Spring Mill State Park, Mitchell, Indiana

We stayed at the Spring Mill State Park in Mitchell, Indiana, while we were in town for the Persimmon Festival.

Anita had been to the park many times as a kid. This was her (and my) first time spending the night there. We had a free hour before we had to go back into town, so we drove down to the Pioneer Village, which has about 20 or so log and stone structures from the early 1800s. They are all very well taken care of, and many have park employees (called 'interpreters') that will gladly explain the structure or how people lived there.


The heart of the village is the gristmill.


The mill is powered by a spring that flows into the mill via an elevated flume. After he retired, my father-in-law worked in the mill as an interpreter, grinding corn and informing visitors about the history of the structure.

The Granny White House was moved to the property in 1931 by the Civilian Conservation Corp.

Inside the house.

Another house.

The lower residence.

There are several shops, including a pottery, distillery, wood shop, leather shop, a weaver's and more.

Much of the restoration work on Spring Mill was performed in the 30s by the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC). Besides working at Spring Mill after he retired, my father-in-law worked there for the CCC before WWII. He was involved with the rebuilding of the roads and the dam.


We stayed at the inn in the park. It was really quite nice, and the rooms were comfortable. There's a game room downstairs that kept the kids busy, along with a nice indoor/outdoor pool. We were very happy with the accommodations, and will seek out more state park inns in our future travels.