Browning Hill

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Browning Hill
Browning Hill from the intersection of Elkinsville and Combs Roads
Highest point
Elevation928 feet (283 m)
Coordinates39°06′N 86°26′W / 39.100°N 86.433°W / 39.100; -86.433
Geography
LocationIndiana, USA
Topo mapUSGS

Browning Hill, known locally as Browning Mountain,[1] is, at 928 feet (283 m) tall,[1] the 53rd highest peak in Indiana.[citation needed] Located in Brown County, near the town of Story, the hill is partly in Hoosier National Forest, and is designated a special management area by the United States Forest Service due to the "relatively undisturbed" old-growth forest that covers it.[2]

The hill has acquired an air of mystery. It looms over the ghost town of Elkinsville and is topped by a limestone[3] "field of boulders",[4] giving rise to its nickname, "Indiana's Stonehenge."[1] Various explanations are given for how the stones got there, such as it being a Native American site for ceremonies or a cabin's foundation, but according to a naturalist, it is most probable that early settlers quarried the stones and then left them behind when they moved on to other locations.[1]

References[edit]

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d Comiskey, Nancy (October 2011). "The Roads Less Traveled". Indianapolis Monthly. Retrieved January 31, 2015.
  2. ^ United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service "Appendix H - Special Areas: Browning Hill" "Hoosier National Forest" website
  3. ^ Spaulding, Julia (October 1996). "Autumn Guide to Brown County". Indianapolis Monthly: 132. Retrieved January 31, 2015.
  4. ^ Werner, Nick (April 3, 2012). Best Hikes Near Indianapolis. Globe Pequot. pp. 185–190. ISBN 9780762773558. Retrieved 31 January 2015.

Bibliography