Indianapolis

Indianapolis, the capital of the above state, is placed almost in the exact centre, and is distant 194 miles south-east from Chicago, and 824 miles west of New York. The site was formally selected, and the city laid out in 1821, in the solitude of the virgin forest. The ground-plan closely follows the lines of Washington and other American capitals, the streets being disposed in rectangular fashion. In 1824 the state capital was transferred hither from Corydon. Pork and corn are the chief sources of prosperity, but many important manufacturing and commercial interests have grown up with the growth of the place. Among the public buildings are the State House, just completed at a cost of two millions of dollars, the public library, the arsenal, and the Marion Court House. Twelve main lines of railway meet at the Union Depot, and the traffic is enormous.