Postcard-Geography Album: Indiana, "The Hoosier State"
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"Children's Museum of Indianapolis |
We were delightfully surprised by an unsigned postcard from Indiana in our mailbox.
"We have the world's largest Children's Museum. (Could spend days there and still find something new.) Also have the Indy 500 and we just had the Super Bowl. My favorite is the Covered Bridge Festival. Hope you are all doing well. God Bless."
Coloring our coloring page/map, we learned that the state bird is the Cardinal, the state tree is the Tulip tree and the state flower is the Peony. We also noted that Lake Michigan and Michigan state form the northern border, Kentucky and the Ohio River forms the southern border and Ohio and Illinois for the western and eastern borders. We also noted the products that come from Indiana, which includes farms, quarries and refineries. My youngest student arranged the page to leave room for most postcards in case we get more.
Indiana's nickname is "The Hoosier State." The origin of the word hoosier is unknown, however it has been in use since 1830. Possible meanings for the word include woodsmen or rough hill people, a term for Indiana farmer flat-boatmen, or the preacher Harry Hoosier, a black itinerant Methodist minister who evangelized throughout the American frontier at the beginning of the 19th century.
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| Student drawn map |
Indiana State Dinner
Pork is a major product of Indiana.
"America’s #1 Pork & Beans since 1909! Van Camp’s Pork & Beans traces its roots back to 1861 when Gilbert Van Camp and his wife Hester opened a family grocery store in Indianapolis, IN where they canned fruits and vegetables. Gilbert’s son, Frank, discovered that their Pork & Beans tasted even better when served hot in tomato sauce. He began to advertise the notion, and an American favorite was born." -Van Camp's website
The Van Camp family also supplied pork and beans to Union soldiers during the Civil War.
Water is the official State Beverage.
Snack: Orville Reddenbacher's Popcorn
Orville Reddenbacher was born and raised in Brazil, Indiana. He developed his own hybrid of popcorn in Valparaiso, Indiana. In 1970, he started selling his gourmet popcorn which is still the most popular brand of popcorn in America.
- Dessert: Indiana Sugar Cream Pie
- Sugar cream pie was voted Indiana's Official State Pie in 2009. Sugar cream pie is about as old as the state itself and believed to have been brought to the state by Quaker settlers.
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cup (1 pint) half-and-half or light cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
- Ground nutmeg
Prepare Pastry for a Single-Crust Pie using your favorite recipe. Do not prick pastry.
In a small bowl, combine brown sugar and flour. In another small bowl, combine half-and-half and vanilla. Evenly spread brown sugar mixture in the bottom of the pastry-lined pie plate. Pour half-and-half mixture over brown sugar mixture. Evenly distribute butter pieces over top of pie. Lightly sprinkle with nutmeg.
To prevent overbrowning, cover edge of pie with foil. Bake in a 350 degrees F oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil. Bake about 30-35 minutes more or until top is lightly browned and pie is bubbly all over (pie will not appear set, but will set when chilled). Cool on a wire rack. Cover and chill within 2 hours. Pie will set in refrigerator. Makes 10 servings.
- Source: Midwest Living
We have visited 42 states (84%) with our Postcard-Geography album.
We still need postcards for these states: Mississippi, New Jersey, Vermont and Wyoming.
If you live in any of these states and would like to help us with this project, please leave a comment on how I can get in touch with you. Thank you!
