OFFICIAL SEAL: In a pioneer setting, a farmer fells a tree while a buffalo flees from the forest and across the prairie; in the background, the sun sets over distant hills. The words “Seal of the State of Indiana 1816” surround the scene.

FLAG: A flaming torch representing liberty is surrounded by 19 gold stars against a blue background. The word “Indiana” is above the flame.

MOTTO: The Crossroads of America.

SONG: “On the Banks of the Wabash, Far Away.”

FLOWER: Peony.

TREE: Tulip poplar.

BIRD: Cardinal.

ROCK OR STONE: Indiana limestone.

LEGAL HOLIDAYS: New Year’s Day, 1 January; Birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., 3rd Monday in January; Good Friday, Friday before Easter, March or April; Primary Election Day, 1st Tuesday after 1st Monday in May in even-numbered years; Memorial Day, last Monday in May; Independence Day, 4 July; Labor Day, 1st Monday in September; Columbus Day, 2nd Monday in October; Election Day, 1st Tuesday after 1st Monday in November in even-numbered years; Veterans’ Day, 11 November; Thanksgiving Day, 4th Thursday in November; Lincoln’s Birthday, 12 February (observed the day after Thanksgiving); Christmas Day, 25 December; Washington’s Birthday, 3rd Monday in February (observed the day after Christmas).

TIME: 7 AM EST = noon GMT; 6 AM CST = noon GMT.

1 Location and Size

Situated in the eastern north-central United States, Indiana is the smallest of the 12 Midwestern states and ranks 38th in size among the 50 states. Indiana’s total area is 36,185 square miles (93,720 square kilometers), of which land takes up 35,932 square miles (93,064 square kilometers) and inland water the remaining 253 square miles (656 square kilometers). The state extends about 160 miles (257 kilometers) east–west and about 280 miles (451 kilometers) north–south. The total boundary length of Indiana is 1,696 miles (2,729 kilometers).

2 Topography

Indiana has two principal types of terrain: slightly rolling land in the northern half of the state, and rugged hills in the southern, extending to the Ohio River. The highest point in the state is a hill in Franklin Township that is 1,257 feet (383 meters) above sea level. The lowest point, on the Ohio River, is 320 feet (98 meters).

Four-fifths of the state’s land is drained by the Wabash River and by its tributaries, the White, Eel, Mississinewa, and Tippecanoe rivers. The northern region is drained by the Maumee, Calumet, and Kankakee rivers. In the southwest, the two White River forks empty into the Wabash, and in the southeast, the Whitewater River flows into the Ohio.

In addition to Lake Michigan on the northwestern border, there are more than 400 lakes in the northern part of the state. The largest lakes include Wawasee, Maxinkuckee, Freeman, and Shafer. There are mineral springs at French Lick and West Baden in Orange County and two large caves at Wyandotte and Marengo in adjoining Crawford County.

3 Climate

Temperatures vary from the extreme north to the extreme south of the state. The annual mean temperature in the north is 49°f–58°f (9°c–12°c). In the south, the mean temperature is 57°f (14°c) in the south. The average temperatures in January range between 17°f (–8°c) and 35°f (2°c). Average temperatures during July vary from 63°f (17°c) to 88°f (31°c). The record

Indiana Population Profile

Total population estimate in 2006:	6,313,520
Population change, 2000–06:	3.8%
Hispanic or Latino†:	4.6%
Population by race
One race:	98.5%
White:	86.1%
Black or African American:	8.6%
American Indian /Alaska Native:	0.2%
Asian:	1.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander:	0.0%
Some other race:	2.4%
Two or more races:	1.5%

Population by Age Group

Major Cities by Population
City	Population	% change 2000–05
Notes: †A person of Hispanic or Latino origin may be of any race. NA indicates that data are not available.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey and Population Estimates. www.census.gov/ (accessed March 2007).
Indianapolis	784,118	0.3
Fort Wayne	223,341	8.6
Evansville	115,918	-4.7
South Bend	105,262	-2.3
Gary	98,715	-3.9
Hammond	79,217	-4.6
Bloomington	69,017	-0.4
Muncie	66,164	-1.9
Lafayette	60,459	7.2
Carmel	59,243	57.0

high for the state was 116°f (47°c), set on 14 July 1936 at Collegeville, and the record low was -36°f (-38°c) on 19 January 1994 at New Whiteland.

Rainfall is distributed fairly evenly throughout the year, although drought sometimes occurs in the southern region. The average annual precipitation in the state is 40 inches (102 centimeters), ranging from about 35 inches (89 centimeters) near Lake Michigan to 45 inches (114 centimeters) along the Ohio River. The annual snowfall in Indiana averages less than 22 inches (56 centimeters). The average wind speed in the state is 8 miles per hour (13 kilometers per hour), but gales sometimes occur along the shores of Lake Michigan. There are occasional tornadoes in the interior.

4 Plants and Animals

There are 124 native tree species, including 17 varieties of oak, as well as black walnut, sycamore, and the tulip tree (yellow poplar), which is the state tree. Fruit trees—apple, cherry, peach, and pear—are common. American elderberry and bittersweet are common shrubs, while various jack-in-the-pulpits and spring beauties are among the indigenous wildflowers. The peony is the state flower. As of April 2006, Mead’s milkweed and Pitcher’s thistle were considered threatened, and running buffalo clover was considered endangered.

Although the presence of wolves and coyotes has been reported occasionally, the red fox is Indiana’s only common carnivorous mammal. Other native mammals include the common cottontail, muskrat, and raccoon. Many water-fowl and marsh birds, including the black duck and great blue heron, inhabit northern Indiana, while the field sparrow, yellow warbler, and redheaded woodpecker nest in central Indiana. Catfish, pike, bass, and sunfish are native to state waters. As of April 2006, the US Fish and Wildlife Service listed 21 Indiana animal species as threatened or endangered. Among these are the bald eagle, Indiana and gray bats, gray wolf, piping plover, and two species of butterfly.

5 Environmental Protection

The Department of Natural Resources regulates the use of Indiana’s lands, waters, forests, and wildlife resources. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) seeks to protect public health through the implementation and management of various environmental programs. In addition, the following boards exist to aid in environmental involvement: Air Pollution Control Board, Water Pollution Control Board, Pollution Prevention Control Board, and the Solid Waste Management Board.

The IDEM offers technical assistance to industries for the installation of pollution prevention equipment, and encourages consumers to rethink their use and disposal of hazardous household goods and chemicals. In 2003, the Environmental Protection Agency’s database listed 210 hazardous waste sites in the state, 29 of which were on the National Priorities List.

Some of the state’s most serious environmental challenges lie in Lake and Porter counties in Northwest Indiana. A century of spills, emissions and discharges to the environment there require comprehensive, regionally coordinated programs. The Northwest Indiana Remedial Action Plan (RAP) is a three-phased program designed especially for the Grand Calumet River and the Indiana Harbor Ship Canal. Both waterways are

Indiana Population by Race

Census 2000 was the first national census in which the instructions to respondents said, “Mark one or more races.” This table shows the number of people who are of one, two, or three or more races. For those claiming two races, the number of people belonging to the various categories is listed. The U.S. government conducts a census of the population every ten years.

	Number	Percent
Source: U.S. Census Bureau. Census 2000: Redistricting Data. Press release issued by the Redistricting Data Office. Washington, D.C., March, 2001. A dash (—) indicates that the percent is less than 0.1.
Total population	6,080,485	100.0
One race	6,004,813	98.8
Two races	71,132	1.2
White and Black or African American	19,187	0.3
White and American Indian/Alaska Native	18,053	0.3
White and Asian	9,131	0.2
White and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	843	—
White and some other race	15,756	0.3
Black or African American and American Indian/Alaska Native	1,883	—
Black or African American and Asian	959	—
Black or African American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	156	—
Black or African American and some other race	2,432	—
American Indian/Alaska Native and Asian	298	—
American Indian/Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	30	—
American Indian/Alaska Native and some other race	458	—
Asian and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	512	—
Asian and some other race	1,291	—
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander and some other race	143	—
Three or more races	4,540	0.1

heavily contaminated, and if left in their current state, would certainly degrade the waters of Lake Michigan, the primary source of drinking water for the Northwest Indiana area.

6 Population

In 2006, Indiana ranked 15th in population among the 50 states, with an estimated total of 6,313,520 residents. In 2004, the population density was 173.9 persons per square mile (67.1 persons per square kilometer). The population is projected to reach 6.5 million by 2015, and 6.7 million by 2025. In 2005, Indianapolis, the capital and largest city, had a population of 784,118. Other major cities with their 2005 populations were Fort Wayne, 223,341; Evansville, 115,918; and South Bend, 105,262. In 2004, the median age was 35.7 years. In 2005, about 12% of all residents were 65 or older, and about 26% were 18 or younger.

7 Ethnic Groups

According to the 2000 census, the state had 510,034 blacks, representing about 8.4% of the total population. In that same year, about 214,536 Hispanics and Latinos lived within the state, representing approximately 3.5% of the population. In 2006, Hispanics and Latinos accounted for 4.6% of the state’s population. The Asian population was estimated at 59,126, in 2000, including 14,685 Asian Indians, 12,531 Chinese, 6,674 Filipinos, 7,502 Koreans, 5,065 Japanese, and 4,843 Vietnamese. Pacific Islanders numbered 2,005. There were 15,815 Native Americans, many of whom are descendants of a variety of Algonkian-speaking tribes, such as Delaware, Shawnee, and Potawatomi. As of 2000, foreign-born Hoosiers numbered 186,534, about 3% of the total state population.

8 Languages

Most Indiana speech is basically that of the South Midland pioneers from south of the Ohio River. Between the Ohio River and Indianapolis, South Midland speakers use the term clabber cheese instead of cottage cheese, frogstools rather than toadstools, and goobers instead of peanuts. North of Indianapolis, speakers with a Midland Pennsylvania background wish on the pullybone of a chicken, may use a trestle (sawhorse), and are likely to get their hands greezy rather than greasy.

In 2000, of all Hoosiers five years old and older, 93.5% spoke only English at home. Other languages spoken at home (and number of speakers) include Spanish (185,576), German (44,142), French (18,065), and Polish (7,831). Chinese, Indic, Greek, Italian, and Korean were also reported.

9 Religions

The first branch of Christianity to gain a foothold in Indiana was Roman Catholicism, introduced by the French settlers in the early 18th century. The first Protestant church was founded near Charlestown by Baptists from Kentucky in 1798. In 1807, Quakers built their first meetinghouse at Richmond. The Shakers, established a short-lived community in Sullivan County in 1808.

In 2004, the Roman Catholic Church was the largest single denomination in the state, with about 765,699 adherents. The largest Protestant denominations were the United Methodist Church (with 212,667 adherents) in that same year. Other denominations included (with 2000 membership data) the Church of Christ (205,408 adherents), the Southern Baptist Convention (124,452), the American Baptist Church (115,101), and the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (111,522). The estimated Jewish population of the state in 2000 was 18,000. The Muslim community had about 11,000 members. There were also over 17,000 Mennonites, and over 19,000 members of Amish communities statewide. About 57% of the population (over 3.4 million people) were not counted as members of any religious organization.

10 Transportation

Indiana’s central location in the country and its position between Lake Michigan to the north and the Ohio River to the south gave the state its motto, “The Crossroads of America.” Historically, the state took advantage of its strategic location by digging canals to connect Indiana rivers and by building roads and railroads to provide farmers access to national markets.

In 2003, there were 37 railroads operating on 5,136 miles (8,269 kilometers) of railroad track. As of 2006, regularly scheduled Amtrak passenger trains served Indianapolis, Hammond/ Whiting, South Bend, and seven other stations in the state. Indianapolis and other major cities have public transit systems subsidized heavily by the state and federal governments. The South Shore commuter railroad connects South Bend, Gary, and East Chicago with Chicago, Illinois.

Major highways include the east–west National Road (US 40), and the north–south Michigan road (US 421). In 2003, there were 94,597 miles (152,301 kilometers) of public roads in the state. In 2004, motor vehicle registrations totaled 5.587 million, including 3.043 million passenger cars and 2.382 million trucks.

Water transportation has been important from the earliest years of European settlement. The Wabash and Erie Canal, constructed in the 1830s from Fort Wayne east to Toledo, Ohio, and southwest to Lafayette, was vital to the state’s market economy. The transport of freight via Lake Michigan and the Ohio River helped to spark Indiana’s industrial development. A deep-water port on Lake Michigan, which became operational in 1970, provided access to world markets via the St. Lawrence Seaway. Indiana Harbor and the port of Gary are leading ports.

In 2005, there were 629 public and private use aviation facilities in the state, including 492 airports, 121 heliports, 3 STOLports (Short Take-Off and Landing), and 13 seaplane bases. The state’s main airport is Indianapolis International Airport. In 2004, it handled 3,992,097 boardings.

11 History

The first Native Americans to be seen by Europeans in present-day Indiana were probably the Miami and Potawatomi tribes. The first European penetration was made in the 1670s by the French explorers Father Jacques Marquette and Robert Cavelier, Sieur de la Salle. After the founding of Detroit, Michigan, in 1701, the Maumee-Wabash river route to the lower Ohio was discovered. The first French fort was built farther down the Wabash among the Wea tribe, near present-day Lafayette, in 1717.

By 1765, Indiana had fallen to the English. The pre-Revolutionary turmoil in the colonies on the Atlantic was hardly felt in Indiana. However, the region did not escape the Revolutionary War itself. Colonel George Rogers Clark, acting for Virginia, captured Vincennes from a British garrison early in 1779. Following the war, the area northwest of the Ohio River was granted to the new nation by treaty in 1783.

The first US town plotted in Indiana was Clarksville, established in 1784. A government for the region was established by the Continental Congress under the Northwest Ordinance of 1787. Known as the Northwest Territory, it included present-day Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and part of Minnesota. After continued Native American unrest, General Anthony Wayne was put in command of an enlarged army, which ended the disturbance in 1794 at Fallen Timbers (near Toledo, Ohio).

Statehood In 1800, as Ohio prepared to enter the Union, the rest of the Northwest Territory was set off and called Indiana Territory, with its capital at Vincennes. After Michigan Territory was detached in 1805, and Illinois Territory in 1809, Indiana assumed its present boundaries (having added about 10 miles to its northern border in 1816). William Henry Harrison was appointed first governor and, with a secretary and three appointed judges, constituted the government of Indiana Territory. When the population totaled 60,000—as it did in 1815—the voters were allowed to elect delegates to write a state constitution and to apply for admission to the Union. Indiana became the 19th state on 11 December 1816.

After the War of 1812, new settlers began pouring into the state from the upper South and in fewer numbers from Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and New England. In 1816, Thomas Lincoln brought his family from Kentucky, and his son Abe grew up in southern Indiana from age 7 to 21. Unlike most other frontier states, Indiana was settled from south to north. Central and northern Indiana were opened up as land was purchased from the Native Americans. Railroads began to tie Indiana commercially with the East. Irish immigrants dug canals and laid the rails, and German immigrants took up woodworking and farming. Levi Coffin, a Quaker who moved to Fountain City in 1826, operated the Underground Railroad, a network of people dedicated to help escaping slaves from the South.

Civil War Hoosiers (as Indianans are called) showed considerable sympathy with the South in the 1850s. However, Indiana remained staunchly in the Union under Governor Oliver P. Morton, sending some 200,000 soldiers to the Civil War. The state suffered no battles, but General John Hunt Morgan’s Confederate cavalry raided the southeastern sector of Indiana in July 1863.

After the Civil War, small local industries expanded rapidly. Discovery of natural gas in several northeastern counties in 1886, and the resultant low fuel prices, spurred the growth of energy-intensive glass factories. As America became captivated by the automobile, a racetrack for testing cars was built outside Indianapolis in 1908, and the famous 500-mile (805-kilometer) race on Memorial Day weekend began in 1911. Five years earlier, US Steel had constructed a steel plant at the south end of Lake Michigan. The town built by the company to house the workers was called Gary, and it grew rapidly with the help of the company and the onset of World War I.

World Wars Although many Hoosiers of German and Irish descent favored neutrality when World War I began, Indiana industries boomed with war orders, and public sympathy swung heavily toward the Allies. Indiana furnished 118,000 men and women to the armed forces and suffered the loss of 3,370.

After 1920, only about a dozen makes of cars were still being manufactured in Indiana, and those factories steadily lost out to the three largest car makers in Detroit. Auto parts continued to be a big business, however, along with steelmaking and oil-refining in the Calumet region. Elsewhere there was manufacturing of machinery, farm implements, railway cars, furniture, and pharmaceuticals. Meat-packing, coal-mining, and limestone-quarrying continued to be important. With increasing industrialization, cities grew, particularly in the northern half of the state, and the number of farms diminished. The balance of rural and urban population, about even in 1920, tilted in favor of urban dwellers.

World War II had a greater impact on Indiana than did World War I. Most factories converted to production of war materials, and 300 of them held defense orders in 1942. Military training facilities were created. Camp Atterbury covered 100 square miles (259 square kilometers) in Bartholomew County, and two air stations trained aviators. Two large ammunition depots loaded and stored shells, and the enormous

Indiana Governors: 1816–2007

Democratic Republican – Dem-Rep
Independent – Indep
National Republican – Nat-Rep
1816–1822	Johathan Jennings	Dem-Rep
1822	Ratliff Boone	Jackson Democrat
1822–1825	William Hendricks	Dem-Rep
1825–1831	James Brown Ray	Anti–Jacksonian/Indep
1831–1837	Noah Noble	Nat-Rep/Whig
1837–1840	David Wallace	Whig
1840–1843	Samuel Bigger	Whig
1843–1848	James Whitcomb	Democrat
1848–1849	Paris Chipman Dunning	Democrat
1849–1857	Joseph Albert Wright	Unionist
1857–1860	Ashbel Parsons Willard	Democrat
1860–1861	Abram Adams Hammond	Democrat
1861	Henry Smith Lane	Republican
1861–1867	Oliver Hazzard Perry Morton	Republican
1867–1873	Conrad Baker	Republican
1873–1877	Thomas Andrews Hendricks	Democrat
1877–1880	James Douglas Williams	Democrat
1880–1881	Isaac Pusey Gray	Democrat
1881–1885	Albert Gallatin Porter	Republican
1885–1889	Isaac Pusey Gray	Democrat
1889–1891	Alvin Peterson Hovey	Republican
1891–1893	Ira Joy Chase	Republican
1893–1897	Claude Matthews	Democrat
1897–1901	James Atwell Mount	Republican
1901–1905	Winfield Taylor Durbin	Republican
1905–1909	James Franklin Hanly	Republican
1909–1913	Thomas Riley Marshall	Democrat
1913–1917	Samuel Moffett Ralston	Democrat
1917–1921	James Putnam Goodrich	Republican
1921–1924	Warren Terry McCray	Republican
1924–1925	Emmett Forest Branch	Republican
1925–1929	Edward L. Jackson	Republican
1929–1933	Harry Guyer Leslie	Republican
1933–1937	Paul Vories McNutt	Democrat
1937–1941	Mourice Clifford Townsend	Democrat
1941–1945	Henry Frederick Schricker	Democrat
1945–1949	Ralph Fesler Gates	Republican
1949–1953	Henry Frederick Schricker	Democrat
1953–1957	George North Craig	Republican
1957–1961	Harold Willis Handley	Republican
1961–1965	Matthew Empson Welsh	Democrat
1965–1969	Roger Douglas Branigin	Democrat
1969–1973	Edgar Doud Whitcomb	Republican
1973–1981	Otis Ray Bowen	Republican
1981–1989	Robert Dunkerson Orr	Republican
1989–1997	Evan Bayh	Democrat
1997–2003	Frank O’Bannon	Democrat
2003–2004	Joseph Kernan	Democrat
2004–	Mitch Daniels	Republican

Jefferson Proving Grounds tested ammunition and parachutes.

Post-War Period After the war, many small local industries were taken over by national corporations, and their plants were expanded. By 1984, the largest employer in Indiana was General Motors, with 47,800 employees in six cities. Inland Steel, with 18,500 workers, was second, followed by US Steel with 13,800 workers.

Nostalgia for an older, simpler, rural way of life pervades much Hoosier thinking. The state’s conservation efforts were guided by Richard Lieber, a state official from 1933 to 1944, promoted the preservation of land for state parks and recreational areas, as well as for state and federal forests.

Hoosiers enjoy politics and participate intensively in conventions and elections. The percentage of registered voters who vote has generally exceeded the national average by a wide margin. The state legislature was dominated by rural interests until a 1966 reorganization gave urban counties more representation.

In October 1999, Indiana saw its first African American, Justice Robert D. Rucker, named to the state’s supreme court.

On 8 September 2003, Indiana’s governor Frank O’Bannon, who had named Justice Rucker to the state’s highest court, suffered a massive stroke and died five days later. O’Bannon was

Indiana Presidential Vote by Political Parties, 1948–2004

YEAR	INDIANA WINNER	DEMOCRAT	REPUBLICAN	PROGRESSIVE	PROHIBITION
* Won US presidential election.
1948	Dewey (R)	807,833	821,079	9,649	14,711
1952	*Eisenhower (R)	801,530	1,136,259	1,222	15,335
1956	*Eisenhower (R)	783,908	1,182,811	—	6,554
1960	*Nixon (R)	952,358	1,175,120	—	6,746
1964	*Johnson (D)	1,170,848	911,118	—	8,266
				AMERICAN IND.
1968	*Nixon (R)	806,659	1,067,885	243,108	4,616
				PEOPLE’S	SOC. WORKERS
1972	*Nixon (R)	708,568	1,405,154	4,544	5,575
				AMERICAN
1976	Ford (R)	1,014,714	1,185,958	14,048	5,695
				CITIZENS	LIBERTARIAN
1980	*Reagan (R)	844,197	1,255,656	4,852	19,627
1984	*Reagan (R)	841,481	1,377,230	—	6,741
				NEW ALLIANCE
1988	*Bush (R)	860,643	1,297,763	10,215	—
				IND. (PEROT)
1992	Bush (R)	848,420	989,375	455,934	7,936
1996	Dole (R)	887,424	1,006,693	224,299	15,632
					REFORM
2000	*Bush, G. W. (R)	901,980	1,245,836	18,531	16,959
2004	*Bush, G. W. (R)	969,011	1,479,438	—	—

replaced by Lieutenant Governor Joe Kernan, who was defeated in November 2004 by Republican Mitch Daniels Jr.

Upon taking office in 2005, Daniels moved to fix the state’s $700 million budget shortfall. Daniels called for strict spending controls, and a one-time, one-year tax hike of 1% on all residents with incomes of $100,000 or more.

12 State Government

Indiana’s first constitution, which took effect in 1816, prohibited slavery and recommended a free public school system, including a state university. The constitution did not allow for amendment, so a new one was adopted in 1851, which is still in force. It had been amended 46 times as of January 2005.

The Indiana General Assembly consists of a fifty-member Senate elected to four-year terms, with half the senators elected every two years, and a one hundred-member House of Representatives elected to two-year terms. The state’s chief executive is the governor, elected to a four-year term. The governor may call special sessions of the legislature and may veto bills passed by the legislature, but his veto can be overridden by a majority vote in each house.

Indiana’s other top elected officials are the lieutenant governor, secretary of state, treasurer, auditor, attorney general, and superintendent of public instruction. Each is elected to a four-year term. The lieutenant governor is constitutionally empowered to preside over the state senate and to act as governor if that office should become vacant, or the governor is unable to discharge his duties. Legislation may be introduced in either house of the General Assembly, although bills for raising revenue must originate in the House of Representatives.

As of December 2004, the governor’s salary was $95,000, and the legislative salary was $11,600.

13 Political Parties

After voting Republican in four successive presidential elections, Indiana voted Democratic in 1876 and became a swing state. More recently, a Republican trend has been evident, as the state voted Republican in 16 out of 17 presidential elections between 1940 and 2004.

In 2004, Indiana gave 60% of the vote to Republican George W. Bush and 39% to Democrat John Kerry. In that same year, Governor Joseph E. Kernan was defeated by Republican Mitch Daniels, but Democrat Evan Bayh was reelected to the US Senate. The state’s other senate seat was held by Republican Richard Lugar, who won re-election to the Senate in 2006. Indiana’s delegation to the US House of Representatives following the 2006 elections included five Democrats and four Republicans. Following the 2006 elections, the state senate had 33 Republicans and 17 Democrats. In the state house of representatives, there were 51 Democrats and 49 Republicans. Following the 2006 elections, there were 27 women serving in the state legislature, or 18%. In 2004 there were 4,009,000 registered voters in the state. There is no party registration in the state.

14 Local Government

Indiana’s 92 counties have traditionally provided law enforcement in rural areas, operated county courts and institutions, maintained county roads, administered public welfare programs, and collected taxes. In 1984, counties were given the power to impose local income taxes. The county’s business is conducted by a board of county commissioners, consisting of three members elected to four-year terms.

Townships (1,008 in 2002) provide assistance for the poor, and assess taxable property. Each township is administered by a trustee elected to a four-year term. Indiana had 567 municipal governments in 2005. They are governed by elected city councils. In 2005, Indiana had 294 public school districts and 1,125 special districts.

15 Judicial System

The Indiana supreme court consists of 5 justices who are appointed by the governor. The state court of appeals consists of 15 justices. The court exercises appeals jurisdiction under rules set by the state supreme court. Superior courts, probate courts, and circuit courts all function as general trial courts and are presided over by 279 judges who serve a term of 6 years. Indiana had 24,008 prisoners in its state and federal correctional facilities as of 31 December 2004. Indiana in 2004, had a violent crime rate (murder/nonnegligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault) of 325.4 incidents per 100,000 people statewide. Indiana has a death penalty, of which lethal injection is the sole method of execution. As of 1 January 2006, there were 26 inmates on death row.

16 Migration

Indiana’s early settlers were predominantly northern Europeans who migrated from eastern and southern states. The principal migratory pattern since 1920 has been within the state, from the farms to the cities. Since World War II, Indiana has lost population through a growing migratory movement to other states, mostly to Florida and the Southwest.

Between 1990 and 1998, the state had a net gain of 76,000 persons through domestic migration and a net gain of 25,000 in international migration. In 1998, 3,981 foreign immigrants arrived in Indiana. In the period 2000–05, some 55,656 people arrived in the state from other countries, while 17,000 people left the state to move to other states, giving the state a net gain of 38,656 people.

17 Economy

Indiana is both a leading agricultural and industrial state. The state’s industrial development in Indianapolis, Gary, and other cities was based on its plentiful natural resources—coal, natural gas, timber, stone, and clay—and on good transportation facilities. The northwestern corner of the state is the site of one of the world’s greatest concentrations of heavy industry, especially steel.

Until the end of the 20th century, manufacturing continued to grow, and between 1997 and 2000 accounted for about 30% of Indiana’s total economic output. In the national recession of 2001, however, manufacturing output fell 9.2%. Many jobs were lost, although the unemployment rate remained below the national average. Indiana’s gross state product (GSP) in 2004 was $227.569 billion, of which industry accounted for 27.8% of GSP, followed by real estate at 9.7%, and health care and social services at 7% of GSP. Of the 125,746 businesses in the state that had employees, 97.6% were small companies.

18 Income

In 2004, Indiana had a per capita (per person) personal income of $30,204, which was under the national average of $33,050. For the three-year period 2002 through 2004, the median household income was $43,003, compared to the national average of $44,473. For the same period, 10.2% of the state’s residents lived below the federal poverty level, compared to the national average of 12.4%.

19 Industry

The industrialization of Indiana that began in the Civil War era was spurred by technological advances in processing agricultural products, manufacturing farm equipment, and improving transportation facilities. Meat-packing plants, textile mills, furniture factories, and wagon works—including Studebaker wagons—were soon followed by metal foundries, machine shops, farm implement plants, and various other durable-goods plants.

In 2004, the shipment value of all products manufactured in Indiana was $183.563 billion. Among the leading industry groups were transportation equipment, primary metal products, chemicals, food products, and fabricated metal products. Indiana is also a leading producer of compact discs, elevators, storage batteries, small motors and generators, mobile homes, household furniture, burial caskets, and musical instruments. Most manufacturing plants are located in and around Indianapolis and in the Calumet region.

In 2004, the state’s manufacturing sector employed 534,942 people.

20 Labor

In April 2006, the civilian labor force in Indiana numbered 3,252,000, with approximately 159,500 workers unemployed, yielding an unemployment rate of 4.9%, compared to the national average of 4.7% for the same period. Preliminary nonfarm employment data for April 2006 showed that 5.1% of the labor force was employed in construction; 19.2% in manufacturing; 19.6% in trade, transportation, and public utilities; 4.7% in financial activities; 9.2% in professional and business services; 12.8% in educational and health services; 9.4% in leisure and hospitality services; and 14.3% in government.

Most industrial workers live in Indianapolis and the Calumet area of northwestern Indiana. The American Federation of Labor (AFL) first attempted to organize workers at the US Steel Company’s plant in Gary in 1919, but a strike to get union recognition failed. By 1936, however, the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) had won bargaining rights, and the 40-hour workweek from US Steel and union organization spread to other industries throughout the state.

In 2005, a total of 346,000 of Indiana’s 2,789,000 employed wage and salary workers were members of a union. This represented 12.4% of those employed, and just above the national average of 12%. The majority of the workers belonged to unions affiliated with the AFL-CIO.

21 Agriculture

Agriculture in Indiana is a large and diverse industry that plays a vital role in the economy. The state had 59,300 farms containing 15,000,000 acres (6,800,000 hectares) of farmland. In 2005, cash receipts from the sale of all commodities (crops and livestock) reached $5.4 billion. In the same year, Indiana ranked 16th in the United States in cash receipts from the sale of all commodities.

Over 80% of Indiana’s farm operators live on the farm, while more than 55% of farmers have a principal occupation other than farming.

Corn and soybeans are Indiana’s two main crops. In 2004 the state produced 929.04 million bushels of corn for grain, ranking fifth in the United States. Indiana also grew 287.04 million bushels of soybeans, the third most in the nation. Other principal field crops in 2004 included spearmint, peppermint, and cantaloupes.

22 Domesticated Animals

Indiana dairy farmers produced an estimated 2.9 billion pounds (1.3 billion kilograms) of milk from 149,000 milk cows in 2003. The state’s poultry farmers sold an estimated 24.8 million pounds (11.3 million kilograms) of chicken, and an estimated 396.8 million pounds (179.985 million kilograms) of turkey during 2003. Indiana had an estimated 850,000 cattle and calves worth around $799 million in 2005.

23 Fishing

Fishing is not of commercial importance in Indiana, although fishing for bass, pike, perch, catfish, and trout is a popular sport with Indiana anglers. In 2004, there were 522,389 sport fishing licenses issued by the state. There are eight state fish hatcheries.

24 Forestry

About 20% of Indiana’s total land area was forested in 2004. Indiana has 4,501,000 acres (1,822,000 hectares) of forestland, of which 96%, or 4,342,000 acres (1,757,000 hectares), is considered commercial timberland. Some 75% of the commercial forestland is located in the southern half of Indiana, where oak, hickory, beech, maple, yellow poplar, and ash predominate in the uplands. Soft maple, sweetgum, pin oak, cottonwood, sycamore, and river birch are the most common species found in wetlands and drainage corridors.

Indiana’s wood-using industries manufacture everything from the “crinkle” center lining in cardboard boxes to the finest furniture in the world. Other wood products include pallets, desks, fancy face veneer, millwork, flooring, mobile homes, and recreational vehicle components. In 2004, Indiana produced 333 million board feet of lumber. Indiana has always been noted for the quality of its hardwood forests and the trees it produces.

25 Mining

The value of nonfuel mineral production in Indiana in 2004 was $764 million. Nationally, Indiana ranked 22nd in value of nonfuel mineral production. In 2004, cement (portland and masonry) was Indiana’s top nonfuel mineral by value, followed by crushed stone, construction sand and gravel, and lime, which together accounted for 92% of all nonfuel mineral output by the states. The state’s top two mineral commodities by output were crushed stone (2001 estimated output 56 million metric tons) and cement (portland cement production was estimated at 2.86 million metric tons).

26 Energy and Power

Indiana is largely dependent on fossil fuels for its energy supplies. In recent years, petroleum has become an important power source for automobiles, home heating, and electricity. Nevertheless, coal has continued to be the state’s major source of power, meeting about half of Indiana’s energy needs.

The state has no nuclear power plants. Electric power produced in Indiana in 2003 totaled 124.888 billion kilowatt hours, with total net summer generating capacity at 25.640 million kilowatts. Of the total produced, 94.3% came from coal-fired plants.

As of 2004, Indiana’s proven reserves of crude oil totaled 11 million barrels, with production at 5,000 barrels per day in that same year. Natural gas production in 2004 totaled 1.464 billion cubic feet (0.041 billion cubic meters). Data was unavailable as to the state’s proven reserves of natural gas.

In 2004 there were 29 producing coal mines in Indiana, of which 7 were underground and 22 were strip (surface) mines. Indiana’s coal production in that same year totaled 35.11 million tons. Recoverable reserves totaled 398 million tons in 2004.

27 Commerce

Indiana’s wholesale trade sector in 2002 had sales of $79.8 billion, while the state’s retail trade sector had sales that same year of $67.2 billion. Indiana ranked 11th among the 50 states in exports during 2005, when its goods shipped abroad were valued at $21.4 billion.

28 Public Finance

The State Budget Agency acts as a watchdog over state financial affairs. The agency prepares the budget for the governor and presents it to the General Assembly. The fiscal year runs from 1 July to 30 June of the following year.

The total revenues for 2004 were $26.9 billion, with total expenditures that same year of were $25.37 billion. The largest general expenditures were for education ($9.04 billion), public welfare ($5.67 billion), and highways ($1.9 billion). The total indebtedness of the state government in 2004 stood at $13.07 billion, or $2,100.50 per person.

29 Taxation

Indiana has a general state sales tax of 6%. As of 1 January 2006, the state had a single individual income tax rate of 3.4%, and a flat corporate tax rate of 8.5%. Indiana also imposes an excise tax on cigarettes and gasoline. Food is not subject to the state sales tax, if it is consumed off premises (such as at home).

In 2005, state tax collections totaled $12.854 billion, with 38.9% generated by the state sales taxes, 32.8% by the state personal income tax, 17.1% by state excise taxes, 6.4% by the state corporate income tax, and 4.8% from other taxes. Indiana ranked 31st among the 50 states in per capita (per person) tax burden at $2,049, compared to the national average of $2,192.

30 Health

In October 2005, Indiana had an infant death rate estimated at 7.9 per 1,000 live births. In 2003, the state’s crude death rate stood at 9.1 per 1,000 inhabitants. The principal causes of death were heart disease, cerebrovascular diseases, chronic lower respiratory diseases, and diabetes. About 24.8% of the state’s residents were smokers in 2004. The rate of HIV-related deaths stood at 1.9 per 100,000 population. The reported AIDS case rate was about 6.3 per 100,000 people in 2004.

Indiana’s 112 community hospitals had about 18,900 beds in 2003. There were 834 nurses per 100,000 people in 2005, and 222 physicians per 100,000 people in 2004. In that same year, Indiana had 2,939 dentists. In 2003, the average expense of community hospital care was $1,352 per day. In 2004, about 14% of the population was uninsured.

31 Housing

In 2004, the state had an estimated 2,690,619 housing units, of which 2,412,885 were occupied, 71.8% by the owner. About 21% of all units were built before 1939. About 71.5% of all units were single-family, detached homes. Most units relied on utility gas and electricity for heating, but about 1,030 units were equipped for solar power. It was estimated that 158,051 units lacked telephone service, while 10,304 lacked complete plumbing facilities, and 12,973 lacked complete kitchen facilities. The average household size was 2.51 people.

In 2004, the construction of 39,200 privately owned housing units were authorized. The median home value was $110,020. The median monthly cost for mortgage owners was $963. Renters paid a median of $589 per month.

32 Education

Although the 1816 constitution recommended establishment of public schools, the state legislature did not provide funds for education. The constitution of 1851 more specifically outlined the state’s responsibility to support a system of free public schools. In 2004, of those aged 25 years and over, 87.2% were high school graduates, and 21.1% had completed four or more years of college.

Total enrollment in public schools was estimated at 1,009,000 in fall 2003, and was expected to reach 1,029,000 by fall 2014. Enrollment in nonpublic schools in fall 2003 was 109,101. Expenditures for public education in 2003/04 were estimated at $10 billion.

As of fall 2002, there were 342,064 students enrolled in college or graduate school. In 2005, Indiana had 101 degree-granting institutions. Indiana University, the state’s largest institution of higher education, was founded in 1820. It is one of the largest state universities in the United States, with a total of eight campuses. The Bloomington campus has a nationally recognized music program. Other major state universities include Purdue University (Lafayette), Ball State University (Muncie), and Indiana State University (Terre Haute). Well-known private universities in the state include Notre Dame (at South Bend) and Butler (Indianapolis). Small private colleges and universities include DePauw (Greencastle), Earlham (Richmond), Hanover (Hanover), and Wabash (Crawfordsville).

33 Arts

The earliest center for artists in Indiana was the Art Association of Indianapolis, founded in 1883. Around 1900, art colonies sprang up in Richmond, Muncie, South Bend, and Nashville. Indianapolis remains the state’s cultural center. Since 1969, the Indiana Arts Commission has taken art and artists into many Indiana communities. The commission also sponsors biennial awards to artists in the state.

The state’s first resident theater company was established in Indianapolis in 1840 and the first theater building, the Metropolitan, was opened there in 1858. Ten years later, the Academy of Music was founded as the center for dramatic activities in Indianapolis. In 1875, the Grand Opera House opened there and the following year it was joined by the English Opera House. Amateur theater has been popular since the 1915 founding of the nation’s oldest amateur drama group, the Little Theater Society, which later became the Civic Theater of Indianapolis.

Music has flourished in Indiana. Connersville reportedly was the first American city to establish a high school band, while Richmond claims the first high school symphony orchestra. The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1930. There are 23 other symphony orchestras in the state. Indianapolis Opera was founded in 1975. The annual Indiana Fiddlers’ Gathering, founded in 1973, is a three-day festival featuring the bluegrass, swing fiddle, string band, and Celtic and other ethnic music.

The Indiana Humanities Council sponsors programs that include Habits of the Heart, a youth volunteer leadership development program, and History Alive, an educational program featuring live portrayals of famous historical figures.

34 Libraries and Museums

In 2001 there were 239 public library systems in Indiana, with a total of 430 libraries, of which 191 were branches. The largest book collections are at public libraries in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Gary, Evansville, Merrillville, and Hammond. The total book stock of all Indiana public libraries was 22.14 million volumes in 2001, with a total circulation of 62.7 million.

The Indiana State Library has a large collection of documents about Indiana’s history and a large genealogical collection. The Indiana University Library has special collections on American literature and history and an extensive collection of rare books. The University of Notre Dame has a noteworthy collection on medieval history. Also of note are the General Lew Wallace Study Museum in Crawfordsville, and the Elwood Haynes Museum of early technology in Kokomo.

In 2000, Indiana had 179 museums. Many county historical societies maintain smaller museums, such as the Wayne County Historical Museum. Indiana’s historic sites include the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial near Gentryville, the Levi Coffin Home (one of the Underground Railroad stops) in Fountain City, and the Benjamin Harrison Memorial Home in Indianapolis.

35 Communications

In 2004, about 91.8% of all households had telephone service. The state’s first radio station was licensed in 1922 at Purdue University, Lafayette. Indiana had 20 major AM, 102 major FM radio stations, and 30 television stations as of 2005. Powerful radio and television transmissions from Chicago and Cincinnati also blanket the state. In 1999, the Indianapolis area had 963,320 television households, 65% of which received cable. A total of 73,696 Internet domain names were registered in the state in 2000.

In 2003, computers were in 59.6% of all Indiana households, while 51% had Internet access. As of June 2004, there were over 2.8 million mobile telephone service subscribers.

36 Press

In 2005, the state had 24 morning dailies, 44 evening dailies, and 25 Sunday papers. In 2005, the morning Indianapolis Star had a daily circulation of 252,021 (Sunday circulation, 358,261), while the circulation of Gary’s Post-Tribune averaged 65,621 daily and 73,795 on Sundays.

A number of national magazines are published in Indiana, including Children’s Digest and The Saturday Evening Post.

Many Hoosier authors were first published by Indiana’s major book publisher, Bobbs-Merrill. Indiana University Press is an important publisher of scholarly books.

37 Tourism, Travel & Recreation

In 2004, there were about 57.7 million visitors to the state, who spent $6.5 billion. The tourist industry supported about 94,000 full-time jobs.

About 70% of visitors participate in outdoor activities, many within one of three national parks. Summer resorts are located in the north, along Lake Michigan and in Steuben and Kosciusko counties, where there are nearly 200 lakes. Popular tourist sites include the reconstructed village of New Harmony, site of famous communal living experiments in the early 19th century; the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Museum; and the George Rogers Clark National Historic Park at Vincennes.

Among the natural attractions are the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore on Lake Michigan; the state’s largest waterfall, Cataract Falls, near Cloverdale; and the largest underground cavern, at Wyandotte.

Indiana has 23 state parks, comprising 59,292 acres (21,800 hectares). The largest state park is Brown County (15,543 acres—6,290 hectares), near Nashville. There are 15 state fish and wildlife preserves, totaling about 75,200 acres (30,400 hectares).

38 Sports

Professional teams in Indiana include the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association, the Indiana Fever of the Women’s National

Basketball Association, and the National Football League’s Colts, who moved to Indianapolis from Baltimore in 1984. There are also several minor league baseball, basketball, and hockey teams in the state.

The state’s biggest annual sports event is the Indianapolis 500. The race is now part of a three-day Indiana festival held over Memorial Day weekend that attracts crowds of over 300,000 spectators, the largest crowd for any sporting event anywhere in the world.

The state’s most popular amateur sport is basketball. The high school tournaments for both boys and girls are big events. Basketball is also popular at the college level, with teams from Indiana University, Purdue University, and Indiana State holding a number of championship titles. Evansville College won the NCAA Division II championships three times.

College football is also popular. The Fighting Irish football team from the University of Notre Dame competes as an independent team. They have won ten bowl games. Football teams from Indiana University and Purdue University compete in the Big Ten. The team from Indiana State University is part of the Missouri Valley Conference.

The Little 500, a 50-mile (80-kilometer) bicycle race, is held each spring at Indiana University’s Bloomington campus.

Other annual sporting events include the National Muzzle-loading Rifle Association Championship Shoot, which is held in Friendship in September, and the Sugar Creek canoe race, which is held in Crawfordsville in April.

39 Famous Indianans

Indiana has contributed one US president and five vice-presidents to the nation. Benjamin Harrison (b.Ohio, 1833–1901), the 23rd president, was a Republican who served one term (1889–1893) and then returned to Indianapolis, where his home is now a national historic landmark. Three vice-presidents were Indiana residents: Thomas Hendricks (b.Ohio, 1819–1885), who served only eight months under President Cleveland and died in office; Schuyler Colfax (b.New York, 1823–1885), who served under President Grant; and Charles Fairbanks (b.Ohio, 1852–1918), who served under Theodore Roosevelt. Two vice-presidents were native sons: Thomas Marshall of North Manchester (1854–1925), who served two four-year terms with President Wilson;

and J(ames) Danforth Quayle of Indianapolis (b.1947), who served with President George H. W. Bush during 1989–93.

Only one Hoosier, Sherman Minton (1890–1965), has served on the US Supreme Court. Ambrose Burnside (1824–1881), and Lew Wallace (1827–1905) were Union generals during the Civil War.

Harold C. Urey (1893–1981) won the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1934, and Wendell Stanley (1904–1971) won it in 1946. The Nobel Prize in economics was awarded to Paul Samuelson (b. 1915) in 1970. Booth Tarkington (1869–1946) won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1918 and 1921. A. B. Guthrie (1901–1991) won it for fiction in 1950. Aviation pioneer Wilbur Wright (1867–1912) was born in Millville.

Juvenile writer Annie Fellows Johnston (1863–1931) produced the “Little Colonel” series. Other notable Indiana novelists include Theodore Dreiser (1871–1945), Jessamyn West (1907–1984), and Kurt Vonnegut (b.1922).

Composers of Indiana origin have worked mainly in popular music: Cole Porter (1893–1964) and Howard Hoagland “Hoagy” Carmichael (1899–1981). Entertainers from Indiana include David Letterman (b.1947) and singer Michael Jackson (b.1958).

Hoosier sports heroes include Knute Rockne (b.Norway, 1888–1931), famed as a football player and coach at Notre Dame. Larry Bird (b.1956) was college basketball’s player of the year at Indiana State University in 1978/79 and went on to play for the Boston Celtics of the NBA in the 1980s; in 1998 he became head coach of the NBA’s Indiana Pacers.