted Hoosier artist T.C. Steele, plus explore his creative plein air painting process through hands-on activities and a guided tour at T.C. Steele State Historic Site near Nashville.

So now you have a difficult decision to make. Where will your curiosity lead you on Museum Day? Get your ticket at Smithsonian.com/museumday.

(A Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day ticket is good ONLY for general museum admission. Special events are not included.)