Things to Do in Plainfield

In 1830, a group of history enthusiasts formed a club around a pledge to delve deep into their state’s history and record each decade’s goings-on. So were the humble beginnings of the Indiana Historical Society, now an expansive home for artifacts, images, and a library, all showcasing the state's rich past.

One of the facility's main attractions, the Indiana Experience sculpts the Indiana Historical Society's research into interactive exhibits and programs to forge personal connections between modern populations and their regional predecessors. Within, actors interpret the lives of historical figures and interact with three-dimensional re-creations of historic photographs in the You Are There series, staging periods such as in 1955: Ending Polio, when workers at the Eli Lilly and Company packing line rushed to get shipments of the polio vaccine out the door to help ailing people. Beginning March 26, visitors can also help with the recovery effort after the great flood of 1913, interacting with volunteers to help the flood sufferers and wandering the Wulf’s Hall Relief Station.

The William H. Smith Memorial Library also maintains a can't-miss archive of documents that explore Indiana's history, including films, sheet music, and commemorative coins and medals, as well as more than 1.7 million photographs. When hunger makes its way onto agendas, visitors can dine indoors at Stardust Terrace Café or outdoors on its canal-side patio, returning on select summer nights to gather along the water for special events such as the Concerts on the Canal series.

Orchard in Bloom’s annual garden show and symposium in Holliday Park raises funds for The Orchard School, an independent grade school for grades pre-K through 8. Select local landscapers create macro-landscapes with in-season botany as well as specialized microgardens, designed to showcase specific plant varieties and new design ideas that homeowners can easily incorporate into their own yards. Gardeners can stock up on tools, plants, and art at the Gardener’s Market, full of national and regional artisan vendors. The children’s area entertains youngsters with age-appropriate activities, such as filling flowerpots with soil and playing patty-cake with the limbs of trees.

Started in Boston in 1990 and an Indianapolis staple since 1992, The Mystery Café delights audiences with an engaging dinner show and four-course Italian dinner. Guest sleuths enter the dining hall and have the option to undertake a fictional identity to interact with the cast of professional performers. Upon finding their seats, diners become engrossed in a comedic play in which voluntary participants receive a line to read and a high-speed jetpack to escape with should suspicion fall on them. While putting crime-fighting powers to the test in hopes of not only solving the mystery but also earning the night's grand prize, diners put an end to hunger with savory minestrone, a tossed salad, a choice of lasagna, shells florentine, chicken parmesan, or sausage cannelloni, and spumoni for dessert.

Artist Pauline Beuke showcases her original works along with those of fellow local artists at ProArt Gallery, which is packed with a rotating selection of pieces including everything from acrylic and watercolor paintings to glass ornaments and wooden rocking horses. While patrons browse the crafts, they can wait for experts to surround their photographs and artwork in museum-quality framing, including shadowboxes for sports jerseys and other memorabilia.

Amid the sprawling halls of Hendersonville Expo Center, outdoor enthusiasts wend through upwards of 100,000 square feet of displays helmed by thousands of local and regional purveyors of outdoor recreational equipment for land and sea. Fleets of RVs and personal watercrafts sit patiently as visitors daydream about future fresh air adventures or daring action movies they could film aboard the crafts. An onsite food court prevents stomachs from interrupting leisurely strolls through the show with whining growls.

At any given time, the rowers making their synchronized strides across the Eagle Creek Reservoir could be adults or youths, Olympic-level competitive athletes or recreational paddlers out for exercise and sun. This variation in ages, backgrounds, and skill levels is in keeping with the Indianapolis Rowing Center's mission of popularizing the sport regardless of socioeconomic status or past experience. Upon opening the center in 1982 at Eagle Creek Park, the founders began to instill their nonprofit, Olympic-level training and competition knowhow unto rowers of all levels. Oarsmen buzz about the boathouse March–November, getting tips and taking lessons from a staff that includes a 2008 Beijing Olympian as well as collegiate-level competitors. Over time, the IRC has created a regional hub for rowing with its many programs for high-school, collegiate, and adult athletes as well as hosting collegiate rowing championships.