Aukiki Festival in Kouts, Indiana
Kouts, Indiana is bustling with the annual Aukiki River Festival in Kouts, Indiana.
Part festival, part fundraiser, this history re-enactment is ALL amazing!
Aukiki River Festival in Kouts, Indiana
Before the Kankakee River was butchered by short-sighted, greedy farmers and industrialists, back when the river had curves and bends and all manner of wildlife in what seems like impossible numbers, the Collier Lodge in Kouts, Indiana was THE place to go for the rich and famous.
Today, Collier Lodge is a shell of its former glory. Windows are boarded up. Paint is peeling. It’s a sad, sad building and almost unrecognizable from the days of the Kankakee Sands.
But the Kankakee Valley Historical Society is working hard to raise the funding to turn it back into a usable space–and to save a piece of our Indiana history in the process! Enter the Aukiki River Festival…
Saving the Collier Lodge
This is not the biggest Porter County festival you will ever attend but it’s definitely one of the friendliest! Every tent we walked through had someone with something to say. Everyone was quick to educate our boys (and us) about the items and history of the time period.
One man asked our boys if they wanted to try on his heavy wool coat. Although historically speaking he should have worn it, just his other layer was quite enough for a warm Indiana day! Yes, I had a chance to try it on, too. That coat was heavy!
Go There
The Aukiki River Festival is a free event but donations are GLADLY accepted! Help the Kankakee Valley Historical Society raise the funds to make the Collier Lodge grand once again!
I’m Jessica Nunemaker and THIS is little Indiana!
Find pictures in Indiana on my Flickr photostream or on the new little Indiana Tumblr blog.
Just don’t forget to tell ‘em that little Indiana sent you!
Aukiki Festival
Across from: 1097 Baum’s Bridge Road
Kouts, Indiana 46347
View Larger Map
Don’t miss a moment. Subscribe to little Indiana and receive instant updates to stay on top of everything “little.”
little Indiana: Where to Stay, Play, and Eat in Small Towns in Indiana. Discovering Indiana’s best small towns! Now get little Indiana on your Kindle.
Targeted. Relevant. Affordable! little Indiana advertising.
