American history, exotic animals, and beautiful botanical gardens highlight sightseeing in Fort Wayne. Eleven museums and historical sites are within walking distance in the downtown area. A historic old fort from the War of 1812 is preserved in a park downtown where the St. Mary's and St. Joseph rivers merge to become the Maumee. The Allen County Courthouse, listed on the National Historic Register, was constructed between 1897 and 1902. It combines Greek and Roman architectural themes and is capped with a rotunda, and its ornately designed interior features Italian marble, granite columns, bright tiles, and murals.
The Fort Wayne Children's Zoo is home to more than 1,500 animals from around the world. The central area of the zoo features penguins, macaws, capuchin monkeys, sea lions, giant turtles, and the Indiana Family Farm, where visitors can pet farm animals. At the 22-acre African Veldt area, Jeep safari rides provide views of antelope, giraffes, wildebeest, zebras, and exotic birds. At the zoo's Australian Adventure, visitors can go on walkabouts or take canoe rides to view kangaroos, echidnas, lorikeets, parakeets, and dingoes. The Indonesian Rainforest area features a rare Komodo Dragon, orangutans, and Sumatran tigers. The zoo also contains a 20,000-gallon marine aquarium.
The Foellinger-Freimann Botanical Conservatory preserves rare and exotic tropical plants from around the world in its three gardens under glass: the Floral Showcase has lush, colorful seasonal displays; in the Tropical Garden, orchids, palms, and other exotic plants surround a waterfall; and the Desert House has cacti and other desert plants from the Sonoran Desert of southern Arizona and northern Mexico. Lakeside Rose Garden in northeast Fort Wayne, with 2,500 labeled plants, is recognized as one of the largest rose gardens in the country.
Science Central offers more than 30 hands-on exhibits to make learning fun. Visitors can dance on giant piano keys, create earthquakes, experience weightlessness over a moon-scape, bend rainbows, and ride a high-rail bicycle.
At the center of the performing arts in Fort Wayne is the restored Embassy Theater. Built in 1928, it is considered one of the country's most lavish architectural masterpieces. The Embassy is home to the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, which performs a nine-month season of symphony, pops, and chamber music concerts; the theater also hosts touring Broadway shows. The Fort Wayne Civic Theatre, regarded by many as one of the outstanding regional civic theaters in the country, coordinates more than 600 volunteers a year to produce Broadway-style shows. The Fort Wayne Ballet presents two major productions in addition to the annual Nutcracker ballet in December. The Fort Wayne Dance Collective, based at the Hall Community Arts Center, is northeast Indiana's only modern dance organization.
The Lincoln Museum, endowed by the Lincoln National Life Insurance Company, is the world's largest private museum and research library for Lincolniana. Housed in a 30,000 square foot, state-of-the-art facility, the museum has interactive, hands-on exhibits for all age groups. The museum's highlights include a collection of personal possessions of Lincoln and his family; original photographs and paintings; and a rare edition of The Emancipation Proclamation, signed by Lincoln in 1864 (one of eight in the world in public collections and the only one on permanent public display); and the inkwell Lincoln used to sign the proclamation.
The Fort Wayne Museum of Art is devoted to American and European artwork from the 19th century to the present. The museum houses more than 1,300 pieces in permanent collections of paintings, prints, and sculpture in three self-contained modern buildings. The History Center, operated by the Allen County-Fort Wayne Historical Society, is located in the Old City Hall, a local architectural landmark; the museum displays artifacts from the Stone Age to the Space Age. Highlights include law enforcement exhibits within the dank cells of the old city jail, a fully-equipped blacksmith shop, a detailed model of an American Indian village, ante-bellum women's dresses, and a dollhouse from 1886. At the Diehm Museum of Natural History, displays of mounted animals, birds, and fish from North America are featured in reproductions of natural habitats. The museum also has a collection of gems and minerals, as well as Far East artifacts. The Fort Wayne Firefighters Museum exhibits antique fire-fighting equipment and vehicles. In nearby Auburn the Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg Museum houses more than 100 examples of the world's grandest automobiles, in a 1930 Art Deco factory showroom.
June brings three ethnic events to Fort Wayne: the Indiana Highland Games honors Scottish heritage with athletic competitions, bagpipes and dancing, and food; Germanfest recognizes Fort Wayne's largest ethnic group with music, dance, sports, art, and German food; and the Greek Festival brings Greek food, beverages, music, dancing, jewelry, art, clothing, and literature. Three Rivers Festival, held in mid-July for nine days, features more than 200 events that include a Festival of the Arts, Children's Fest, senior's events, a parade, races, and fireworks displays. At the Auburn Cord Deusenberg festival on Labor Day weekend in nearby Auburn, the world's largest classic automobiles are auctioned in a festive atmosphere; the festival also includes a quilt show and an antique sale. The Johnny Appleseed Festival, held in September, brings the early 1800s to life by honoring John Chapman, who introduced apple trees to the Midwest; the festival features re-enactments of pioneer life, period entertainers, and crafts. Holiday festivals from late November through December celebrate the Christmas season with a Festival of Trees, Festival of Gingerbread, a Wonderland of Wreaths at the Botanical Conservatory, and downtown lighting displays.
The Fort Wayne Komets, a United Hockey League team, plays a home schedule at Memorial Coliseum. The Komets captured the UHL Colonial Cup in the 2002-2003 season. The Wizards, a Class A baseball team, plays at Memorial Stadium. The Fever, a semi-pro soccer team, plays a Mayto-July season at Hefner Field. The Fort Wayne Freedom, affiliated with United Indoor Football, is Fort Wayne's newest professional sports franchise; they played their first season in 2003. Indiana-Purdue Fort Wayne Athletics is home to 16 Division I sports; the Mastodons host more than 100 athletic competitions each year.
Fort Wayne's public recreational facilities include 68 tennis courts, 20 soccer fields, 32 softball diamonds, 11 regulation baseball diamonds, four swimming pools, and three golf courses. The city has 56 square miles of parks. The Rivergreenway Trail, a 15-mile-long trail along the banks of the city's three rivers, is ideal for bicycling, hiking, jogging, or rollerblading.
Fort Wayne supports one of the Midwest's largest enclosed malls—Glenbrook Square—that contains four anchor department stores and more than 160 specialty shops and stores. Fort Wayne's new Jefferson Pointe Shopping Center offers 50 shops and restaurants and an 18-screen movie theater in an open-air setting with Mediterranean-style architecture and tree-lined courtyards.
Fort Wayne has long billed itself as "The City of Restaurants," and the 600 eating and drinking establishments in and around the city bolster that claim. Don Hall's and Casa are two local families of restaurants, and are scattered around town. Some Fort Wayne restaurants offer such regional favorites as hearty farm-style meals and desserts.
Visitor Information: Fort Wayne/Allen County Convention and Visitors Bureau, 1021 S. Calhoun St., Fort Wayne, IN 46802; telephone (800)767-7752; fax (260)424-3914; email visitorinfo@visitfortwayne.com