A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure
Secret Indiana: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure will be available for pre-order soon and released after March 15, 2025.
Uncover Indiana’s hidden wonders with Secret Indiana. Journey to the unique and fascinating destinations that set Indiana apart. Discover an underground tunnel in the floor of a bookstore, a 64-ton fountain shipped to Indiana from Brazil, and even a jail that rotates with the turn of a hand crank. This guide will lead you to Indiana’s most unusual gems, providing a fresh perspective on the state’s history, culture, and attractions.
Experience Indiana’s unique treasures through its sites, which feature compelling stories and eerie tales. This book reveals the most eclectic places, from urban landscapes in Indianapolis to the serene shores of Lake Michigan.
Get a fresh perspective on the Hoosier State with an intriguing grotto made of geodes at the Geode Grotto in Jasper and experience sipping coffee in a former mental institution at Mansion Society. Attractions such as Kokomo’s Old Ben offer a glimpse into Indiana’s oddities. Northern Indiana’s natural wonders, like the Seven Pillars at Mississinewa, provide opportunities for exploration and history lessons.
In Secret Indiana, Jamie Ward shares her discoveries with readers and challenges them to step out of their comfort zones, seek adventure, and discover what makes the state extraordinary.
Indiana is a treasure trove of weird, wonderful, and obscure destinations, including:
- A utopian community featuring an open-air church
- The world’s largest trestle bridge and ball of paint
- The final concert venue of Elvis preserved as a time capsule
- The only operational rotary jail in the US, the first of only 18 ever built
- The childhood home of Little Orphan Annie
- A coffee shop housed in a former mental hospital
- A pizza shop with a double-decker bus inside
- The Goldfish and RV/Trailer Capitals of the World
- Hidden sanctuaries promoting connection with nature and inner peace
- Libraries, cemeteries, art, bookstores, museums, and restaurants with hidden treasures
- A 25-foot Bigfoot named Otis
- Stadiums, abandoned hospitals, churches, and courthouses with their own stories
- Haunted bridges and sites with many urban legends
- Strange and unusual collections and shops
- Historical heritage found in a canal, synagogue, coffee shop, and homes
Pre-Ordering Available Soon!
Secret Indiana: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure is a full-color book featuring the author Jamie Ward’s photographs and extensive text detailing each “secret” place. It will be available for pre-order soon and released after March 15, 2025. This unique guide explores Indiana’s hidden gems, passages, stories, and specialties—some lesser-known and others surprising to find in Indiana. Secret Indiana: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure will be available online and at select retail locations, including Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, and local bookstores and gift shops.