Happy 200th Birthday, Indiana! Yay, 2016!!
I am a born and raised Hoosier. My state is AMAZING! Check out these regional Indiana facts:
Top of the state – Northern Moraine and Lake region
• Want to swim in leftover glacial water? Then take a dip in Lake Michigan!
• Head to the Jasper-Pulaski Fish and Wildlife wetland to see thousands of greater sandhill cranes migrating. As many as 30,000 were spotted at one time.
• The first national highway, the Lincoln Highway, was started by a Hoosier. The highway follows part of the Great Sauk Trail, an original Indian trail in the region.
• Two of the largest cities in this region, South Bend and Gary, are in different time zones!
• Ever eaten Orville Redenbacher popcorn? Well, Orville Redenbacher and Charlie Bowman bought a seed company in Valparaiso and created that popcorn company right here!
Middle of the state – Central Till Plain region
• Indiana’s flat fields are called till plains. When glaciers melted, the sand, clay, silt, and rocks trapped in the ice became part of the land, forming the flat fields.
• Early settlers traveled through Indiana on the man-made Wabash and Erie canal.
• Thank you, Richard Lieber! The Indianapolis businessman helped McCormick’s Creek State Park become Indiana’s first state park in 1916.
• The biggest gas field in THE WORLD was here, in Indiana, called the Trenton Field. But during the Indiana Gas Boom in the late 1800s, people didn’t conserve the gas and used it all up.
• Have you ever read the comic strip Garfield? Jim Davis (from this region) created the famous cat.
Bottom of the state – Southern Hills and Lowlands region
• Uplands, lowlands, plateaus – this part of the state has it all because the land is still shaped by the bedrock underneath the soil. It was not covered by glacial till.
• The Lost River is one of the largest sinking streams in the country. It starts like a normal river, but then disappears into sinkholes and flows underground.
• The hellbender, the largest salamander in North America, is found on the Blue River. It is an endangered species, which means it is in danger of dying out.
• Vincennes was the capital of the Indiana Territory (Indiana was part of the Indiana Territory before it became a state). Then, Corydon became the capital of the Indiana Territory. Finally, Indiana gained statehood in 1816 and Corydon stayed the capital until 1825.
• Our sixteenth president, Abraham Lincoln, grew up in this region.
Northeastern part of the state – Maumee Lake Plain region
• A huge flood took place 14,000 years ago called the Maumee Torrent. It shaped Allen and Adams counties in Indiana, making them part of this region. The rest of the Maumee Lake Plain region is in Ohio.
• Want to wade in chest-deep, mosquito filled water? The Great Black Swamp engulfed this area and forced pioneers to settle this part of Indiana last.
• Over 400 million years ago, this area was covered by a shallow sea and a tropical coral reef. You can visit Fox Island Geogarden to see examples of coral reef fossils.
• John Chapman, a.k.a. Johnny Appleseed, died in Fort Wayne in 1845. Every September, Fort Wayne hosts a Johnny Appleseed festival.
• A famous female pilot from this region, Margaret Ringenberg, flew planes in World War II with the Women Airforce Service Pilots.