Author: Paul

Author Paul R. Wonning considers himself an "Indiana Hound," because he likes to "sniff" out the interesting places and history of Indiana and then use his books to reveal them to his readers. He also enjoys gardening, American history and dabbles in writing fantasy and humorous fiction.
Indiana State Park Travel Guide Series, Sample Chapter

Sample Chapter – Shakamak Indiana State Park – Indiana’s Coal

300 million years ago Portions of the region we know as Indiana was covered at one time by huge swamps. Indiana was much warmer at this time, an environment that was ideal for plants to grow. Vast quantities of dead vegetation accumulated over the centuries to form a layer of brown, spongy peat at the bottom. Geologic and climatic changes over the centuries allowed soil and rock to form over this layer of peat. As time passed the heat and pressure of this buildup converted the peat, hardening it into the substance we know as coal. Each ten-foot layer of peat will generate about one foot of coal from this pressure and heat buildup. The coal in Indiana is of a type called bituminous coal which is very low in moisture and is an ideal fuel for using in electricity generating plants and to make coke for the steel industry. The earliest records of commercial mining in Indiana date from the mid-Nineteenth Century. Most of the coal in Indiana is found in the southwestern part of the state. Continue reading Sample Chapter – Shakamak Indiana State Park – Indiana’s Coal

Indiana Photo Gallery, Road Trip Indiana Series

Photo Gallery – Clark State Forest

At the time of settlement, vast forests covered Indiana. These forests spawned many industries dependent on the high quality hardwoods found in these forests. Many furniture makers located in the state and the ship builders along the Ohio River needed the lumber for shipbuilding. In addition, much of the valuable timber was exported. The State appointed Charles Deam to oversee the operation of the Forest. Continue reading Photo Gallery – Clark State Forest

Road Trip Indiana Series, Sample Chapter

Sample Chapter – First Indiana Gas Well

Natural Gas
Drillers searching for coal usually found natural gas in the process. This gas was highly flammable, hard to handle and considered a nuisance gas. Steel maker Andrew Carnegie pioneered using natural gas in his foundries in the 1880’s and proved that using natural gas was feasible. In 1885, he claimed that using natural gas saved 10,000 tons of coal a day in his huge blast furnaces. On January 20, 1886, drillers discovered a huge gas well in Findlay, Ohio that drillers could not control, so great was its gas flow. The flame plume from the well burned for four months. Continue reading Sample Chapter – First Indiana Gas Well

Road Trip Indiana Series

East Central Indiana Day Trips

Take a fun tour through the rich history of Indiana using East Central Indiana Day Trips as your guidebook. This tourism guide will help visitors find all the historical treasures in east central Indiana.
Take a fun tour through the rich history of Indiana using Southwest Indiana Day Trips as your guidebook. This tourism guide will help visitors find all of the historical treasures in south central Indiana. Continue reading East Central Indiana Day Trips

Road Trip Indiana Series, Sample Chapter

Sample Chapter – Indiana’s Timeless Tales – Pre-History to 1781

Pleistocene Era
The Pleistocene Age began roughly two million years ago and ended about 10,000 years ago. During this vast period, at least three episodes of extensive glaciations covered most of what is now Indiana. These glacial events are called the Pre-Illinoisan, Illinoisan, and the Wisconsinan Ages.
The Ice Ages Continue reading Sample Chapter – Indiana’s Timeless Tales – Pre-History to 1781