INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Todd Stockwell grew up on a farm in central Ohio, where his grandfathers owned 80-acre farms and farmed simply with antique equipment. He graduated from The Ohio State University with a degree in agricultural mechanization and systems.

But the agriculture industry was in a slump in 1989 and wasn’t hiring. So, Stockwell turned to another combination of interests: museums, history and technology.

In 2002 he became curator of agriculture, industry and technology at the then-new Indiana State Museum (ISM) located in Indianapolis’s White River State Park. Almost immediately, the idea started forming in his mind of an agricultural exhibit to provide an historic look at Indiana’s largest field crop and give the public a link to this food and textile source.

Corn was an obvious choice. It is the most productive and versatile crop grown around the world, used in a wide variety of foods, animal feed, industrial products and fuel. Research showed it takes 25 corn plants per person per day to support the American way of life. From the sweeteners in soft drinks to plastics, ethanol and textiles, corn is a part of every life that is often overlooked.

Stockwell said there was also another incentive to create an agricultural exhibit: “The National FFA Convention had just moved up from Louisville to Indianapolis,” he remembered, “We wanted to match up an exhibit with the FFA.”

The project rested for a few years, followed by years of in-house research and development. But on Sept. 24, the ISM will bring the story of corn to life in its interactive exhibit, “Amazing Maize: The Science, History and Culture of Corn.”

The exhibit outlines a 10,000-year genetic journey that explores the relationship between people and corn, arguably the most productive domesticated plant and the greatest plant breeding achievement of all time.

“Indiana corn farmers are excited to see the Indiana State Museum tell the story of a crop that has been so integral to not only our rural communities, but our state as a whole,” said Jane Ade Stevens, executive director of Indiana Corn Marketing Council, local presenting sponsor of “Amazing Maize.”

“Amazing Maize” will take visitors on a journey through the centuries, beginning with corn’s unlikely origins in a small-eared bushy plant called teosinte. The exhibit is divided into six sections:

•Why Corn? Visitors can identify and touch the five basic types of corn and for what they are used. A seven-foot-tall pile of products will help them learn the more than 4,200 different uses for corn products.

•Corn Evolution: Plant genetics are introduced through the anatomy of a corn plant, showing how corn diversified in its global travels and how its domestication took place through the years. Included is a video from geneticist Dr. John Doebley, who first positively identified teosinte as the ancestor of today’s corn plant.

•Mother Maize: See corn through the eyes of Native Americans more than 10,000 years ago, when they shaped thousands of varieties by selecting for specific traits. Hands-on portions of the exhibit feature hand-powered farming tools, stone and wood corn grinders and seed sorting exercises.

•Corn Goes Global: Christopher Columbus took corn back to Europe on his second voyage. A lighted map will show visitors how corn spread from the Americas throughout the rest of the world within 150 years, changing it dramatically.

Visitors can sit on a “corn gospel train” and listen to an actor portraying the nation’s first agronomy professor, P.G. Holden, as he reveals his secrets for increasing corn yields. The train was used by Purdue University in Indiana from 1913-15 and was one of the earliest forms of agricultural extension programming.

•Hybrid Corn Revolution: Just prior to World War II, scientists crossbred new higher-yielding corn varieties developed by farmers to create modern hybrid corn. Visitors will see the tools used – including draft animal and tractor power – to mechanize American farms.

They can climb in the cab of a Case IH simulator combine, developed by Purdue University students, where GPS and electronics actually work. This section includes a wall-mounted live-feed to the New York Stock Exchange showing the prices of agricultural commodities.

•Genetic Giant: The final stop on the exhibit will highlight the modern technology used to improve and grow this most important crop, and meeting the growing demands around the world while dealing with weather extremes such as drought.

“This exhibit highlights corn as the most important plant breeding achievement of all time,” said Antonio Galindez, president and CEO of Dow AgroSciences, a national sponsor of the exhibit. “Not only do visitors have a chance to explore how this amazing plant is tied to the origin of civilizations, it also gives them a chance to think about the critical issues facing us today. One of those challenges is growing enough food to feed the growing world population in a sustainable way.”

As a major exhibit for the ISM, the display occupies 5,000 square feet and will run for more than a year. Plans are in the works for a smaller exhibit of about 2,000 square feet that will travel nationally among small to mid-sized museums, science or history centers, libraries and universities. For book information, email Kathi Moore at kmoore@indianamuseum.org or call 317-232-8272 or visit www.indianamuseum.org