Fernweh, An Ache for Distant Places

Fort Wayne is located in northeastern Indiana, just 18 miles from the Ohio border and 50 miles from the Michigan border. With nearly 270,000 people in 110 square miles, various sources cite the Rust Belt city of Fort Wayne as having the second highest population in Indiana and being the 83rd most populated city in the US.

It is one of many cities named after the famous American Revolutionary War general “Mad” Anthony Wayne that you can read about here. 

My brother and I recently found ourselves in Fort Wayne for just one day to attend events I shant speak of here, but I found a few stops that I wanted to make in between. My first pick was the Foellinger-Freimann Botanical Conservatory, then we walked around Promenade Park, and then visited the grave of Johnny Appleseed. 

Unfortunately I was not able to get the full scoop on Fort Wayne’s deep culture or history during such a short visit but if I ever find myself back in Indiana, that will be why. 

Foelling-Freimann Botanical Conservatory
The Foellinger-Freimann Botanical Conservatory (FFBC) was founded in 1983 by Helene Foellinger of the News-Sentinel and her friend/attorney, Bill Sowers.

The two had spent a great deal of time traveling together and scoping out gardens around the world to prepare for this.

The conservatory was backed by the Foellinger Foundation and Freimann Trust, its namesakes, and the Lincoln National Corporation at first. Now it is owned and operated by the Fort Wayne Parks & Recreation Department. 

The FFBC sits on 24,500 square feet of property and boasts a gift shop, cafe, venue space, various classes and workshops, the Grow It! School Plant Program, and sponsorship of the School Children’s Flower & Vegetable Association project that gifts a plant to every enrolled child each year. 

The conservatory is also a rescue center for endangered plants and a living library for plant trade and research. 

Beefsteak begonias were the very first species to be planted, and the FFBC now hosts more than two thousand different plants within its various gardens.

The site is divided into the Showcase House of exhibits, Tropical House, Desert House, and the Terrace Gardens.

You can view the general brochure here and a map of the gardens here. 

Tropical House was my favourite, and where we took most of these photos.

I loved the waterfall and winding paths leading through its multiple layers. 

You will also find a lot of really cool stained glass art and sculptures in the Tropical House.

The Desert Garden has more than 70 different types of cacti, though it was under construction during our visit so we only got to check out a few. 

The outdoor Terrace Gardens were also lovely, much like a well-loved city park. It was so hot outside that we opted to stay indoors for most of our visit, and spent extra time wandering the Tropical House.

Across from the Conservatory is the Diocesan Museum which is so packed full of Catholic art that it spills out into the lawn and nearby sidewalks. They had some ancient clay, bronze, and copper sculptures that were visible from the street, and some of it was really spooky looking.

Promenade Park
Fort Wayne has a beautiful four-acre river park full of art, sculpture, murals, a playground and pavilion, various waterworks, interesting architecture, and space for kayaking and canoeing around the bridges. 

You can walk across the Wells Street Bridge now that the street has been closed to motor traffic. It leads across the St. Mary’s River and connects to Fort Wayne’s Rivergreenway Trail and St. Mary’s Pathway. 

You can also follow the covered bridge-like Parkview Tree Top Canopy Trail along the water to the playground. 

Of course I could not help myself from squealing over this cutie. 

Promenade Park was so quiet when we were there, so I am sharing this photo below from visitfortwayne.com to show how lively it can get:

The blocks surrounding Promenade Park are also decorated with vibrant murals as well as subtle artistic details. 

You all know I love a good bison, too. 

Even the little landscaping grates are ADOREABLE. 

While wandering around, test your skill with the life-sized chess match in the Bill Blass Runway alley where we found the murals in the first two images of this blog. 

So, Johnny Appleseed
Johnny “Appleseed” Chapman was a pretty weird dude who wore a sack dress and a cooking pot on his head, wandered shoeless while jamming pins into his feet to entertain children, proselytizing a strange Swedish religion, and bumming meals off locals, all while gaining fame for spreading apple seeds across parts of the Midwest and Appalachia.

To be honest, I would rather just let someone else explain, so watch this. 

Johnny passed away in Fort Wayne in 1845 at the age of 71, after spending the last decade of his life there. You can visit his grave at the Johnny Appleseed Park & Campsite. 

If you want to.

In the area for a while? If you like monster trucks and classic cars, follow me to Auburn and Butler, Indiana!

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