List of National Natural Landmarks in Indiana

There are 30 National Natural Landmarks in Indiana.[1]

Name Image Date Location County Ownership Description
Big Walnut Creek 1985[2] Bainbridge
39°47′48″N 86°46′39″W / 39.796749°N 86.777474°W / 39.796749; -86.777474 (Big Walnut Creek)
Putnam State & private Contains one of the few stands in Indiana where beech, sugar maple, and tulip poplar grow on alluvial Genesee soil.
Cabin Creek Raised Bog 1974 Farmland
40°08′13″N 85°07′33″W / 40.1368101°N 85.1257457°W / 40.1368101; -85.1257457 (Cabin Creek Raised Bog)
Randolph Private One of the few known inland raised bogs in the United States. It has a very rich flora including many species at or near their range limits.
Calvert and Porter Woods 1974 New Ross
40°01′22″N 86°43′19″W / 40.0228369°N 86.7218275°W / 40.0228369; -86.7218275 (Calvert and Porter Woods)
Montgomery State One of the finest near-virgin remnant forests in the Tipton Till Plain of central Indiana.
Cowles Bog Cowles Bog 1965 Chesterton
41°38′15″N 87°05′32″W / 41.6375°N 87.092222°W / 41.6375; -87.092222 (Cowles Bog)
Porter Federal Part of the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, this is the sole remaining remnant of the Central Dunes where Henry Chandler Cowles performed his pioneering field studies of plant succession and species diversity.
Davis-Purdue Agriculture Center Forest 1974 Farmland
40°15′12″N 85°08′53″W / 40.2533425°N 85.1480344°W / 40.2533425; -85.1480344 (Davis-Purdue Agriculture Center Forest)
Randolph State The best old growth oak-hickory forest on the Tipton Till Plain.
Donaldson Cave System and Woods 1972 Mitchell
38°43′49″N 86°24′55″W / 38.73022°N 86.4153307°W / 38.73022; -86.4153307 (Donaldson Cave System and Woods)
Lawrence State Located in Spring Mill State Park. A stream flows from a cave through the bottom of a gorge.
Dunes Nature Preserve 1974 Porter
41°39′36″N 87°02′24″W / 41.660°N 87.040°W / 41.660; -87.040 (Dunes Nature Preserve)
Porter State A part of Indiana Dunes State Park. Inter-dunal wetlands and blowouts along Lake Michigan
Fern Cliff Nature Preserve 1980 Greencastle
39°36′40″N 86°57′49″W / 39.610985°N 86.96366°W / 39.610985; -86.96366 (Fern Cliff Nature Preserve)
Putnam Private Contains exceptional occurrences of mosses and liverworts, including a noteworthy number of rare species.
Hanging Rock and Wabash Reef Hanging Rock 1986 Lagro
40°49′48″N 85°42′26″W / 40.83°N 85.70722°W / 40.83; -85.70722 (Hanging Rock and Wabash Reef)
Wabash Private Contains an impressive natural exposure of fossilized coral reef dating from the Silurian Period some 400 million years ago. The limestone reef deposit rises 75 feet (23 m) above the river and is being undercut by it, giving the site its "hanging" appearance.
Harrison Spring Harrison Spring 1980 Depauw
38°14′41″N 86°13′31″W / 38.244755°N 86.225143°W / 38.244755; -86.225143 (Harrison Spring)
Harrison Private A portion of the water that feeds the spring originates from Indian Creek, and then goes underground until it reaches the spring area. It produces at least three million US gallons (11,000,000 L; 2,500,000 imp gal) of water a day at an average of 18,000 US gallons per minute (1,100 L/s), enough to supply water to an average town of 12,000
Hemmer Woods 1973 Oakland City
38°13′51″N 87°22′15″W / 38.230768°N 87.370935°W / 38.230768; -87.370935 (Hemmer Woods)
Gibson State & private Original southwestern Indiana oak-hickory forest.
Hoosier Prairie Hoosier Prairie 1974 Griffith
41°31′22″N 87°27′27″W / 41.522683°N 87.457572°W / 41.522683; -87.457572 (Hoosier Prairie)
Lake Federal Part of the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. Wetland prairie remnant of sand plains, sedge meadows, and marshes.
Hoot Woods 1973 Freedom
39°15′00″N 86°53′22″W / 39.249897°N 86.889462°W / 39.249897; -86.889462 (Hoot Woods)
Owen Private A relatively undisturbed, isolated beech-maple forest in which near climax conditions prevails.
Kramer Woods 1973 Reo
37°50′38″N 87°08′17″W / 37.843932°N 87.137981°W / 37.843932; -87.137981 (Kramer Woods)
Spencer State The only example of a Shumard's red oak-pin oak-hickory dominated stand of lowland mixed forest of any size in Indiana.
Marengo Cave 1984 Marengo
38°22′32″N 86°20′24″W / 38.37555°N 86.33993°W / 38.37555; -86.33993 (Marengo Cave)
Crawford Private One of only four show caves in Indiana, public tours of the cave have been given since 1883. Tours commenced just days after the cave's discovery by two school children.
Meltzer Woods 1973 Shelbyville
39°30′10″N 85°40′04″W / 39.5028°N 85.6678°W / 39.5028; -85.6678 (Meltzer Woods)
Shelby Private Contains two contrasting forest types and exceptionally large individuals of several tree species.
Officer's Woods 1974 Seven miles northwest of Madison[3] Jefferson Private One of the finest remnants of beech-maple forest south of the Wisconsin-age glacial boundary in Indiana. Contains two stands which differ slightly in composition, one of which contains an exceptionally high density of black gum.
Ohio Coral Reef Fossil beds, Ohio Coral Reef 1966 Clarksville
38°16′36″N 85°45′56″W / 38.27665°N 85.76544°W / 38.27665; -85.76544 (Ohio Coral Reef National Natural Landmark)
Floyd Federal A classic example of a Silurian and Devonian coral community. Extends into Kentucky. Part of Falls of the Ohio National Wildlife Conservation Area.
Pine Hills Natural Area Honeycomb Rock, Pine Hills Nature Preserve 1968 Waveland
39°56′34″N 87°02′58″W / 39.94276°N 87.049348°W / 39.94276; -87.049348 (Pine Hills Natural Area)
Montgomery State A unit of Shades State Park. Deep gorges, the result of the last glacial meltwaters.
Pinhook Bog Pinhook Bog 1965 Michigan City
41°36′54″N 86°50′54″W / 41.615°N 86.848333°W / 41.615; -86.848333 (Pinhook Bog)
LaPorte Federal Part of Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. A bog formed from a postglacial kettle moraine left behind about 14,000 years before the present by the melting of the ice sheet during the end of the Wisconsin glaciation. The acidic bog is noted for pitcher plants and other wetland species.
Pioneer Mothers Memorial Forest 1974 Paoli
38°32′10″N 86°27′32″W / 38.536°N 86.459°W / 38.536; -86.459 (Pioneer Mothers Memorial Forest)
Orange Federal One of the best examples of an original, undisturbed presettlement forest in Indiana. Part of Hoosier National Forest.
Portland Arch Nature Preserve 1973 Covington
40°13′07″N 87°20′09″W / 40.218611°N 87.335833°W / 40.218611; -87.335833 (Portland Arch)
Fountain State The preserve encompasses the wooded valleys, ravines, and rocky cliffs around the lowest section of Bear Creek. The name comes from a natural sandstone bridge carved by a small tributary of Bear Creek.
Rise at Orangeville 1972 West Baden Springs
38°37′52″N 86°33′26″W / 38.63115°N 86.55711°W / 38.63115; -86.55711 (Orangeville Rise)
Orange Private Orangeville Rise of Lost River Nature Preserve is the second largest spring in the state of Indiana.
Rocky Hollow Falls Canyon Nature Preserve Rocky Hollow Falls Canyon 1974 Marshall
39°53′37″N 87°12′17″W / 39.893739°N 87.204589°W / 39.893739; -87.204589 (Rocky Hollow Falls Canyon Nature Preserve)
Parke State Rocky Hollow and Falls Canyon are two of a series of canyons cut into the sandstone of Turkey Run. Located in Turkey Run State Park.
Shrader-Weaver Woods Shrader-Weaver Woods 1974 Bentonville
39°43′13″N 85°13′20″W / 39.720309°N 85.222321°W / 39.720309; -85.222321 (Shrader-Weaver Nature Preserve)
Fayette State Old growth beech-maple forest with a pioneer homestead. Includes tulip, wild black cherry, and black walnut trees.
Tamarack Bog 1973 Mongo
41°40′35″N 85°15′44″W / 41.676361°N 85.262314°W / 41.676361; -85.262314 (Tamarack Bog Nature Preserve)
LaGrange State A large tamarack tree swamp located within the Pigeon River Fish and Wildlife Area.
Tolliver Swallowhole 1972 Orleans
38°36′58″N 86°29′41″W / 38.616197°N 86.494599°W / 38.616197; -86.494599 (Tolliver Swallow Hole)
Orange Private An extraordinary example of the disappearing stream aspect of karst topography.
Wesley Chapel Gulf (Elrod Gulf) [4] Wesley Chapel Gulf 1972 Orleans
38°37′21″N 86°31′19″W / 38.622452°N 86.521906°W / 38.622452; -86.521906 (Wesley Chapel Gulf (Elrod Gulf))
Orange Federal Probably the largest sinkhole in Indiana. Located in Hoosier State Forest.
Wesselman Woods Nature Preserve Wesselman Woods Nature Preserve 1973 Evansville
37°59′05″N 87°30′22″W / 37.984722°N 87.506111°W / 37.984722; -87.506111 (Wesselman Park Nature Center)
Vanderburgh Municipal A southern old growth forest
Wyandotte Caves Entrance to Wyandotte Cave 1972 Leavenworth
38°13′41″N 86°17′46″W / 38.228056°N 86.296111°W / 38.228056; -86.296111 (Wyandotte Caves)
Crawford State Straddles O'Bannon Woods State Park and Harrison-Crawford State Forest. Caves began to form in the Pliocene Era, about 2 million years ago. Like most of Southern Indiana's caves, the caves were formed when water dissolved limestone, causing hollow caves to form.

See also

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Notes and references

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  1. ^ National Registry of Natural Landmarks (June 2009) Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  2. ^ "Places We Protect: Big Walnut, Indiana". Nature Conservancy. Retrieved 2023-05-22.
  3. ^ National Registry of Natural Landmarks (1989) Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  4. ^ "Wesley Chapel Gulf". U.S. Forest Service. 1999. Retrieved November 24, 2014. Cites "Elrod Gulf" as alternate name. The feature is also labeled "Elrod Gulf" on the USGS topographic map for the French Lick Quadrangle.