Wapakoneta, Ohio (Wapak)

You know how some towns just, I don’t know, just kind of grab you? Like, just walking down the street it feels homey and pleasant? Well, that’s Wapakoneta. Wapak, as the locals call it.

The streets of Wapakoneta are lined with the cutest houses, most with big front porches. Some with wrap-around porches and most with people sitting outside enjoying the fresh air. We had a big front porch when I was growing up and I always thought I would love to have one in the Dallas area, but they’re extremely hard to find. Then I remembered you can only use it about 2 1/2 days out of the year. The rest of the time it’s either too hot or too cold so that’s why it’s so hard to find a house that has one. Haha! This is what I’m talking about:

The downtown area of Wapakoneta is small, but lively! More little boutiques and antique shops than you can count, some restaurants and a coffee shop or two and an ice cream shop or two. We were there in June, and every Friday night in June they have a live band in Heritage Park, which is right next to the downtown area. It’s not play a few minutes and done, either. They played from 7pm to 10:30pm. The park is right on the river so it’s a really nice setting.

The area in and around downtown is very cool. Everything is walkable. They have this program called DORA. “Downtown Outdoor Refreshment Area.” Restaurants downtown will give you a drink in a to-go cup and put a DORA sticker on the side and you can walk up and down the street with it. There are signs a couple of blocks outside the downtown area that you’re not supposed to carry them past. Businesses in the area have DORA signs on their doors. If they have that sign, you can even take your drink in while you shop.

Wapak was named by Smithsonian as one of the best small towns to visit in America. I see no reason to doubt that claim. We just fell in love with it. It’s also the birth place of Neil Armstrong. The Armstrong Air and Space Museum is just a short drive from downtown. Wandering around downtown you’ll find some great historical buildings and some fascinating architecture.

There always seems to be something going on too. There are 3 parks within walking distance of downtown. Party in the Park is music every Friday night in May and June. The Longest Day celebrates the summer solstice. The Summer Moon Festival is a week long celebration of Neil Armstrong’s first steps on the moon. The calendar is full of countless other activities all year ’round. Here are some pictures we took just wandering around.

One should not visit Wapak without checking out the “Temple of Tolerance.” It’s hard to even describe what it is. It’s just a maze of sculptures, carvings, and Stonehenge-like formations. It’s well-hidden. It was built by a guy named Jim Bowsher and it takes up all of the space behind his home. That’s a lot of space because he owns the entire block! They say it’s about equal to 12 back yards. We read about it and went looking for it but it’s so well-hidden that we almost gave up on finding it. Driving around the block you’d never know it was back there. The whole exhibit has taken about 25 years to build. Jim has reportedly photographed and cross-referenced every single piece so that when he’s gone, we’ll still know where every rock came from.

I don’t even know how to describe what it feels like walking through. It’s just oddly beautiful and soooo peaceful. As you’re going through, it feels like the rest of the world just doesn’t exist. Until you meet someone else walking through and you’re suddenly reminded that there are, in fact, other people in the world. You speak to them, but everyone whispers because they don’t want to disturb the peace.

This is the actual official “Temple.” Though it’s surrounded by 12 back yards worth of other structures. It’s an easy climb to the top with a small seating area up there. It’s difficult to describe what it feels like sitting atop the structure.

The seating area at the top. There are a couple of benches on either side of the fire pit in the middle. Nothing else in the world exists. It’s just you and the sunlight filtering through the trees.

The main temple took “only” 5 years to build. “More a state of mine than a place.” I can go along with that.

Another one of my favorite parts of the exhibit. The sign says, “IN THIS TUBE IS ONE SHELL CASING FOR EACH AMERICAN MILITARY MAN AND WOMAN FROM OHIO WHO DIED IN A WAR – FROM 1812 To…. 71,388”

Apparently, the number is kept up to date. The numbers can be adjusted and there’s an empty space for when it goes over 100,000.

This was a random sign hung by one of the pieces of art. It cracked me up because there’s so much truth to it. There was another that said, “Sure you can trust the government. Just ask an Indian.” LOL!

This is what the front of Jim’s house looks like if you ever go looking for it. Just park in the street and walk down his driveway to find the exhibit. Everyone else does. We were concerned at first about just walking down someone’s driveway, but it’s the only way to get to it.

Here’s a gallery of some of the other random pieces of artwork throughout the exhibit. Click on the thumbnails for a larger view.

I hope you enjoyed the read. If you want to visit one of the coolest small towns in America, swing through Wapakoneta. You won’t regret it.