New Harmony is one of Indiana's strangest small towns, in the best sense. Two utopian communities tried to build ideal societies here in the early 1800s, and the town still feels unusually deliberate: quiet streets, historic communal buildings, gardens, churches, and a surprising amount of serious architecture.
It is not a big place, but it rewards slow wandering. Start at the Atheneum, then walk between Harmonist and Owenite landmarks, the Roofless Church, the labyrinths, and the Working Men's Institute. The Wabash River sits just beyond the grid, giving the town a soft edge.
New Harmony is worth the detour if you like places with ideas behind them. It is part history lesson, part architecture walk, and part contemplative garden town.