Salem is a small city in Southern Indiana and the county seat of Washington County.

Understand

Salem was founded in 1814. It seems to have garnered a lot of unwanted attention over the years. For instance, it was the scene of a raid by a brazen sort of mercenary-like Confederate general named John Morgan who ransacked and pillaged the town in 1863 with the help of his men, plus the locale of an unsuccessful attempt at domestic terrorism with dynamite sticks in 1988. It was also a sundown town and maybe doesn't always put its best food forward with civic virtue and pride. However, it does have an attractive-looking courthouse.

Get in

Salem does not lie on any interstate or federal highways. Access from the north and south is via IN 135 and IN 56 if travelling from the east or west.

See

Beck's Mill 2008

• 1 Beck's Mill, 4433 S Becks Mill Rd (6 miles southwest of Salem), ☏ +1 812-883-5147, info@becksmill.org. A restored and operating grist mill.  
• 2 Washington County Court House, 99 Public Square. 1886 Richardsonian Romanesque structure built of limestone that really grabs you as you're driving towards it on Main St. (updated Nov 2021)

Do

• Old Settlers' Days Festival, ☏ +1 812-883-2219, info@oldsettlersdays.org. A long running yearly festival that celebrates the local history. 
• The John Hay Center, 307 East Market St, ☏ +1 812-883-6495, info@johnhaycenter.org. The restored birthplace and museum dedicated to John Hay. Personal secretary to Abraham Lincoln and Secretary of State to Presidents William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt. 

Sleep

• Knights Inn & Suites, 1209 W. Mulberry St, ☏ +1 812-883-2491. 
• Delaney Creek Park, 8215 N. Delaney Park Rd, Scottsburg (11 miles north of Salem.), ☏ +1 812-883-5101, delaneyparkofc@gmail.com. A 326 acre park owned and operated by Washington County and adjacent to the Jackson-Washington State Forest. The park features an 88 acre lake, campsites, cabins, swimming beach, and hiking trails. Campsites range from primitive to full hookups and feature shower houses. The park is the northern terminus for the Knobstone Trail. 

Go next

• Corydon