In Putnam County the seat is called Greencastle. It’s a colorful and memorable city name and begs me to figure out how the name came to be as there was no giant green castles sitting in the middle of downtown. Turns out, like most Indiana cities, it was named after another city. Greencastle, Pennsylvania is the namesake, but as far as I can tell, there are no green castles in there either. That city was named after Greencastle, Ireland, which does in fact have a castle, but not a green one. The city name in Irish is actually translated to “new castle”, but in English the Greencastle name became official one. The castle contained in the city was built out of green firestone (which is not green), which may have been the reason for the green prefix, but it may be that they just really like the color green in Ireland, so they named everything green? Either way, if the Indiana city is called Greencastle, there must be some sort of green castle within the city limits, right?
The Tenderloin
Moore’s Bar and Grill has been in Greencastle since the 50’s. The location, itself, has been a bar for almost 90 years. Talking to a few natives, this used to be a pretty rough place to hang out at. Dancing the “Tequila” may not have been enough to prevent you from getting messed up back then, but now-a-days it’s is a friendly of a place as you can get. While not exactly family friendly (you need to be 21+ to get in) anyone else can go in and get treated like family while sucking down a cold brew or ordering yourself up a giant tenderloin. Speaking of the tenderloin, they call it an Original Moore’s Hangover Tenderloin. It’s sliced and hand breaded with their signature spices. This thing is huge. There are not many tenderloins lately that I have had a hard time finishing, but the size of this one made it pretty close. Good thing it tasted so good as I was able to get the last morsel down in one sitting. The seasoning on the breading fantastic. The loin was a little dry, but the taste was so good it wasn’t an issue. It paired perfect with the hot sauce they gave me too. I had just hiked 4 miles in the quarry (you will read about later) so this had hit the spot. Moore’s Bar is a cool little joint right downtown and as friendly as can be, even when playing your college’s rival’s fight song as you leave the building.
The Town
With the tenderloin choice being a 21+ bar, I decided to stay the night right in downtown Greencastle. The Doc’s Inn is a Bed & Breakfast that sits a block west of the courthouse. The residence was built by a doctor in 1893, it has been inhabited by doctors over the years and is even still owned by a doctor. The addition on the side below the porch contains the old waiting and treatment room. A few years ago, right before COVID, the house was purchased by a local family and they transformed the run-down multi-unit rental property back to its original glory. I’ve stayed in a few B&B’s over the years, but this is the first one where I really felt like I was sleeping in someone’s house. I has a bedroom upstairs with my own private bathroom, but I did have to exit the bedroom and go through the hallway to access it. Although not everyone would be pleased with this arraignment, I found it charming, like I said, it was like staying in someone’s house. Downstairs in the morning the owner’s daughter was working on breakfast. While chatting, I found out she used to work as a cook in Los Angeles a few years ago. Expectations were high for the meal and she delivered. Ready, waiting, were these chocolate cinnamon scones sitting there with some fresh cantaloupe. That was before some bacon and eggs came out perfectly cooked with some marble rye toast on the side. It was great to be treated to a meal that rivals most restaurants and is surly better than the buffet at a hotel. Later her mom came in and they shared stories on the history of the house and reconstruction of the residence. Staying at this locally owned B&B was an event in itself. I go on a lot of tours of old houses, so it was great to live and stay the night in one even for just one day.
While wandering around the downtown area, I stopped in a place called The Wine Merchant. Thinking I could maybe get a few samples, I was pleased to see I could get many samples. It is a pour your own wine bar. It goes like this: You purchase a card and put as much money as you want on it. Then go up to one of four different machines with four different bottles in it. Enter your card and then press the button with the amount of wine desired to be dispensed. Finish that glass, well, grab a new one and choose your own wine again. It is perfect for the wine beginner that doesn’t want to seem out of place. Also good for the wine connoisseur that wants to try something different. Some days they even got sushi. Granted they won’t take that protein and pound it flat, bread it, fry it, and serve it on a bun with some hot sauce, but I’m sure it is delicious either way.
A little bit south of the downtown square is a new giant 2-story building called Breadworks by Bridges. Inside you will find all sorts of pastries and breakfast food as well as some good drip coffee. I chose to pick up some donuts this visit. They have all four kinds, their signature glazed, maple, chocolate, and vanilla with sprinkles. A dozen were purchased but only 11 made it home. These are donuts to savor as they were “crispier” and “creamier” than other national chain brands.
The DePauw Nature Park is located at an abandoned quarry. Once used to mine limestone to construct buildings all across the United States, it has been repurposed to a park with hiking trails. I took a 4 mile hike to see what was left of this giant hole. The first portion of the walk was along Big Walnut Creek. Nothing out of the ordinary here until you get to the Rail Trail and start climbing a steep narrow slope until it you, all the sudden, have large drop-offs on both sides. Venturing off onto the Rim Trail, you get to the edge of the old quarry where you can see miles into the distance. The green pond sparkles at the bottom and the limestone in the distance resemble castle walls. Venturing away from the rim, you hike down to the base of the quarry where you encounter a desolate landscape not seen outside of deserts and mountaintops. You don’t have to hike the whole 4 miles either, it’s only a short walk from the parking lot to the quarry rim and base. Even though it is man-made terrain, this was one of the most beautiful hikes I have ever been on in Indiana.
Well, even after asking around, I couldn’t find any green castles in Greencastle. The closest thing, really, was the quarry. There was much green landscaping and even one building I found that looked like a castle. What they did have was great hospitality, fine alcohol, beautiful scenery to walk in, and, of course, a brilliant, giant, seasoned, breaded tenderloin.
Not the bathroom at the B&B
by Michael Tomko
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