Facts about Indiana

The Indiana Dunes region provides habitat for many unusual plants, including prickly pear cactus, lichen mosses, bearberry, and more than 20 varieties of orchids.
 

In a typical year, almost half of all cropland in Indiana is planted in corn.
 

James Dean, a popular movie star of the 1950s was born February 8, 1931, in Marion.
 

North of Lafayette is the site of the Battle of Tippecanoe, where on November 7, 1811, William Henry Harrison's forces defeated the Native American confederacy formed by the famous Shawnee chief Tecumseh.
 

In 1906 U.S. Steel laid out the city of Gary, naming it after its chairman of the board, Elbert H. Gary. By 1920 the Calumet region was one of the leading industrial centers in North America.

David Letterman, host of television's "Late Show with David Letterman," was born April 12, 1947, in Indianapolis.

Indiana has earned the nickname "Mother of Vice-Presidents". There have been five men from Indiana elected as vice-presidents: Schuyler Colfax, Thomas A. Hendricks, Charles W. Fairbanks, Thomas Marshall and Dan Quayle.

Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis is the burial place for many famous figures in Indiana History. Benjamin Harrison, Oliver P. Morton, Kin Hubbard, James Whitcomb Riley and John Dillinger are among those buried here.

The first successful goldfish farm in the United States was opened in Martinsville in 1899.

Santa Claus, Indiana receives over one half million letters and requests at Christmas time.

Many Mennonite and Amish live on the farmland of Northwestern Indiana.

In 1880, Wabash became the first city in the United States to have electric streetlights.

Corydon was the scene of the only Civil War battle on Indiana ground. The battle was fought July 9, 1863 when General John Hunt Morgan attacked the city.