Born or Bred in Indiana
Yes, Letterman, Lincoln and Larry all hail from the Hoosier state. That’s long-time late-night talk show host David Letterman, who grew up in Indianapolis, went to Broad Ripple High School and Ball State University before heading to the national airwaves. It’s also Abraham Lincoln, who spent his boyhood days here – you can visit those sites in southern Indiana. And the current president of the Indiana Pacers, Larry Bird, first bounced the ball in his hometown of French Lick and then took Indiana State University to the NCAA National Championship in 1979.
So, do you know where “Hoosier” came from? For many decades the answer to this question has been up for debate. One explanation is maybe it was about dialect – “Who’s there?” (“Who’sh-‘ere?”). Another is maybe it was about corn – the Indian word for corn is Hoosa. But the most likely answer is that in the early 1800s a contractor by the name of Hoosier hired much of his workforce from Indiana, thus becoming known as “Hoosier’s men.”
Whatever the origin, Indiana is proud of these famous Hoosiers: