Also, I can't believe there is a town called Santa Clause, IN, but it's real, I googled it.
Indeed it is. They have a theme park there, too. Holiday World. Always wanted to go, but never made it down there.
That's spelled "Santa Claus" folks. I can give a short summary of Santa Claus. You've got Holiday World dominating the skyline and landscape, most of the people live in a gated development around Christmas Lake, and all the businesses and government buildings are in a couple strip mall-type developments right off the state highway. Surrounding the town are farm fields, small patches of woods, and restored surface coal mines. The community seems to completely embrace the kitschy Christmas-theme of the area. For entertainment's sake, I encourage you to zoom in on Google Maps so you can see the street names. Heck, the Christmas-theme is their economic lifeblood, so why deny it?
Down the road is Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial with the homestead of Abe Lincoln's family when he lived in Indiana from ages 7 to 21, and across the road from that is the Lincoln State Park with a few outdoor recreation opportunities. I tried to visit President Lincoln's boyhood home, but it is a National Park Service property and they closed it during the government shutdown last year. Bastards. I wasn't happy.
For other interesting sites and cities in the area, I recommend St. Meinrad's Archabbey in St. Meinrad, the Monastery of the Immaculate Conception in Ferdinand, Jasper for its German heritage, and the restored Columbia Mine Preserve.
I give tours of the area upon request, for a competitive fee.
