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A field trip to Indiana’s first capitol provides students with a chance to step back through time and learn about a fascinating time in our nation’s history. Here, you can explore Corydon’s colorful beginnings where Hoosier statesmen carefully built the foundations for the state we know today. Our field trips are designed to blend history and nature, and are aligned with Indiana Academic Standards.
Call 812.738.4890 to schedule your field trip to Corydon Capitol State Historic Site.
Free Admission
Free for preregistered Indiana schools of 10+ K-12 students, teachers, bus drivers and one additional adult chaperone per 10 students. Additional chaperones pay the group admission rate of $8/person.
Free Admission
Free for preregistered groups of 10+ students, including one free adult per 10 students. Additional adults pay the group rate.
Pre-Registration
All field trips must be booked at least four months in advance. This ensures a personalized, engaging experience for your students.
Group Size
A minimum of 10 students is required for field trips.
Lunch
Picnic areas are available, and there are nearby restaurants for students and chaperones.
Contact
Call 812.738.4890 or email [email protected] to schedule your field trip to Corydon Capitol.
Take a look at our collected educator resources from across the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites.
Whether it’s at the site, outreach or virtual, we offer hands-on, exploratory and interactive programs on a variety of topics that provide your students a fun way to learn about Indiana’s people, places and things. All programs fulfill select Indiana Academic Standards for multiple grade levels. At site and outreach programs cost $2/student with a maximum number of 25 students. Travel fees are 30-60 miles: $20; 60-90 miles: $40; 90+ miles: $60. Program length is 45-60 minutes. Virtual programs cost $75/class with additional classes $100 for the same program. Program length is 45-60 minutes. See programs below:
The school group tour includes a guided tour of the first state capitol building and the Governor’s headquarters, plus students can see the famous Constitution Elm.
Indiana Academic Standards: Social Studies: 4.1.4, 4.1.5, 4.1.6, 4.2.1, 4.2.2, 4.2.3, 4.2.4
Students enjoy identifying and learning about unusual historical artifacts. Each item in the trunk looks like something they might be familiar with, and the efforts they put into guessing are priceless! The presenter will share the historical use of each unique object with the students.
Available: At site, outreach, virtual; Sept. 2025-Feb. 2026
Indiana Academic Standards: Social Studies: 3.4.2, 4.1.3, 4.1.4, 4.4.1, 4.4.2
Pack your wagons. It’s time to take a trip! Students will learn what it took to travel in the early 1800s. After a presentation from staff, students will have a chance to pack their wagons with what they think they’ll need. What supplies would they need to bring? What would be left behind? How would they survive?
Available: At site, virtual; Sept. 2025-Feb. 2026
Indiana Academic Standards: Social Studies: 3.1.2, 3.1.3. 3.1.4, 3.4.3, 4.1.4, 4.3.9, 4.4.1, 4.4.3, 5.3.11, 5.3.13
This interactive program teaches 4th-grade students about the Indiana constitution and how Indiana became a state. They will discuss and determine what laws they would create. Teachers will be given a writing prompt for students to create their own constitutions after the presentation.
Available: Virtual program on Zoom
Indiana Academic Standards: Social Studies 4.1.4, 4.1.5, 4.1.6, 4.2.1, 4.2.2, 4.2.3, 4.2.4
Cost: Free
Duration: 20-30 minutes
Registration: Required by Dec. 6 by calling the site at 812.738.4890 or emailing [email protected].
In 1820, a young slave woman from Vincennes named Polly Strong sued her master to gain her freedom. This interactive program guides students through her trial and the precedent that it set in terms of slavery in Indiana. Students will also visit the Supreme Court room where the trial occurred.
Available: At site, virtual; Sept. 2025-Feb. 2026
Indiana Academic Standards: Social Studies: 3.2.3, 3.2.4, 4.1.11, 4.2.11, 4.2.4, 4.2.7, 4.3.12
See the first state capitol building, built between 1814 and 1816 and located in the heart of downtown Corydon. Workers hauled limestone from nearby quarries to erect the 40-foot square walls, and logs were cut from virgin forests for the ceiling and roof supports. After the government moved to Indianapolis, the old capitol building was restored and opened as a state memorial in 1930.
Take a walk to see the preserved trunk of the Constitution Elm. It’s believed to be where the original 43 delegates to the Indiana Constitutional Convention gathered on a hot June day to draft the state’s first constitution.
Medicine in the early 1800s was different from what we use today. Some remedies were made using plants we grow in our herb garden. Lamb’s Ear was said to have antimicrobial properties and the soft leaves were used as bandages to prevent infections.
We look forward to welcoming your students to the Corydon Capitol State Historic Site. Call us at 812.738.4890 to book your trip or send us an email at the link below.
