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Last updated on Monday, December 1, 2014
(UNDATED) - Indiana’s 200th birthday is two years away, but the celebrating begins one year from now.
The 16-member Bicentennial Commission is more than halfway to its goal of approving 200 local "legacy projects." But along with the local projects, the commission is gearing up for some state celebrations.
Executive director Perry Hammock says the commission will turn to the legislature and private funders for a proposed art project and commemorative book, and a design competition for a commemorative coin.
Celebrations will begin with the 199th anniversary of statehood, on December 11, 2015, and continue through the bicentennial year.
The commission plans a two-month Olympic-style torch run winding through all 92 counties in the fall of 2016, with counties encouraged to come up with locally significant ways to carry the torch. The torch will end its run in downtown Indianapolis -- possibly at a new bicentennial plaza.
Hammock says the commission is considering reviving an idea proposed for Indiana's centennial: a community plaza on the west side of the statehouse, marked by an eternal flame.
Hammock says the state is in the early stages of planning a Saturday night birthday bash at the state fairgrounds for the night before the 200th anniversary.
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