Levi and Catharine Coffin State Historic Site — Attraction in Fountain City

We drove to Indiana and planned our hotel location for the night before so we could start our day at this highly-recommended museum as soon as it opened for the day. We were greeted by an open building with no other visitors but signs with a note that there were 0 spots left for all the tour times listed on the board. A staff member came out and said they were expecting a large group of people at 11 so they were not going to be doing tours to the public. Our family of four looked around at the empty building except for the three or so employees literally lounging around just looking at their cell phones. We were told we could browse through the visitor center and look at those displays so we did since we'd planned this stop. Upstairs when we played one of the recorded audio displays, an employee in an upstairs office got up and closed her door as if we were annoying her with the audio. We were disappointed that with all the employees just sitting around, one of them couldn't have given us a tour. I've since read the reviews here and seen that this happened at least one other time. Perhaps the website should indicate that you should call before you make your plans! The visitor center did have a lot of displayed information but it was just overshadowed by such a negative start that it made it difficult to focus and not think about how we were going to rework our...

We had the most informative guide that led our tour. She made the stories about the Coffin Family and their heroic deeds come to life. Very vivid descriptions about what life was like in that area of Indiana during the period when the Underground Railroad was the means for freedom for many looking to escape. How the Quaker Community worked together to aid those that came their way was amazing to hear. She explained how they would move the people who would show up at their door to the next stop along their way. We learned so much. Highly recommend spending the time to listen to these stories and to understand the courage that everyday people had to face in spite of the risks to their own lives. Gave my wife and I chance to contemplate whether we have the courage to...

Lengthy review, but please read. It’s important! Nice experience however, tour guide, and her coworker had never heard the term “paddy-rollers,” and repeatedly called slave catchers/patrollers “bounty hunters” throughout the tour, which is incorrect. Found this very interesting, because “Slave Narratives…” is sold right there in the gift shop where the correct terms are stated by ex slaves who were interviewed in the 1930s and are in a variety of public domains and genres (e.g., the term paddy-rollers can be found in the history of slavery in the United States in academias, scholarly documentaries, on YouTube in a variety of formats including audiobooks, etc.). Tour guides should be required to learn the history and teach it correctly. Accuracy...