Country Life & Other Sorts: Interesting Indiana

I have to say, growing up, living in Indiana, never bothered me til I heard everyone else talk about how all they wanted to do was get out of Indiana. I then thought, "Well, that's what I'm going to do, yeah Indiana is lame, I want out." So, I decided when I got older, I would move out of Indiana. I had no plans of where, just that I knew Indiana was "lame" and to be here wasn't ideal.

When the time came of me being more "grown up" (late teenage years, early 20's) I didn't move out of Indiana. There were "things" keeping me here. I was busy every day and when I wasn't working or going to school, I was doing things like, walking trails, camping, going to the dunes, going to Chicago (which I realize is not in Indiana, but the area I lived in was under an hour drive from Chicago) etc. But, I still had this idea that eventually I would get out of this place I did not want to be.

As I entered into my mid and now my late 20's, I have learned a lot about Indiana and I have explored more of this state than I had before. As I took courses in History throughout college, I found out just how important Indiana was in the Civil War, how the state is rich in Native American history (my favorite type of history), that Indiana has such a diverse landscape. I realized how much I enjoyed Indiana, hiking and exploring, while the whole time I was cursing the place! I never realized that Indiana and it's nature was keeping me entertained and busy and I loved and enjoyed it!

But, it had been drilled in my mind that Indiana was not as good as other states. Yes, there are a lot of cornfields, but there is more than that. In the north west we have the dunes (which I wish was cleaner) and beautiful forests and rivers all through the middle, among the cornfields. At the south, we have small mountains, waterfalls and stone formations that are beautiful. The glacier did not reach the bottom of Indiana, so it was not smoothed out, as the rest of the state has been from the glacier forming, retreating, forming and then again retreating.

In Indiana, there are four distinct seasons. There are four distinct seasons in other states, but there is only a small belt that experiences this....and Indiana is one of them. The summers are not too long and the winters are not too long (even though it feels like it, it's really not when you actually see how long we have winter). We have beautiful autumns and springs that burst with life! Indiana is a resting point for many birds on their way north or south for the weather. It is stunning to watch them come in for a rest.

I have to say, I've come to appreciate Indiana for it's beauty...it has plenty of it. It's history is fascinating. Some people think Indiana is boring, but I believe it is what you make of it. I'm sure there are people that live in New York City that get bored. I'm sure there are people that live on the most beautiful Hawaiian island and get bored.

There are times Brian and I talk about up and moving and getting far from here. But, it is nothing against living in Indiana. We just have certain "things" we would like to get away from and not have to deal with a lot of drama, but that is something I would rather not get in to.

Since living away from where I grew up (not far away, but far enough for the weather to be slightly different, about an hour south east-ish from my hometown) I have noticed a whole new array of birds, insects and animals that come around. It is quiet in the country where we live and wildlife is creeping around much closer for my viewing, due to it being so calm.

Brian and I have plans of visiting even more places in Indiana because we still do not realize what is right here in our backyard (figuratively speaking).

I found some interesting facts I thought I would share in this blog....

*Abraham Lincoln moved to Indiana when he was 7 years old. He lived most of his boyhood life in Spencer County with his parents Thomas and Nancy.

*Explorers Lewis and Clark set out from Fort Vincennes on their exploration of the Northwest Territory.

*The first professional baseball game was played in Fort Wayne on May 4, 1871.

*James Dean, a popular movie star of the 1950s in such movies as "East of Eden" and "Rebel without a Cause", was born February 8, 1941, in Marion. He died in an auto crash at age 24.

*True to its motto, "Cross Roads of America" Indiana has more miles of Interstate Highway per square mile than any other state. The Indiana state Motto, can be traced back to the early 1800s. In the early years river traffic, especially along the Ohio, was a major means of transportation. The National Road, a major westward route, and the north-south Michigan Road crossed in Indianapolis. Today more major highways intersect in Indiana than in any other state.

*More than 100 species of trees are native to Indiana. Before the pioneer's arrive more than 80% of Indiana was covered with forest. Now only 17% of the state is considered forested.

*Deep below the earth in Southern Indiana is a sea of limestone that is one of the richest deposits of top-quality limestone found anywhere on earth. New York City's Empire State Building and Rockefeller Center as well as the Pentagon, the U.S. Treasury, a dozen other government buildings in Washington D.C. as well as 14 state capitols around the nation are built from this sturdy, beautiful Indiana limestone.

*Although Indiana means, "Land of the Indians" there are fewer than 8,000 Native Americans living in the state today.

*Indiana was part of the huge Northwest Territory, which included present day Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin, which were ceded to the United States by the British at the end of the Revolutionary war.

*In Fort Wayne, Syvanus F. Bower designed the world's first practical gasoline pump.

*Indianapolis grocer Gilbert Van Camp discovered his customers enjoyed an old family recipe for pork and beans in tomato sauce. He opened up a canning company and Van Camp's Pork and Beans became an American staple.

*Peru Indiana was once known as the "Circus Capital of America".

*In 1934 Chicago Gangster John Dillinger escaped the Lake Country Jail in Crown Point by using a "pistol" he had carved from a wooden block.

*In 1862, Richard Gatling, of Indianapolis, invented the rapid-fire machine gun.

*The farming community of Fountain City in Wayne County was known as the "Grand Central Station of the Underground Railroad." In the years before the civil war, Levi and Katie Coffin were famous agents on the Underground Railroad. They estimated that they provided overnight lodging for more than 2,000 runaway slaves who were making their way north to Canada and freedom.

*Indiana's first major railroad line linked Madison and Indianapolis and was completed in 1847.

*The Saturday Evening Post is published in Indianapolis.

*On March 31, 1880, the city of Wabash was the first to have electric street lights. They began an experiment to determine the feasibility of electricity, the newest source of energy. Both experts and the public determined that it was a success, with a total cost of $712 per year to light the entire city by electricity.

*Adena were the mound-builder peoples that inhabited Indiana about 2,500 years ago.

*There are 25 state parks.

State River : Wabash
State Rock: Limestone (of course lol)
State Flower: Peony
State Tree: Tulip Tree
State Bird: Cardinal

Not to mention, Indiana was under a tropical sea 300 million years ago and the fossils are around to prove it....especially crynoids. And, just in the the town next to us, Monterey, there was a Woolly Mammoth discovered in a guys backyard (I'm searching for one in our yard...keeping my fingers crossed).

Indiana is fascinating and I plan on finding out more about it and visiting more and more places.

I love Indiana. There, I said it, think what you like.

Below are some photos. All the photos were taken in Indiana and all the photos were taken by me.