Indiana became the 19th state to join the Union

Indiana became the 19th state to join the Union on December 11, 1816. Indiana’s first two senators, James Noble and Waller Taylor, took office on that day. Indiana’s longest-serving senator is Richard Lugar, who served from 1977 to 2012. Among those who rose to leadership positions are Jesse Bright, who served as the Senate’s president pro tempore; John Worth Kern and James E. Watson, who chaired the Democratic and Republican Conferences, respectively; and Todd Young, who currently chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Six Hoosiers—Schuyler Colfax, Charles Fairbanks, Thomas Hendricks, Thomas Marshall, Dan Quayle, and Mike Pence—have served as vice president and therefore as the Senate’s constitutional president or presiding officer.