Northwest Indiana
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Common name: The Region |
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| Largest city Other cities |
Gary - Hammond - Michigan City - Portage - Valparaiso |
| Counties | - Jasper - Lake - LaPorte - Newton - Porter |
Northwest Indiana, also known as The Calumet Region, or just The Region, comprises Lake, Porter, LaPorte, Newton, and Jasper counties in Indiana. This region neighbors Lake Michigan, and is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. Not only does the region include a large group of Chicago suburbs, such as Crown Point, Merrillville, Highland, Munster, Griffith, Schererville, Dyer, and St. John but also a number of cities whose economies are only loosely linked to Chicago's. The largest city in the region is Gary; other notable cities in the region include Hammond, Hobart, Portage, East Chicago, Valparaiso, and Michigan City.
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[edit] Overview
The five counties of Lake, Porter, Jasper, Newton, and LaPorte are included in the Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City Combined Statistical Area, the broadest of the census defined Metropolitan definitions. Unlike the majority of Indiana, which operates on Eastern Standard Time, these five counties are among six in Northwestern Indiana that are in the Central Time zone, the other being Starke. This reflects their close economic integration in the Chicago metropolitan area.
Three counties- Lake, Porter, and LaPorte- are served by the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission [1], an organization that coordinates economic and infrastructure development in the region.
[edit] Geography
The Lake Michigan shore is a major attraction. Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, which stretches from Gary to Michigan City, is a well-preserved stretch of sand dunes, beaches, grasslands, and forests, as well as several historical homes and buildings. Other prominent geographical features of the region include the Valparaiso Moraine, Tinley Moraine, Calumet Shoreline, Glenwood Shoreline, and the Kankakee River and Kankakee Outwash Plain.
[edit] Economy
The northern portion of the region is noted for its heavy industry. Gary, Portage, Burns Harbor and East Chicago are home to major steel mills, including the largest North American facilities for both U.S. Steel (Gary Works) and Mittal Steel Company (Indiana Harbor). Whiting is home to the largest petroleum refinery in the Midwestern U.S., operated by BP.
Other industrial outputs include fabricated metals, transportation equipment, and food products.
Since the 1990s, casino gambling has become a significant component of Northwest Indiana's economy. Four casino boats with approximately 7,000 slots and 200 table games are located along Lake Michigan in Lake County. An additional 1,724 slots and forty nine table games are in Michigan City.
Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels and the Indiana State Legislature formed the entity known as the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority (RDA) in 2006 [2]. The RDA is vested with both authority and tax dollars to invest in transportation and economic development in the region.
A number of the region's suburban towns and cities serve as bedroom communities for Chicago. Retail trade, health care, and other service industries represent the dominant economic activities in these areas.
[edit] Education
Four major universities are located in the region: Valparaiso University in Valparaiso (the largest private Lutheran University in the United States), Indiana University Northwest (IUN) in Gary, Purdue University Calumet in Hammond, and Purdue University North Central in Westville. Along with several smaller colleges and universities in Northwest Indiana, these institutions offer a variety of degree programs in areas including business administration, engineering and engineering technology, law, education, computing and information technology, and the liberal arts. Additionally, Northwest Indiana is proximate to numerous other universities elsewhere in Indiana and in the Chicago metropolitan area.
[edit] Counties
[edit] Census Bureau population statistics
| Census Area | Census 2000 | 1990 Census | 1980 Census | 1970 Census | 1960 Census | 1950 Census |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jasper County, Indiana | 30,043 | 24,960 | 26,138 | 20,429 | 18,842 | 17,031 |
| Lake County, Indiana | 484,564 | 475,594 | 522,965 | 546,253 | 513,269 | 368,152 |
| LaPorte County, Indiana | 110,106 | 107,066 | 108,632 | 105,342 | 95,111 | 76,808 |
| Newton County, Indiana | 14,566 | 13,551 | 14,844 | 11,606 | 11,502 | 11,006 |
| Porter County, Indiana | 146,798 | 128,932 | 119,816 | 87,114 | 60,279 | 40,076 |
[edit] Transportation
[edit] Major airports
[edit] Commuter rail
- South Shore Line connecting Chicago to South Bend, Indiana, passing through Gary and Michigan City
[edit] Highways
Interstate 65
Interstate 80
Interstate 90 
Interstate 94
U.S. Route 6
U.S. Route 12
U.S. Route 20
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 10
Indiana State Road 49
Indiana State Road 53
Indiana State Road 912
[edit] Area codes
[edit] Local Media
[edit] Print
- The Times of Northwest Indiana - Print, Online
- Post-Tribune - Print, Online
- Region Sports Network - Print, Online, Broadcast
[edit] Broadcast
- WEFM (FM) 95.9 - Radio
- WGVE (FM) 88.7 - Radio
- WIMS (AM) 1429 - Radio
- WJOB (AM) 1230 - Radio
- WLTH (AM) 1370 - Radio
- WWCA (AM) 1420 - Radio
- WJYS-TV - 62/36 Television
- WYCC-TV - 20/21 Television
- WYIN-TV - 56/17 Television
[edit] Region Natives
- Larry Bigbie
- Dick Cathcart
- Bryce Drew
- Homer Drew
- Jim Gaffigan
- Latroy Hawkins
- Sue Hendrickson
- Jack Hyles
- Janet Jackson
- Jermaine Jackson
- Latoya Jackson
- Marlin Jackson
- Michael Jackson
- Randy Jackson
- Tito Jackson
- Ron Kittle
- Barney Liddell
- Kenny Lofton
- Lloyd McClendon
- Karen McDougal
- Karl Malden
- Hal Morris
- Dan Plesac
- Gregg Popovich
- Orville Redenbacher
- Glenn Robinson
- Jerry L. Ross
- Scott Sheldon
- Tim Stoddard
- Dean White
- Eugene Wilson
- Jeff Samardzija
- Jean Shepherd
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