Indianapolis, Indiana - Cool Facts

• The most common nickname for Indianapolis is ‘Indy’. Other nicknames include ‘Circle City’ (after Monument Circle) and ‘Naptown’ (presumably shortened from ‘IndiaNAPolis’. The name ‘Naptown’ was first popularized in the city's African-American community from which sprang a rich musical heritage of unique Indianapolis-style jazz and blues during the 1920's through the early 1960's. The term ‘Naptown’ came to refer to the style of blues and jazz which developed in Indianapolis. Leroy Carr, an early influential blues singer who grew up and was based in Indianapolis, recorded "Naptown Blues" in 1929. Later, Wes Montgomery, a jazz musician born and based in Indianapolis, recorded his version of "Naptown Blues" in 1964. Also, it is said that the name ‘Naptown’ was possibly reintroduced to popularity by the former local radio station WNAP, often simply called NAP, which was popular in the 1970s and 1980s. More recently, members of the Indianapolis hip-hop community and other local musical scenes have adopted the term ‘Naptown’ to refer to their own style of locally bred music. Also, 'Naptown' has been used to refer to alleged lack of "interesting" events therein. In an ironic take-off of the moniker, the city has also been recently dubbed "City of Siestas."
   
• Both of the United States Navy ships named USS Indianapolis were named for this city.
   
• Indianapolis is the international headquarters of the pharmaceutical corporation Eli Lilly and Company, health insurance provider Wellpoint, insurance companies American United Life and Conseco, in addition to real estate companies Simon Property Group, Hunt Construction Group, and Duke Realty Corp. The US headquarters of Roche Diagnostics, Thomson SA, Rolls Royce and Dow AgroSciences are also located in Indianapolis. Other major Indianapolis area employers include Clarion Health, Sallie Mae, Cook Group, and General Motors.
   
• Indianapolis has been the headquarters of the Kiwanis International organization since 1982. Kiwanis International seeks to serve the children of the world. The organization and its youth-sponsored Kiwanis Family counterparts, Circle K International and Key Club International, administer all their international business and service initiatives from Indianapolis.
   
• The American Legion national headquarters is located in Indianapolis. The American Legion is the largest veterans service organization in the nation.
   
• Indianapolis' Union Station, one of the busiest rail depots in its time, employed a young Thomas Edison as a telegraph operator.
   
• Indianapolis is the second most populous capital city in the United States (including Washington, DC), after Phoenix, Arizona.
   
• Indianapolis is the headquarters for the only international Jewish fraternity, Alpha Epsilon Pi (AEPi). In total, Indianapolis contains the national headquarters for at least 26 fraternities.