Wayne County is home to Hoosier Hill, Indiana’s highest natural elevation. At 1,257 feet above sea level, its summit is nestled in a wooded area surrounded by farmland. After repeated thefts of wooden signs marking “Indiana’s Highest Point,” Wayne County’s government replaced them with a more permanent solution, an engraved boulder.

A treasure hunter’s dream

Indiana’s Antique Alley, recognized as one of the “Top 10 Choice Antiquing Destinations” by Midwest Living Magazine, is a 66-mile loop stretching between Richmond, Indiana, and Knightstown, Indiana. Over 1,200 antique dealers offer a wide range of vintage treasures, including sea glass, furniture, jewelry, pottery, and more. Wayne County’s historic Cambridge City is the heart of Antique Alley with 11 antique shops nestled within a three-block radius.

Freedom seekers find sanctuary

Levi Coffin, known as the “President of the Underground Railroad,” was born in Guilford County, North Carolina, in 1798, but later settled in Wayne County. As Quaker abolitionists, Coffin and his wife, Catherine, used their home in Fountain City, Indiana, as a safe house for runaway slaves. Their Federal-style brick home, built in 1839, sheltered nearly 2,000 freedom seekers on their journey to the northern U.S. and Canada. The Coffins supplied food, clothing, and protection to those escaping slavery, and their home became known as the Underground Railroad’s “Grand Central Station.” The Levi and Catherine Coffin House is a National Historic Landmark and has been restored to its 1840s appearance for visitors to tour. 

Indiana’s cruise control pioneer

Ralph Teetor, the inventor of cruise control, was born in Hagerstown, Indiana, in Wayne County in 1890. His inspiration to create the device came while riding with his family’s lawyer, Harry Lindsay, who would slow down his driving while talking and speed up while listening. Teetor spent 10 years fine-tuning his speed control device before patenting it in 1945. He initially named his invention “Controlmatic,” “Touchmatic,” and “Pressomatic” before he trademarked it as “Speedostat” in 1950. Chrysler was the first to use the device commercially in 1958, and Cadillac soon followed, marketing it as “cruise control.”  

County facts

Founded: 1811

Named For: Gen. Anthony Wayne, a Founding Father

Population: 66,553

County seat: Richmond

Indiana county number: 89

Nicole Thomas is a freelance writer from Indianapolis.