Thisthlethwaite Falls has been voted one of the “best waterfalls in Indiana,” and its no surprise as you approach  47-foot tall falls.  The large rock formation with water cascading down creates a stunning and rare sight. 

The story behind the falls is nearly 200 years old and began with a man name Timothy Thistlethwaite who had a vision that would change his industry if successful. So, in 1854 Timothy and his brother-in-law dammed the water of the Whitewater Valley stream with the use of farm teams placing large boulders at the bottom of an earth and stone fill in the river channel; changing the course of the river to flow into a new channel over a rocky ledge creating Thistlethwaite Falls. The new waterfall provided the waterpower needed to run Timothy's sawmill on site, but powered several other saw mills he owned down the Whitewater River. A grist mill, flour mill, paper mill and lumber sawing mill were also powered by the falls. 

The mills no longer remain, but now the falls provide the perfect spot for hikers, cyclists and nature lovers to get up close and personal with the outdoors. Thistlewaite Falls are located a short walk off Waterfall Rd. and across the street from Springwood Park. The area is a part of the Whitewater Gorge. A trail leads to the top of the falls and a stairway leads to the base. The rock formations along the river are an excellent site to search for fossils of animals roughly 450 million years old that lived on the bottom of a warm shallow sea that covered the area.