In the 1930s, J. Roy Strickland wrote a column in the Evansville Courier asking for suggestions for Indiana’s state motto. The General Assembly chose “The Crossroads of America” due to Indiana’s significant transportation connections. It is also the state slogan and is featured on the state quarter and flag. Other official symbols include the cardinal, tulip tree, peony, and Salem stone. An unofficial nickname is “The Hoosier State.”
The story behind the Indiana state motto began with a column in the Evansville Courier written in the 1930s by J. Roy Strickland who reminded people that Indiana still did not have an official motto despite the fact that a number of states in the US had adopted one, officially or unofficially. He asked readers to suggest a state motto and forwarded the suggestions to the Indiana General Assembly by letter. A committee consisting of three Senate members and two House members studied the list of suggestions and ultimately selected “The Crossroads of America” as the Indiana state motto. On March 2, 1937, the 18th session of the General Assembly adopted “The Crossroads of America” to become the state motto of Indiana in Joint Resolution No. 6.
Interestingly, “The Crossroads of America” has been adopted to be both the state motto and the state slogan of Indiana. The reason the General Assembly adopted that particular motto over all other suggestions is due to the significance of the meaning behind the words in relation to Indiana’s status in the United States. The belief was that many major roads, waterways, and railroads in the United States lay within the Indiana border.
The National Road, which is now US Route 40, was the first major road through Indiana. Indiana Harbour, Michigan Ports and Buffington also serve as connections to other ports via the St. Lawrence Seaway and the Great Lakes. To the south, the ports of Southwind and Clark provide access to the Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi River.
The Indiana state motto is not recorded in the state code, but is clearly written in the Indiana state quarter. The borough also has 18 small stars and one larger star, symbolizing Indiana’s entry into the United States as the 19th state. The state flag also has 18 stars, with one perched atop the Liberty Torch flame, representing the state of Indiana.
Other official symbols in Indiana include the cardinal, which is the state bird, and the tulip tree, which is the state tree. The peony is the state flower and the state stone of Indiana is the state stone of Salem. An unofficial nickname for Indiana is “The Hoosier State.”
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