Zionsville: Trails, Nature and History

If you’re choosing Zionsville based on what you’d like to experience during your stay, outdoor trails and local history go hand in hand. When planning, you can distinguish the Big-4 Rail Trail itself from the full trail network; nature and cultural attractions each offer their own highlights.

Big-4 Rail Trail and Trail Network

The Big-4 Rail Trail is a paved trail at least twelve feet wide. It forms the five-mile backbone of a network of more than twenty miles of interconnected paved trails in Zionsville. The two figures describe different scales: five miles refers to the trail itself, while more than twenty miles refers to the trail network. This helps put the main trail in context without conflating it with the entire system.

The trail begins at Zionsville Rd. in the southeastern part of Zionsville and continues from there to the town limits with Whitestown. For orientation, this identifies both the starting point within town and the direction toward the town limits.

Starkey Nature Park and Landscape

Starkey Nature Park covers 80 acres and lies a quarter mile southwest of Zionsville Village. Its wooded lowlands along Eagle Creek offer hiking trails. The park is also connected to the Big-4 Rail Trail. Their features differ: the trail is defined by its paved surface and connection to a larger network, while the park is characterized by its wooded lowlands and hiking trails.

Farmers’ Market and Nature Center

The Zionsville Farmers’ Market takes place at the southern end of paved Main Street, between Hawthorne Street and Pine Street. Visitors can find produce, baked goods and freshly prepared food there. The market is also a community gathering place where visitors can enjoy local music while shopping for fresh food. Because the seasonal schedule may change, check the current dates before visiting.

The Zionsville Nature Center is located within the Youth Services department of the Hussey-Mayfield Memorial Public Library. Unlike the outdoor trails and natural areas described above, this gives you a specific point of reference for the Nature Center within the library.

Walking Tours and History

Walking tours offered by the SullivanMunce Cultural Center provide insight into the early businesses, residents and events of historic Zionsville. The focus is on local town history and how these topics can be explored on a walking tour.

Maplelawn Farmstead, Inc. offers a different historical perspective. The organization develops experiences that connect people with the rural history of the Great Depression in the 1930s on a farm in the community of Zionsville, Indiana. Maplelawn Farmstead is listed as a Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places.

The cultural offerings differ in subject and time period: the walking tours cover the town’s early businesses, residents and events, while Maplelawn focuses on rural history during the Great Depression of the 1930s. The outdoor information also answers different questions: five miles describes the Big-4 Rail Trail, while more than twenty miles describes the interconnected trail network. This lets you sort your interests by trail network, landscape or historical topic.

Explore more destinations: Whitestown.

Return to the main travel overview: Boone County.