1. On December 22, 1864, Indiana Governor Oliver Morton signed a law that established the State Board of Agriculture, which was tasked with promoting the agricultural industry in Indiana. Today, the board continues to support Indiana farmers and strengthen the state's agriculture economy.

2. In 1902, the Indiana State Normal School (now known as Indiana State University) played its first basketball game against Rose Polytechnic Institute (now known as Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology) on December 22. Indiana State Normal School won the game 26-17, marking the beginning of a long-standing basketball rivalry between the two schools.

3. On December 22, 1915, the first airplane to be built and flown in Indiana took off from a field near Kokomo. The plane was designed and built by Elwood Haynes, an inventor and entrepreneur from Kokomo who was also the founder of Haynes Automobile Company.

4. On December 22, 1944, during World War II, the Japanese submarine I-58 sank the USS Indianapolis in the Pacific Ocean, resulting in the deaths of more than 800 sailors and Marines, including many from Indiana. The sinking of the USS Indianapolis remains one of the worst naval disasters in American history.

5. In 1974, on December 22, the Indiana Pacers played their first game at Market Square Arena in downtown Indianapolis. The game was against the Kentucky Colonels and the Pacers won 109-90, marking the beginning of a new era for professional basketball in Indiana.