Discover 20 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Bloomington (United States). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: WonderLab, Indiana University Art Museum, and Assembly Hall. Also, be sure to include Memorial Stadium in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Bloomington (Indiana).
Table of Contents
WonderLab
Museum in Bloomington, Indiana. The WonderLab Museum of Science, Health & Technology is a science museum located in the city of Bloomington, Indiana, United States. It was incorporated in 1995 as a private 501 non-profit organization. WonderLab is a member of the Association of Science-Technology Centers.[1]
Address: 308 W 4th St, 47404-5120 Bloomington
Indiana University Art Museum
Museum in Bloomington, Indiana. The Eskenazi Museum of Art at Indiana University opened in 1941 under the direction of Henry Radford Hope. The museum was intended to be the center of a “cultural crossroads,” an idea brought forth by then-Indiana University President Herman B Wells. The present museum building was designed by I.M. Pei and Partners and dedicated in 1982. The museum's collection comprises approximately 45,000 objects, with about 1,400 on display. The collection includes items ranging from ancient jewelry to paintings by Pablo Picasso and Jackson Pollock. In May 2016, after the announcement of the largest cash gift in the museum's history, the museum was renamed the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art in honor of Indianapolis-based philanthropists Sidney and Lois Eskenazi. The museum is located on the Indiana University Bloomington campus at 1133 E. Seventh Street.[2]
Address: 1133 E 7th St, 47405-7509 Bloomington
Assembly Hall
Arena in Bloomington, Indiana. Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, formerly named and still commonly referred to as Assembly Hall, is a 17,222-seat arena on the campus of Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. It is the home of the Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball and women’s basketball teams. It opened in 1971, replacing the Gladstein Fieldhouse. The court is named after Branch McCracken, the men's basketball coach who led the school to its first two NCAA National Championships in 1940 and 1953.[3]
Address: 1001 E 17th St, 47408-1590 Bloomington
Memorial Stadium
Stadium in Bloomington, Indiana. Memorial Stadium is a stadium in Bloomington, Indiana. It is primarily used for football, and has been the home of Indiana Hoosiers football since its opening in 1960. It is the tenth largest stadium in the Big Ten Conference, with a capacity of 52,626. The field has a conventional north-south alignment, at an approximate elevation of 771 feet above sea level.[4]
Address: 1001 E 17th St, 47408 Bloomington
Buskirk-Chumley Theater
Theater in Bloomington, Indiana. The Buskirk-Chumley Theater, formerly the Indiana Theater, is a historic theater in Bloomington, Indiana. Originally built for vaudeville in 1922, it was also used for silent films and became a movie theater. More recently it was renovated for use as a performing arts venue. It hosts a variety of shows and performances. The theater is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The theater is located in the Courthouse Square Historic District. The theater has a distinctive red neon marquee that says "Indiana".
The theater was built in Spanish mission revival architecture style and held 616 seats when it was built. It is known locally as the "Indiana Theater" or the "Bus-Chum". It was used as a movie theater until 1995 when it was donated to the community for use as a performing arts center.
The theater is located at 114 East Kirkwood Avenue.[5]
Address: 114 E Kirkwood Ave, 47408-3330 Bloomington
Indiana Memorial Union
The Indiana Memorial Union is a student union building at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana United States. It is located at 900 E 7th Street, facing the Jordan River and the Dunn Meadow.
The Indiana Memorial Union was dedicated on June 13, 1932. At nearly 500,000 square feet (46,000 m2), it is one of the world's largest student unions. The IMU contains a hotel, restaurants, a bookstore, a bowling alley, a movie theater, a beauty salon, an electronics store and gathering spaces for lecturers, meetings, conferences and performances. The building also houses IU's student government offices within the Student Activities Tower, where as many as 50 campus organizations conduct regular meetings.
Initial construction of the building took place from 1931 to 1932, and was designed by the firm Granger and Bollenbacher. The Biddle Hotel and Conference Center was added in 1960. The wing contains 189 guest rooms and over 50,000 square feet of meeting space. The IMU hosts more than 17,000 events every year.
On the first floor of the IMU the Memorial Room pays tribute to members of the Indiana University community that have served in the U.S. military. Contained within this room is the Golden Book, which contains the names of IU's service members going back to the War of 1812.
John Whittenberger, a student, founded the Indiana Union in 1909. Every student at Indiana University's Bloomington campus is a member of the Indiana Memorial Union by default. The Indiana Memorial Union Board is the governing body of the Indiana Memorial Union. The Union Board is led by a group of 16 student directors, a faculty representative, an administrative representative, an alumni representative, and the Executive Director of the Indiana Memorial Union. This 20-person committee is known as the Union Board of Directors.[6]
Kirkwood Observatory
Astronomical observatory. Kirkwood Observatory is an astronomical observatory owned and operated by Indiana University. It is located in Bloomington, Indiana, United States. It is named for Daniel Kirkwood an astronomer and professor of mathematics at Indiana University who discovered the divisions of the asteroid belt known as the Kirkwood Gaps.[7]
Archives of Traditional Music
The Indiana University Archives of Traditional Music holds over 100,000 individual audio and video recordings across over 3500 collections of field, broadcast, and commercial recordings. Its holdings are primarily focused on audiovisual recordings relating to research in the academic disciplines of ethnomusicology, folklore, anthropology, linguistics, and various area studies.[8]
Monroe County Courthouse
Building in Bloomington, Indiana. Monroe County Courthouse in Bloomington, Indiana is a Beaux Arts building built in 1908. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. It is located in the Courthouse Square Historic District and is the seat of government for Monroe County, Indiana.[9]
Address: 100 W Kirkwood Ave, 47404-5143 Bloomington
Sanshin Zen Community
Buddhist temple in Bloomington, Indiana. Sanshin Zen Community is a Soto Zen sangha based at the temple Sanshin-ji in Bloomington, Indiana founded by Shohaku Okumura.[10]
Tibetan Mongolian Buddhist Cultural Center and Kumbum Chamtse Ling Temple
Sacred and religious sites, Temple
Address: 3655 S Snoddy Rd, 47401-9409 Bloomington
Islamic Center of Bloomington
Sacred and religious sites, Mosque
Address: 1925 E Atwater Ave, 47401-3728 Bloomington
Wylie House
Museum in Bloomington, Indiana. Wylie House is a historic structure built in 1835 and located in Bloomington, Indiana. It was home of Andrew Wylie, first president of Indiana University, until his death in 1851. In 1859, following the death of Andrew's widow Margaret, Theophilus Adam Wylie, professor at Indiana University and half-cousin to Andrew, purchased the house from their heirs and his family resided there until his widow's death in 1913. Today Wylie House is operated as an historic house museum by Indiana University Libraries to interpret the lives of these families.[11]
Address: 307 E 2nd St, 47401-4701 Bloomington
Glenn A. Black Laboratory of Archaeology
Museum. The Glenn A. Black Laboratory of Archaeology is an archaeology research center and museum located in Bloomington, Indiana. It was dedicated in honor of Indiana's first professional archaeologist Glenn A. Black. Black's adulthood was devoted to studying the people of Angel Mounds, a site that is still being worked with today.[12]
Address: 423 N Fess Ave, Bloomington
Lilly Library
Library in Bloomington, Indiana. The Lilly Library, located on the campus of Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana, is an important rare book and manuscript library in the United States. At its dedication on October 3, 1960, the library contained a collection of 20,000 books, 17,000 manuscripts, more than fifty oil paintings, and 300 prints. Currently, the Lilly Library has 8.5 million manuscripts, 450,000 books, 60,000 comic books, 16,000 mini books, 35,000 puzzles, and 150,000 sheets of music.[13]
Address: 1200 E 7th St, 47405 Bloomington
Mathers Museum of World Cultures
Museum, History museum, Art gallery
Address: 416 N Indiana Ave, 47408 Bloomington
Seminary Square Park
Seminary Square Park, also known as the Seminary Park, is a historic public park located at Bloomington, Monroe County, Indiana. It was established in 1816 by an Act of Congress as the original site of Indiana Seminary, a preparatory school that by 1838 became Indiana University. The first building was erected on the site in 1824, and it remained the school campus until Indiana University moved to its new campus in 1883. The Old College building, built in 1854, remained in use as a school until destroyed by fire in 1967. The site was subsequently established as a public park in 1975.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.[14]
Bloomington City Hall
City government office in Bloomington, Indiana. Bloomington City Hall, also known as the Old City Hall and Fire Station, is a historic city hall located at Bloomington, Indiana. It was built in 1915, and is a three-story, rectangular, Beaux-Arts style limestone building. Additions were made in 1950 and 1972. It features a modest entrance portico.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. It is located in the Courthouse Square Historic District.[15]
Woolery Mill
Building complex. Woolery Stone Company is a historic limestone quarry and manufacturing complex located at Bloomington, Monroe County, Indiana. The property includes a variety of buildings, structures, and objects associated with the production of dimensional limestone. These include the limestone faced International Style headquarters building, metal mill office, machine shop, blacksmith shop, limestone storage structure, limestone walls, and the grand scale all metal mill building.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.[16]
Putter's Park Miniature Golf
Park, Relax in park
Address: 4747 W State Road 46, Bloomington