1. The North Pole actually doesn't get any letters for Santa Claus, believe it or not. Indiana does. Every year, the aptly named town Santa Claus, IN, actually receives those letters in the thousands. Even better, each and every one of those letters do get a reply!
“Santa Claus tapping a tablet”byMatti Mattilais licensed underCC BY 2.0
2. Baseball was practically born in Indiana – Fort Wayne, to be exact. The very first professional game had occurred in the town on May 4, 1871.
3. The name "Indiana" stands for Land of the Indians—but in reality fewer than 8,000 Native Americans actually reside in the state today.
4. One of the biggest mysteries ever in Indiana was where the name "Hoosier" ever came from. This explanation came close, when a Quaker from Richmond, Virginia, by the name of Sarah Harvey had written in an 1835 letter about the "old settlers in Indiana…called 'Hooshers.'" She explained that a 'Hoosher' was actually a type of cabin called a 'Hoosher nest,' and that's what those settlers lived in. That sounds pretty accurate, but still to this day, people debate about the nickname of every Indiana resident.
5. The two main schools of the state – Indiana University and Purdue University – wanted to stand out among the many institutions of the U.S., by signifying their rivalry in such a way that it would make many raise an eyebrow with puzzlement. Both schools decided that they would take a bucket surrounded with numerous metallic I's and P's, to make it look like a trophy. It's called the "oaken bucket," and both schools battle over it every year during football season.
6. Indiana just might be the only state with so many professional baseball teams not in the Major Leagues. There are five of them: the Evansville Otters, the Fort Wayne Tin Caps, the Gary Southshore Railcats, the Indianapolis Indians, and the South Bend Silver Hawks. Not one team in Indiana has ever been a club in the Major Leagues. Not one.
7. This cemetery in Angola, Indiana, actually may look quite pleasant to many, but that doesn't mean the entire town can be considered peaceful to some. The city's known for its hauntings and urban legends, such as a particular ghost with a long red beard atop a roof of an old theater crying out "Marie, please come back to me, please" over and over again. Many moviegoers to this theater think that this man with the red beard repeatedly cries in the back, and when they turn, no one's there…
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8. Indianapolis had the pleasure of hosting Elvis Presley's last concert right in Market Square Arena in 1977. He actually died three months later after his performance.
9. Oddly enough, in Indiana, mustaches are illegal as long as the bearer of mustaches has a troubling addiction toward kissing people. Pucker up
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10. Those public schools in Indiana fare well socially for students for one good reason: the state actually prohibits "gossip," and talking behind someone's back.
11. If you like popcorn, particularly Orville Redenbacher, know that all of that popcorn mainly comes from Indiana. 90 percent of the world's popcorn, in fact. Redenbacher himself was actually born in Brazil, Indiana, too. 
12. Everyone's favorite cartoon cat Garfield found his first home in Indiana, believe it or not. His creator, Jim Davis, was actually from Marion, IN.
13. Long before Hollywood and the music industry got a hold of the Jackson 5, as well as the King of Pop, the siblings with their stepping and soulful voices found their beginnings in the small town of Gary, IN. 
14. No other county anywhere in Indiana, or anywhere else in the world for that matter, has more covered bridges than Historic Parke County. There are 32 of those covered bridges in the county alone. That's actually why Indiana's considered the "Covered Bridge Capital of the World." 
15. We wouldn't be able to pump gas into our cars if it wasn't for Syvanus F. Bower over in Fort Wayne, IN. He was the inventor of the world's first real gasoline pump.
16. If it wasn't for Indiana, New York's Empire State Building, Rockefeller Center, the Pentagon, the U.S. Treasury, and many other buildings right in Washington D.C. would never exist. 14 state capitols would never be erected either, all because Indiana's home to a sea of limestone deep below the earth. It happens to have one of the richest deposits of that type of stone found anywhere on the planet.
17. Indiana University holds probably the highest honor in Olympic swimming thanks to Mark Spitz, the man who won 7 gold medals during the 1972 Olympic games. Michael Phelps broke that record with 8 in 2008, but to this day, Spitz still holds the world record for all seven events.
18. No one in New Mexico, particularly Roswell and Area 51, can top some of the sightings experienced right over Hammond, Gary, and South Bend, Indiana, when 1897 reports started filtering in about a big "airship" over the sky. Even in Vincennes, a particular "airship" had been spotted in that same year. This was long before anyone had ever coined the term: UFO.
19. The very first goldfish farm actually existed in Martinsville, IN. It was built back in 1899
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20. One fateful day on October 6, 1866, a particular gang by the name of the "Reno Brothers" thought it might be a good idea to rob a train. They did it right in Jackson County in Indiana, making off with a hefty $13,000. It was the first train robbery ever in history.
21. You just might be confused in Indiana, as the state's one of thirteen in the country to be divided by more than one time zone. Even funnier is that there's still a debate on which regions of Indiana should be whatever time. Currently, most of the state observes EST, but six counties near Chicago and six near Evansville follow CST.
22. Schools went public first here in Indiana, although the initial plan for it sort of failed. The state's 1816 constitution was way ahead of its time, even allotting one township for a public university. It was, alas, way too idealistic for a pioneer society until 1840 when Caleb Mills lobbied for tax-supported schools, and the state followed his advice in 1851 to include it in the new state constitution. At that time, the law worked just fine
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23. Fort Wayne's notorious for just missing Tornado Alley. Ask any teacher in elementary school there. They still do the mandatory drills, but only because it's mandatory. The legend, apparently, is that Fort Wayne sits in the center of three rivers, and those three rivers due to an old Indian legend prevent tornadoes from ever occurring. There may be some truth to that given the city has had only 9 tornadoes since 1950, whereas the entire state averages about 20 annually.
24. Look at that Coca-Cola bottle you're drinking out of and know that Terre Haute, IN, is responsible for its design.
25. Sorry, Walt Disney. You might have Mickey Mouse, but Indiana had theme parks long before you ever opened up Disneyland in California. The first theme park ever built was right in Santa Claus, IN, on August 3, 1946, almost a decade before the House of Mouse stepped into the amusement park fray
26. One of the greatest Christmas films (and stories) was based right in Indiana: "A Christmas Story." Admit it: it makes you want a BB gun and a leg lamp.
27. Indiana's home to the "world's largest Christmas tree." If you're skeptical at that, just know that this gigantic tree called the Circle of Lights in Indianapolis sports an astonishing 52 strands of garland and a total of 4,784 lights. The tree has held that honor since 1962. 
28. Johnny Appleseed has been the pride and joy of the Midwest for obvious reasons, and the Johnny Appleseed University in Indianapolis made history as group leader Dr. Larson Tuckteen happened to find a tremendous archaeological find: 117 apple seeds, preserved, and never sprouted. He and a group of archaeological students happened to come across a dig site, turning up the seeds that had to have been dropped by the iconic tree planter as far back as 203 years ago. The reason why they had never sprouted, experts believe, was due to Appleseed coating the seeds with avocado wax to keep them from going bad. Apparently, Dr. Tuckteen then wanted to donate the seeds to President Obama to be preserved.
29. Those classic Raggedy Ann dolls would never be if it wasn't for Marcella Gruelle of Indianapolis, who created the doll back in 1914.
30. The famous explorers Lewis and Clark would've never explored the great frontier of the Northwest Territory if they hadn't started somewhere. They started right in Fort Vincennes in Indiana
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31. Probably one of the most interesting inventions in law enforcement history was what was called the "rotary jail," an amazing feat of space-saving innovation, very much like a revolving door at the mall. This saved officers from always having to physically deal with prisoners and instead "crank" the rotary jail to face the one single cell door to let prisoners out. Quite convenient. The first and only known working rotary jail still exists today: right in Crawfordsville, IN. It was built in 1882 and served Montgomery County till 1972. It's actually now just a museum. It still works, though.
32. Back in 1934 John Dillinger escaped from Lake County Jail in Crown Point, IN by holding up the security guards with a pistol. Not a real pistol, but a pistol carved out of a wooden block.
33. During the Civil War, Indiana was particularly crucial in helping slaves escape to freedom. The community of Newport (now called Fountain City) was considered the "grand central station" of the infamous Underground Railroad. 
What’s your favorite fun fact about Indiana? Tell us in the comments below!
