Porter County is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2020, the population was 173,215, making it the 10th most populous county in Indiana. The county seat is Valparaiso. The county is part of Northwest Indiana, as well as the Chicago metropolitan area. Porter County is the site of much of the Indiana Dunes, an area of ecological significance. The Hour Glass Museum in Ogden Dunes documents the region's ecological significance.
Chesterton is a town in Westchester, Jackson and Liberty townships in Porter County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 14,241 at the 2020 Census. The three towns of Chesterton, Burns Harbor, and Porter are known as the Duneland area.
The Calumet, also commonly called the Valpo Local, was a 43.6-mile (70.2 km) passenger train route operated by Amtrak between Chicago and Valparaiso, Indiana. Despite Amtrak's mandate to provide only intercity service, the Calumet was a commuter train. Transferred from Conrail in 1979, the full route was shared with Amtrak's Broadway Limited until 1990; the Calumet was discontinued the next year.
The Calumet Region is the geographic area drained by the Grand Calumet River and the Little Calumet River of northeastern Illinois and northwestern Indiana in the United States. It is part of the Great Lakes Basin, which eventually reaches the Atlantic Ocean. It is a sub-region of the greater Northwest Indiana region and the even larger Great Lakes region.
Northwest Indiana, nicknamed The Region after the Calumet Region, is an unofficial region of northern Indiana, United States that is located at the northwestern corner of the state. Though there is no official definition of the region, it is based on the Gary, Indiana Metropolitan Division, which comprises Jasper, Lake, Porter and Newton counties in Indiana, and the Michigan City-La Porte, IN Metropolitan Statistic Area, which comprises LaPorte, with unofficial definitions also including Starke and Pulaski counties. This region neighbors Lake Michigan and parts of it are in the Chicago metropolitan area. According to the 2020 Census, the largest definition of Northwest Indiana has a population of 866,965 and is the state's second largest urban area after the Indianapolis Metropolitan Area. It is also the home of the Indiana Dunes, parts of which have been preserved through conservation efforts. The town of Ogden Dunes houses the Hour Glass, a museum showcasing the ecological and conservation efforts of O. D. Frank.
The Times of Northwest Indiana (NWI) is a daily newspaper headquartered in Munster, Indiana. It is the second-largest newspaper in Indiana, behind only The Indianapolis Star.
The Post-Tribune of Northwest Indiana is a daily newspaper headquartered in Merrillville, Indiana, United States. It serves the Northwest Indiana region, and is owned by the Chicago Tribune Media Group.
Jackson Township is one of twelve townships in Porter County, Indiana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 5,328.
Liberty Township is one of twelve townships in Porter County, Indiana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 9,319.
Westchester Township is one of twelve townships in Porter County, Indiana. It is included in the Calumet, Northwest Indiana, and Great Lakes regions. It is located on the southern shore of Lake Michigan, about 50 miles (80 km) southeast of Chicago. It stretches from the famous Indiana Dunes on its northern border, south to the Valparaiso Moraine, a ridge of rolling hills left by the last glacier to pass through the area. As of the 2010 census, its population was 19,396.
The Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC) is a high school athletic conference in Indiana serving eight members of the Indiana High School Athletic Association. Member schools are located in the counties of Lake, LaPorte, and Porter along Indiana's Lake Michigan shore. Each school is classified based on enrollment as 6A or 5A for football and 4A for basketball, the classes for the largest schools in Indiana. The Duneland Conference is also known for its gymnastics programs which have won a combined total of 35 state championship and state runner-up titles.
Enchanted Forest was a small amusement park operated in Porter, Indiana. The park operated from 1957 to 1991. Many rides were moved to Little Amerricka amusement park in Wisconsin after the park closed on August 2, 1991. The park became Splash Down Dunes Water Park in 1994. Splash Down Dunes itself closed down in 2009 after an ownership dispute; the original owner regained ownership in 2010 but the park remained closed. Splash Down Dunes was bought by Seven Peaks Water Park and it re-opened on May 27, 2013, as Seven Peaks Water Park Duneland.
The Chesterton Commercial Historic District is a historic district in Chesterton, Indiana.
Baillytown is a former community in northern Porter County, Indiana, near the present-day communities of Porter and Burns Harbor. Although the town platted as the Town of Bailly was never built, the Baillytown name was used for many years to refer to the area around the original Joseph Bailly trading post. The name continues today as the name of a subdivision, constructed in the 1990s, in the town of Porter.
The George Brown Mansion is an example of the Queen Anne's Style of architecture. It was a dominant style during the 1880s and 1890s, the time when Chesterton was a growing city in northern Indiana. George Brown arrived in the United States in 1852. In 1855, he married Charity Carter, daughter of a local family. He became a successful farmer in the township. The farm was located on what is 950 North, west of 400 East. By the year 1882 he was operating a farm of 900 acres (360 ha). He had expanded into supplying cordwood to the Porter brickyards after 1870. George and Charity had ten children. In 1884 George Brown bought 120 acres (0.49 km2) in the town of Chesterton from the John Thomas family. His plans called for a retirement home on this site. He engaged Chicago architect Cicero Hine to design the house. In 1891 the family sold all but 10 acres (40,000 m2). It was the same year, that he built a brick store downtown at Calumet and Broadway. During the 1902 fire, it was the only store to survive. Charity Brown died in 1895 at 56. George died in 1899 at the age of 71. After a probate fight, his son John Franklin (Frank) moved into the house with his family.
Chesterton High School is a public high school serving grades 9-12 located in Chesterton, Indiana. It is the only high school in the Duneland School Corporation.
The Shirley Heinze Land Trust, originally known as the Shirley Heinze Environmental Fund, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit land trust dedicated to the preservation of natural areas in Northwest Indiana. The Heinze Trust manages more than 2,800 acres of protected land in Lake, Porter, LaPorte, St. Joseph, Starke, and Marshall Counties in Indiana. Its preserves include a wide range of dune, wetland, prairie, and forest ecosystems.
Tassinong is an unincorporated rural community in Porter County, Indiana, south of the city of Valparaiso. The community includes an historic marker claiming it to be a French mission and trading post in 1673, which would make it the oldest European settlement in Indiana as well as in neighboring Illinois.
