Fort Harrison State Park and Golf Resort

History and Recreation

Description

Fort Harrison State Park is a 1,700-acre park featuring an 18-hole, Pete Dye-designed golf course, a nature center, restaurant, and lodging in several historic homes and a small inn. Visitors have access to a wealth of walking, biking, and jogging trails; picnic sites; fishing spots; horseback riding; cross-country ski trails; a sledding hill; and two national historic districts. History buffs will love seeing the former Citizen's Military Training Camp, a Civilian Conservation Corps camp, and a World War II prisoner-of-war camp. The Fort was originally opened in 1906, under the direction of former President Theodore Roosevelt, who wanted to keep a military base near Indianapolis. It stayed in operation for training, headquarters, and troop support and reception until 1991, when it was decommissioned. In 1995, the U.S. Department of the Interior donated part of the fort's land to the Indiana Department of Natural Resources to be used as a park and recreational site.