 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Northwest Indiana" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(July 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Northwest Indiana, commonly referred to as "The Region" after theCalumet Region,[1] is an unofficial geographic area in the northwestern corner ofIndiana in theUnited States. Although its boundaries are not formally defined, the area is generally associated with the Gary, Indiana Metropolitan Division, which includesJasper,Lake,Porter andNewton counties, and the Michigan City–La Porte Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includesLaPorte County,[2] with some broader definitions also includingStarke andPulaski counties.[3]
The area bordersLake Michigan and portions of it are considered part of theChicago metropolitan area. Based on the2020 United States census, the broadest definition of Northwest Indiana has a population of 866,965, making it the second-largest urban area in the state after theIndianapolis metropolitan area.
Northwest Indiana contains theIndiana Dunes National Park and theIndiana Dunes State Park.[4][5][6] The region's largest city isHammond, followed byGary. Other municipalities in Northwest Indiana includeAix,Burns Harbor,Chesterton,Crown Point,DeMotte,Dyer,East Chicago,Griffith,Highland,Hebron,Hobart,Kentland,Lake Station,La Porte,Lowell,Merrillville,Michigan City,Munster,Portage,Rensselaer,Schererville,St. John,Cedar Lake,Valparaiso,Whiting, andWinfield.
Jasper,Lake,LaPorte,Newton andPorter counties are included in the Chicago–Naperville–Michigan City Combined Statistical Area, the broadest census-defined designation for the Chicago metropolitan area. Unlike most of Indiana, which is in theEastern Time Zone, these counties andStarke County are in theCentral Time Zone;Pulaski County is the only county in the broader definitions of Northwest Indiana that is in the Eastern Time Zone. The time zone alignment reflects the area's economic connections with the Chicago metropolitan area.
Lake, Porter, and LaPorte counties are served by the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission, themetropolitan planning organization for the area.[7]
Northwest Indiana is the home ofMarktown, aplanned worker community inEast Chicago designed byClayton Mark.[8]
TheLake Michigan shoreline is a major geographical feature of the region.Indiana Dunes National Park, which extends fromGary toMichigan City, contains areas of sanddunes,beaches,grasslands,forests, and several historic structures.
The landscape of Northwest Indiana ranges from steep dunes to rolling morainal hills and flat rivervalleys, reflecting the influence of glacial activity and Lake Michigan on the area's topography. Notable landforms in the region include theValparaiso Moraine,Tinley Moraine, Lake Border Moraine, Iroquois Moraine,Calumet Shoreline,Glenwood Shoreline,Tolleston Shoreline, and theKankakee Outwash Plain.[9]
The Chicago Lake Plain encompasses the relatively flat northern portion of Northwest Indiana located north of the morainal system. The plain consists ofglaciolacustrine deposits that formed under the waters of glacial Lake Michigan. This lake developed as glaciers melted north of the Valparaiso Moraine. Overflow through a low point on the moraine at the Chicago Outlet in the present-day southwestern Chicago suburbs lowered the lake to approximately its modern level (Horsley, 1986).[10] As the lake receded, it left a series of sand ridges marking former shorelines. Along the Lake Michigan coast, prevailing winds formed additional dune ridges, creating variation within the originally flat surface of the lake plain.
South of the Chicago Lake Plain, covering central parts of Lake and Porter counties and northern LaPorte County, lies the hilly Wheaton Morainal Plain. This plain includes the Valparaiso Moraine and Tinley Moraine, which run roughly parallel to the Lake Michigan shoreline. The Wheaton Morainal Plain is composed of rolling moraines from theWisconsin glaciation and consists of clayeytill, sandy and loamy till, with localized deposits ofsand andgravel. Additional sediments include lake clay, silt, andalluvium. Thicknesses of these deposits range between 50 and 200 ft (15 and 61 m), with some southern areas exceeding 200 ft of till (Mades, 1987).[11]
TheKankakee Outwash Plain, located in southern Lake, Porter, and LaPorte counties, is a flat outwash plain formed by meltwater from glaciers halted at the Valparaiso Moraine (Mickelson et al., 1984). The deposits are primarily sand and gravel, with additional layers of alluvium and fill material. Deposit thickness generally averages less than 200 ft (61 m), ranging from under 50 ft (15 m) in lowland areas to more than 200 ft in upland areas. Local elevation variations are typically less than 100 ft (30 m),[11] and the plain includes numerous scattered sand dunes.
The Bloomington Ridged Plain occupies the southernmost portion of Northwest Indiana, in theIroquois River valley of southern Newton and Jasper counties. The area is characterized by low, rolling hills, including moraines such as the Iroquois Moraine, with elevation changes of less than 300 ft (91 m). Soils in the region consist of loamy till, lake clay, and silt. These deposits were left by the northeastward retreat of the Huron-Erie glacial lobe, in contrast to the northern half of Northwest Indiana. Thickness of the deposits is generally less than 200 ft (61 m), though some areas exceed 400 ft (120 m).[12]
In 2015, Northwest Indiana had agross domestic product of $28.64 billion, representing approximately nine percent of Indiana's total gross state product. This placed the region second among Indiana metropolitan areas, after Indianapolis, and 89th in the United States, comparable to the GDP of theEl Paso, Texas, metropolitan area.[13]
The northern portion of Northwest Indiana is a center forheavy industry. Majorsteel mills are located in Gary, Portage, Burns Harbor, and East Chicago, including the largest North American facilities ofU.S. Steel (Gary Works) andCleveland-Cliffs (Indiana Harbor). Whiting, East Chicago, and Hammond are the location of the largestoil refinery in the world operated byBP. Other industrial outputs in the region include fabricated metals, transportation equipment, and food products.
Since the 1990s,casino gambling has become a notable part of the regional economy. In 2021, a land-based casino with approximately 150,000 square feet (14,000 m2) of gaming space opened in Gary, replacing two boats. Two casino boats with a combined gaming space of approximately 164,000 square feet (15,200 m2) operate along Lake Michigan in Lake County, and an additional facility in Michigan City provides 65,000 square feet (6,000 m2) of gaming space.[14]
In 2006, the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority (RDA) was established by theIndiana State Legislature and then-GovernorMitch Daniels.[15] The RDA is aspecial-purpose district authorized to invest in transportation and economic development throughout the region.
Several suburban communities in Northwest Indiana function ascommuter towns for individuals who work in Chicago.
Colleges and universities located in Northwest Indiana include:[16]
| Census Area | 2020 census | 2010 census | 2000 census | 1990 census | 1980 census | 1970 census | 1960 census | 1950 census |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jasper County, Indiana | 32,918 | 33,478 | 30,043 | 24,960 | 26,138 | 20,429 | 18,842 | 17,031 |
| Lake County, Indiana | 498,700 | 496,005 | 484,564 | 475,594 | 522,965 | 546,253 | 513,269 | 368,152 |
| LaPorte County, Indiana | 112,417 | 111,467 | 110,106 | 107,066 | 108,632 | 105,342 | 95,111 | 76,808 |
| Newton County, Indiana | 13,830 | 14,244 | 14,566 | 13,551 | 14,844 | 11,606 | 11,502 | 11,006 |
| Porter County, Indiana | 173,215 | 164,343 | 146,798 | 128,932 | 119,816 | 87,114 | 60,279 | 40,076 |
| Pulaski County, Indiana | 12,514 | 13,402 | 13,755 | 12,643 | 13,258 | 12,534 | 12,837 | 12,493 |
| Starke County, Indiana | 23,371 | 23,363 | 23,556 | 22,747 | 21,997 | 19,280 | 17,911 | 15,282 |
| Total | 866,965 | 856,302 | 823,388 | 785,493 | 827,650 | 802,558 | 729,751 | 540,848 |
Interstate 65
Interstate 80
Interstate 90 (Indiana Toll Road)
Interstate 94
U.S. Route 6
U.S. Route 12
U.S. Route 20
U.S. Route 24
U.S. Route 30
U.S. Route 35
U.S. Route 41
U.S. Route 231
U.S. Route 421
Indiana State Road 2
Indiana State Road 4
Indiana State Road 8
Indiana State Road 10
Indiana State Road 14
Indiana State Road 16
Indiana State Road 39
Indiana State Road 49
Indiana State Road 51
Indiana State Road 53
Indiana State Road 55
Indiana State Road 71
Indiana State Road 104
Indiana State Road 114
Indiana State Road 130
Indiana State Road 149
Indiana State Road 152
Indiana State Road 212
Indiana State Road 249
Indiana State Road 312
Indiana State Road 520
Indiana State Road 912{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
