♪ >> The NBC Comedy "Parks and Recreation" gave Hoosiers more than just plenty of laughs and some good-natured ribbing.

The show went to a real life Hoosier landmark where it would leave a lasting impression.

>> You are at William Henry Harrison's Grouseland, the home of the Indiana Territorial Governor and ninth President of the United States.

>> Harrison is famous for a few things.

He was the shortest serving president, only 32 days, because he was the first president to die in office.

But before all of that, Harrison ran a groundbreaking campaign, far more lively and ruckus than in previous elections, where events ended with three-mile long parades of people singing, chanting and drinking.

It featured a catchy slogan commemorating his victory at the Battle of Tippecanoe, a campaign song or two.

♪ Rolling on, for Tippecanoe and Tyler too ♪ >> And an eye-catching attraction that was rolled from one campaign stop to the next.

>> You know the big car dealer, the big floaty guy that catches people's attention.

That was probably the way the ball was in that campaign of 1840.

They rolled from Kentucky, as far away as Maryland, and coined our current phrase, "keep the ball rolling."

>> This almost carnival-like atmosphere drew unprecedented crowds and helped deliver Harrison the presidency.

It was so successful that over 40 years later, when his grandson Benjamin Harrison took a shot at the presidency, he brought the idea back.

>> Benjamin Harrison recreated the William Henry Harrison campaign ball.

So it is definitely a Harrison legacy from both of those presidential elections.

>> So when the Parks and Rec folks wanted a campaign ball for an episode, they took the Benjamin Harrison ball and whipped up a new one, and Jones saw a golden opportunity.

>> The producer told me they were going to recreate the campaign ball.

And I said, oh, wow, we've always wanted to do that.

We thought that'd be a great thing.

Can we have it?

When the show is over, can we have it?

So he said he would have to see.

And one day a semi pulled up in front of Grouseland and said we have two big crates, and they were from California, and they were the two parts of the campaign ball that you see behind me here.

And we bring it out for special days like Presidents Day today, parades and floats.

>> The ball is too big to fit through Grouseland's 19th century doors.

So it stays dry and safe in a garage most of the time.

But when it comes out, it gets lots of attention, even in frigid Indiana weather.

>> It was great publicity, because you can see the episode on Netflix and Hulu.

So it's gonna be around forever, and we were hoping that it would capture the 20-year-olds and 30-year-olds, the younger audience.

And so we thought, let's show them that this history here is still relevant.

It's really cool.

They were even using it in "Parks and Recreation."

>> Jones says they hope to get the ball rolling on a new visitors center that would sit right next to Grouseland, and would, of course, house the campaign ball all year round.

♪ Tippecanoe and Tyler too >> While the Harrison wheel played a starring role in an episode of "Parks and Recreation," two other Indiana attractions made appearances in every episode of the show's iconic opening credits.

These two big fellas both live in Blackford County, and they both came from a factory that sold hundreds of similar statues, but they have lived different lives.

The ice cream man has fallen on hard times.

He first went up on this corner as part of a buzzing little tourist stop, but those days are gone.

He's even lost his ice cream.

Left now to hold an empty cone.

And even a local historian, just five miles over, doesn't have too much to say about him.

>> Too far outta town.

[ Laughter ] >> It's the opposite for the Miami Indian, who looks phenomenal for his age.

>> It was constructed in the 1960s in California, and it was created for Tom Wood Pontiac in Indianapolis.

>> He then stood outside a few different parks and museums before coming to rest on this corner in downtown Montpelier.

Thanks to the efforts of a descendant of Chief Francois Godfroy.

>> Two and a half miles southeast of this town was a predominant hunting ground that had been used by the Miami for generations.

Chief Francois Godfroy, who was the last war chief of the Miami people, he specifically asked for that area in the treaty.

>> And while he may not accurately reflect Miami dress and style, he may serve a larger purpose.

>> While it's not completely historically accurate, it has always been designed to draw attention at the auto dealership, at the park, and now here in Montpelier, where it gets an awful lot of attention.

>> And showing up in the title sequence of "Parks and Recreation" doesn't hurt one bit.

>> People recognize him now.

I'll see cars drive by, and all of a sudden you will see brake lights hit.

And then a boatload of people get out and get their picture taken with him.

It happens on a regular basis here.

He's on our Chamber of Commerce letterhead.

He's on our weekly newspaper, right on the front cover every week.

>> And while having two big dudes is better than one, it's clear who gets most of the limelight.

>> It's really our chief here.

He's the -- he's the main draw.

He's our community icon.