These parks include Kennedy Park and the Blue River Memorial Park, so the trail is a scenic way to get around the city, with distance markers every tenth of a mile. Shelbyville has an ever-growing network of mixed-use trails, at the heart of which is the 3.5-mile Blue River Trail, connecting the downtown area with a series of parks along the banks of the namesake river. Blue River Trail Source: inewsfoto / shutterstock Hiking The Streets of Old Shelby for instance recreates a historic street scene, with a saloon, hotel, printing press, hardware store, blacksmith, sheriff’s office and more, all endowed with historic artefacts.Īt the time of writing there was a detailed exhibition examining the role of the Public Square in Shelbyville’s story, while the Shelby County Railroad is a hobbyist’s dream, with three working model trains and a host of historical objects, like lamps, uniforms and signs, in display cases.ĥ. You can follow several different threads here. This is opposite the public library in an unusual Art Moderne building, constructed in 1950 as an Elks Lodge. If you’re curious about the 200-year history of Shelby County there’s a compelling museum downtown. Grover Center: Museum and Historical Society Source: Grover01museum / Wikimedia | CC BY-SA 4.0 Grover Center: Museum and Historical Society There’s a growing trail network, linking downtown to the scenic parks along the Little Blue River, as well as a successful farmers’ market showcasing the area’s great produce.Ī lot of spots around Shelbyville have stood the test of time, including a century-old performing arts venue, a drive-in theater from the 1950s and a beloved bakery that moved to town in the 1930s. Shelbyville was platted some 200 years ago, and there’s so much history on these streets that the visitors bureau has published a walking tour of all the fine architecture in the vicinity.Ī few miles from downtown, Shelbyville is also home to the closest casino to Indianapolis, including a racetrack that hosts the Indiana Derby every July.

Southeast of Indianapolis, the seat of Shelby County is a small town set around the historic Public Square.

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