If you're a James Dean fan or if you don't know much about him but you're curious to learn more,…read moreyou need to make this excursion and visit this incredible museum. James died tragically young and he had a very short career, but his talent left a lasting impression and created a legacy that's unmatched. His talent in the arts and in racing were incredible, and if you want to learn about either/both, they have tons of info and real memorabilia from James' family's personal collection here that touch on those themes, as well as lots of info from his childhood into high school, and some from his personal life before his death. Our docent was passionate about Jimmy and spoke of him like he was an old friend, which gave the tour a nice touch. The admission fee of $5 was extremely reasonable, too.

The James Dean Museum My daughter and I made a special road…read moretrip in 1993 to visit James Dean's childhood home, the cemetery where he's buried, Fairmount Museum (now the James Dean Museum) and the James Dean Gallery. I have glossy photos. I wasn't digital back then. If you're a fan of James Dean this place is a must visit. I was in a rough teen angst state when I saw the movie Rebel Without a Cause. In one scene he tells his parents looking at his father "you say one thing", (then looks at his mother), and says "you say another", then to both, "then you switch it all around again!" At that moment I had an out of body experience. Just how I felt, torn in half and angry since I was born. From then on I became the biggest fan. At one time when I owned a home the walls were covered with oil paintings and framed art all of James Dean. Every room had display cabinets with memorabilia. Nothing super valuable. Novelty items from my travels. I imagined charging admission one day to help me pay house tax! That was another lifetime ago. Now I have four of my favorite framed posters on the wall. I still have an old trunk with small items. Maybe one Winter Day I'll take photos. I love the little unusual collectibles I have left. I hope I haven't bored you. I guess I'm melancholy on his birthday. He was gone too soon. No one mentions his birth or death as was done a couple decades ago. I was a member of the fan club too. I wonder what happened to the fan club president. She lived in California. I still have her letters. I don't want to ever forget. The teenage Marianne full of frustration and anger is still a part of me. His expression of the emotions I felt as a teenager helped me realize I was not alone. I hope I'm still not alone.....

I absolutely loved my trip to the Seiberling at Christmas! I found it to be one of my favorite…read moreChristmas experiences so far. Every square inch is decorated. There are 3 floors to this historic mansion to explore for only $10. The architecture is amazing. I got a lot of pictures here. It was worth the hour drive to Kokomo from Indy. Staff and volunteers were friendly and helpful as well.

Kokomo, Indiana's Seiberling Mansion is a rather sublime sight to see during the holiday season…read more Serving as home for the Howard County Historical Society, the Seiberling Mansion was completed in 1891 and owned by Monroe Seiberling. Seiberling was an industrialist and entrepreneur who arrived in Kokomo alongside the late 19th century gas boom. He became wealthy, built several factories in the area, and followed all this up by building a rather remarkable mansion. Subsequent owners included Orange Darby, Rev. William Parr (namesake for Parr Methodist Church), real estate developer Franklin Miller, and George Kingston. Kingston was an inventor who invented the carburetor used in Henry Ford's Model T. When Kingston passed away in 1946, Indiana University bought the home and used it as the home of IU-Kokomo until 1964. For several years, the mansion remained empty. Finally, Howard County began looking for a way to move the county museum out of the courthouse. This ended up being a perfect arrangement and IU signed a long-term agreement to turn over the property for use as a museum. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1972, the Seiberling Mansion has both a Queen Anne and Romanesque Revival style. The house has three stories - eight rooms on the first floor, seven on the second floor, and a grand ballroom on the third floor. Parking is free. The parking lot entrance is behind the museum off West Walnut street. The front door is the main entrance, though the accessible entrance is at the rear of the house. It's important to note that only the first floor is actually accessible (there's no elevator), though there is a virtual video available on the first floor for the second and third floors. There are public restrooms on the first and second floors, though it should also be noted these are not wheelchair accessible. The museum is open Tuesday-Sunday from 1-4pm. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for K-12, and free for under age 5. The museum is a Blue Star Museum - this means active military and family members get in free from Memorial Day to Labor Day. They do have periods when they close - so checking their website is always a good idea just to be sure. The Seiberling Mansion can be rented for a maximum of 25 people. Rental rates on the website. The adjacent Elliott House is also available. While I always lament not having full access to places, with historic locations it's understandable and expected that access isn't going to be perfect. This is beautiful to see, though I'm not sure I can give it a full thumbs up for those with mobility issues since entry is $10 and you really only get to access one of three floors. That said, the virtual tour is pretty cool and the building itself is wonderful.

I stumbled across the Elwood Haynes Museum while traveling on my recent Tenderness Tour in the…read moreKokomo area. While I'd heard about the museum before, I knew very little about it and I can honestly say that visiting it wasn't on my itinerary for my Kokomo visit until we happened to drive by it while searching for our evening dining location. The Elwood Haynes Museum is located in the mansion owned by Elwood Haynes, a Kokomo-based inventor credited with multiple firsts including being the first to produce cars commercially back in 1894. He lived in Kokomo until his death in 1925. Haynes also invented stainless steel. Seriously. Being that the Elwood Haynes Museum was actually a residence, you might guess that wheelchair access is kind of an issue. It definitely is kind of an issue, though kudos must be given for efforts to make the mansion as accessible as possible. You go up a rather narrow, somewhat steep driveway and park in the back of the house. If you have a high vehicle or an RV type vehicle, the odds you're going to achieve this are slim to none. There's only a few parking spots, a likely indicator that visits to the museum tend to be in smaller groups. The guide who was present for our visit acknowledged that the vast majority of visitors are out of towners rather than locals, though they do host local student groups. They've concocted a rather large, wooden ramp designed to provide wheelchair access. It likely meets ADA requirements in terms of grade, though be aware the wood itself feels a little flimsy. For those with limited range of motion or upper body strength, it may be advised to have a companion or assistant with you. You then enter via a side door that leads to your standard residential hallway. As this was a turn of the 19th century house, you can easily guess that hallways are rather narrow. I had zero issues moving into each room on the first floor - a bathroom on the first floor is largely wheelchair friendly with appropriate rails. The second floor would not be accessible to a wheelchair user, while the third floor, a small area, is not open to the public. They also have a basement area that is not open to the public. There's also an attached carriage house that had three of Haynes's vehicles within it along with a safe that had been created from the materials he invented. The Elwood Haynes Museum really is rather fascinating, though it's a rather quick view with a maximum of 1-2 hours needed to enjoy the entire museum. Admission is free, though donations are welcomed and somewhat encouraged in a low pressure sort of way. The exhibit, in addition to the vehicles, includes a wealth of photos, documents, inventions and other items related to Haynes, a figure who contributed greatly to modern motoring yet remains relatively unknown when compared to many others. The volunteer who was present was friendly and knowledgeable about Haynes's history and worked at a comfortable pace in explaining the museum. This was definitely an unexpected gem during my time in Kokomo.

For history buffs, or car buffs, or fans of invention, this is a "must stop" place to visit while…read morein Kokomo. The home of Elwood Haynes is partly a time capsule showing the Haynes residence and all those wonderful antiques you might expect. The other part of the building is the museum tribute to Mr Haynes and some of the other famous inventors/inventions of Kokomo. I hadn't done any research before going, so I was surprised to learn how many incredible inventions were created/discovered by Haynes. What is most commonly related to is that Haynes designed, funded the building of, and drove the first commercially built auto in the country! Local inventors (The Apperson Brothers) owned a shop and were paid by Haynes to build the frame and moving parts of the first auto after Haynes had bought a one horsepower engine that ran on gasoline. At that time, gasoline was considered a waste product from natural gas production and it was another of Haynes' inventions that made gasoline more usable as a fuel. On July 4, 1994, Haynes successfully drove his vehicle for an hour, covering about six miles. But that was just some of what this man accomplished. He discovered a means for making brass at the age of 15. He also invented the small thermostat that is used to regulate home temperature. He also created numerous alloys, including stainless steel and Stellite (used in blading small turbines and numerous other tools/equipment that should not rust.) The museum shows photos throughout the building from Haynes' life. Upstairs, the rooms are not maintained as living spaces, but rather, as tributes to the other inventors and "firsts" that Kokomo is known for. You will see exhibits about the Appersons, the first pneumatic rubber tire, first carburetor, lots of Delco radio inventions, and even some canning innovations. And of course, there are lots of exhibits about alloys and their uses. The staff is friendly and goes the extra mile to make sure you have all the information you desire. Note: Although the garage is off limits, you can still see three of the first cars produced in Kokomo through the windows. Review #2486

This place is a gem of a find! My friend got tickets from a silent auction and I went along with…read moreher. They do have private parking, but the lot is small and it was surprisingly busy on a Saturday afternoon! We checked in and chose the audio option and also a one page scavenger hunt for each room, which helped to dig into the houses a bit more. I was shocked at the level of detail! So much love and work went into these houses. I was in awe of some of the work completed in them. I definitely had my favorite! You can also buy all sorts of pieces to work on your own house too. My friend is redoing her childhood house for her niece so it was a great way to get the creative juices flowing. Definitely something to check out!

This place was so interesting! Walking in you are immediately greeted by staff who asked if we…read morewanted to do a scavenger hunt between our group of friends or if we just wanted to walk around. We chose scavenger hunt and at the end got a prize of our choosing (something miniature). The entire place is pretty antique. Very detailed mini houses with their own theme are in each room. You really have to come here with time on your hands to be able to really look at each house and the intricacies it has. There are small figurines and some of these houses I know sure took so much time!! Not only to plan but to collect the individual pieces to go along with it. Very cool. If you ever have time to visit- I highly recommend you do.

Truly this little museum was well-done and felt way more personal than the big national museums…read more The guys who work here were all very knowledgable and happy to share all kinds of tidbits about the displays with us. The park outside was cool and we enjoyed the special planes and aircraft in their collection here. This museum is also a Harvest Host.Grissom Air Museum in Peru, IN. We stayed in the parking lot which had 2 entrances, so an easy pull-through with our travel trailer and was mostly flat. A large 5th wheel also stayed the night and there was plenty of room for both of us. It is easy off-on IN Highway 31. There is some highway noise, but it died down in the evening and we slept well. It felt safe, maybe the proximity to the Air Base helped with that feeling. And we loved having the views of the aircraft displays out of our camper windows. We did patronize the Grissom Air Museum. Truly the little museum was well-done and felt way more personal than a big national museum. The guys who work here were all very knowlegable and happy to share all kinds of tidbits about the displays with us. The walk-through park outside was cool and we enjoyed the special planes and aircraft in their collection here.

It has a diverse collection of aircraft and a great value for the price! Definitely recommend…read morevisiting if you're in the area

The Twisted House is a whimsical, quirky sculpture in the ArtsPark. The house is the 2005 work of…read moreJohn McNaughton. McNaughton was a founding member of the Art Department of University of Southern Indiana. He passed away in 2022. The Twisted House is typical of his fun-loving approach to art. The wood sculpture has a storybook appearance. I can imagine that kids (and maybe even a few squirrels) would have fun visiting and playing in the structure with the crooked door and roof that curves over into the ground. The sculpture brought a smile to my face. The Twisted House worth a visit if you like art. There is no charge to walk through the quiet and serene park. There is free parking at the east side of the park.

It was a cold crisp day in late November when I visited the house. I knocked on the door but…read morenobody was home. Just kidding. It is a piece of artwork. It reminds me of the nursery rhyme about the old woman who lived in a shoe. It is just one piece of outdoor artwork and sculptures available on the grounds of the Indianapolis Art Center. I found plenty of parking available at the Center's parking lot. Then it is short walk from the lot.

I love a good roadside attraction and this one has been pinned on my map for a little while. We…read moretraveled from Wisconsin to Ohio for a wedding and made the detour to set a world record (even if it was for only an hour and a half). Everyone was a little weary about it as it added some time to our trip, but after everyone was happy we did it and it became a conversation topic for the weekend! We called on our way (be sure to pay attention to the time change if you're doing in a day) and Mike didn't seem like he wanted to chat, but we let him know about when we were going to be there and when we arrived, he was ready for us. He went through the story, getting into the world record book, then we picked out our color and got to painting. As we painted we chatted more and he told us some stories of all the different types of people that have visited, weird and unique paint jobs, and more. I am assuming he gets paint donated or he has paint that has been around a while, because it did have a unpleasant smell so we rolled quickly. Don't be too worried about getting it on your clothes unless you are reckless, there are long handles on the rollers, the most you'll get is on the bottom of your shoe. Its awesome you get to be a small part of a world record and worth the detour if you're in the area. He does accept donations through cash, venmo, or credit card. I recommend a stop!

I totally understand obsessions and the need to be first at something that many consider odd or…read moreunusual. Having the most reviews on Yelp would certainly be an obsession and that's where I am. So I went out of my way to stop here at the World' Largest Ball of Paint which is located in Indiana. Arriving during business hours, I was able to meet up with the painter himself, ask Mike some questions, see the wet paint and understand a bit about this pretty awesome piece of Americana. It is a bit out of the way but worth it. The Ball of Paint is free to visit and they do accept donations. You can also contribute to the paint ball. [Review 1313 of 2024 - 189 in Indiana - 22336 overall]

A sweet little gem of a museum. Pressed glass was made in and near Greentown all around the turn of…read morethe century in 1900 and this museum highlights the indiana Goblet and Glass Company. Many fine and very rare examples of pressed glass as well as artifacts from the factory are on display. The docent is very knowledgable about glass in general and Greentown's factory in particular. As of October 2012 the museum is open in the afternoons. Worth the short drive from Kokomo for antique pressed glass admirers because of the collection and the background information on manufactoring.

Mediocre food, service is the worst! Its a Thursday afternoon we got here around 1sh (serve until…read more2) waited 25 minutes for a BLT sandwich, chicken strips and a hamburger. The food was not brought out at the same time (I was served 5 minutes after my husband and son). The house is beautiful that's the only positive I can say about our experience today

I have eaten lunch here many times with my father over the years. So many great things on the…read moremenu. Butterscotch pie always a favorite. Had my father's funeral reception here. Buffet style and the food was delicious. Prices were great. Atmosphere always fantastic.