Gary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States, 25 miles (40 km) from downtown Chicago, Illinois. Gary is adjacent to the Indiana Dunes National Park and borders southern Lake Michigan. Gary was named after lawyer Elbert Henry Gary, who was the founding chairman of the United States Steel Corporation. The city is known for its large steel mills and as the birthplace of the Jackson 5 music group.
Lake County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. In 2010, its population was 496,005, making it Indiana's second-most populous county. The county seat is Crown Point.
Indiana Dunes National Park is a United States National Park located in Northwestern Indiana, managed by the National Park Service. It was authorized by Congress in 1966 as the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, the name by which it was known until it was designated the nation's 61st national park on February 15, 2019. The park runs for nearly 25 miles (40 km) along the southern shore of Lake Michigan; it contains approximately 15,000 acres (6,100 ha). Its visitors center is in Porter, Indiana. Located in the park are sand dune, wetland, prairie, river, and forest ecosystems.
U.S. Route 12 (US 12) is a part of the United States Numbered Highway System that runs from Aberdeen, Washington, to Detroit, Michigan. In the U.S. state of Indiana, it is part of the state road system. US 12 enters the state concurrent with US 20 and US 41 in Whiting. The 45.16 miles (72.68 km) of US 12 that lie within Indiana serve as a major conduit. Some of the highway is listed on the National Highway System. Various sections are rural two-lane highway, urbanized four-lane undivided highway and one-way streets. The easternmost community along the highway is Michiana Shores at the Michigan state line.
The Gary Public Transportation Corporation (GPTC) is a commuter bus system in Gary, Indiana that offers service to numerous stops throughout the city and neighboring suburbs. GPTC is a public corporation owned but not directly controlled by the city.
Miller Beach is a neighborhood of Gary, Indiana on the southernmost shore of Lake Michigan. First settled in 1851, Miller Beach was originally an independent town. However, the "Town of Miller" was eventually annexed by the then flourishing city of Gary in 1918. Located in the northeastern corner of Lake County, Indiana, the former town is now known as "The Miller Beach Community." Miller Beach borders Lake Michigan to the north, Porter County to the east, and is largely surrounded by protected lands, including Indiana Dunes National Park. Miller Beach is also the closest beach/resort community to Chicago, and has been a popular vacation spot since the early 20th century. As of the 2000 US census, it had a population of 9,900.
Marquette Park, originally called Lake Front Park, is a municipal park completely surrounded by Indiana Dunes National Park. Its primary elements include 1.4 miles (2.2 km) of white sand Lake Michigan beaches, inland ponds, impressively high sand dunes, wetlands, a lagoon, and indigenous oak savanna. The park is located within the Miller Beach community. Miller Beach was once an independent municipality. However, in 1918 shortly before the establishment of Marquette Park, the Town of Miller was forcibly annexed into the municipal boundaries of Gary, Indiana. The park includes the Octave Chanute museum, registered as a National Landmark of Soaring.
U.S. Route 20 (US 20) in Indiana is a main east–west highway that is parallel to the Indiana Toll Road. The western terminus of US 20 is at the Illinois state line and the eastern terminus is at the Ohio state line. US 20 through Whiting, East Chicago, and Gary is concurrent with US 12 twice. The route varies between one-way, two-lane, and four-lane streets, in northwestern Indiana. From the east side of Gary to west of South Bend, US 20 is a four-lane undivided highway. The route then heads around the west and south sides of South Bend and Elkhart as a four-lane limited access divided highway. East of State Road 15 (IN-15), US 20 is two-lane rural highway.
Tolleston is a neighborhood and former town in west-central Gary, Indiana. It is situated south of Ambridge, west of Midtown, east of Westside and north of Black Oak. Tolleston is the site of two large city parks, a historic cemetery, and the oldest church north of the Little Calumet River. The neighborhood's borders are defined by the Norfolk Southern tracks on the north, Grant Street on the east, 25th Avenue on the south, and Clark Road on the west. As of 2000, Tolleston had a population of 14,289, and was 97.5% African-American.
Ambridge Mann, sometimes called Ambridge-Horace Mann or Horace Mann-Ambridge, is a neighborhood in northwestern Gary, Indiana. It is bounded by the Grand Calumet River on the north, by Grant Street on the east, by Chase Street on the west, and by the Norfolk Southern railroad on the south. Adjacent areas include an industrial district to the north, Downtown West to the east, Tolleston to the south, and Brunswick to the west. As of 2000, Ambridge Mann had a population of 6,236, which was 96.3% African-American. Located just south of Interstate 90, the neighborhood can be seen while passing Buchanan Street.
Glen Park, also sometimes called University Park, is the most populous neighborhood in Gary, Indiana. It is situated on the city's far south side, south of the Little Calumet River and Borman Expressway. The neighborhood is often divided into Glen Park East and Glen Park West, on the respective sides of Broadway. Within Gary, Glen Park borders on Black Oak to the west and Midtown and Pulaski to the north; beyond Gary, it adjoins Hobart, Merrillville, and unincorporated Calumet Township. As of 2000, the neighborhood had a population of 25,454, approximately a third of Gary's total population. In terms of race, as of 2000 Glen Park was 86% African-American, 9% white, and 5.5% Hispanic.
Brunswick is a neighborhood in northwestern Gary, Indiana, just south of Gary Chicago Airport. It borders Hammond and East Chicago to the west, and the Gary neighborhoods of Ambridge Mann to the east and Westside to the south. The borders are defined by the Indiana Toll Road on the north, Chase Street on the east, the Norfolk Southern railway on the south and Cline Avenue on the west. As of 2000, Brunswick had a population of 4,442 people, which was 84.6% African-American and 7.7% white. Like many Gary neighborhoods, Brunswick was a segregated white community until the early 1970s, when massive white flight occurred.
Pulaski is a neighborhood in eastern Gary, Indiana. It is roughly triangular in shape, bounded on the south by the Borman Expressway, on the west by Maryland Street, and on the northeast by the Norfolk Southern railway. It is separated by an industrial corridor from Aetna to its east and Emerson to its north; it directly adjoins the neighborhoods of Midtown and Glen Park. As of 2000, Pulaski's population was 6,777, which was 96.7% African-American, 1.4% white, and 1.3% of Hispanic ethnicity.
Long Lake is a large interdunal wetland in the Indiana Dunes region of Northwest Indiana. It was originally approximately 8 miles in length, but has been shortened due to development and drainage. It has a surface area of 34 hectares, and a maximum depth of 1.8 meters. There are three small islands, and the total shoreline length is 4.6 kilometers.
Emerson, also called Downtown East, is a neighborhood in north-central Gary, Indiana. Emerson and Downtown West combine to form what is known as Downtown Gary. It was part of the original plat built by the United States Steel Corporation. Emerson is located east of Broadway, south of the Grand Calumet River, north of Ninth Avenue and west of Interstate 65. As of 2000, it had a population of 3,358. Emerson borders directly on Downtown West to the west but is separated from the Aetna and Pulaski neighborhoods to the east and south by an industrial corridor.
Downtown Gary is split by Broadway into two separate neighborhoods in north-central Gary, Indiana. Emerson and Downtown West combine to form what is known as Downtown Gary. It was part of the original plat built by the United States Steel Corporation. It is located east of Grant Street, south of the Grand Calumet River, north of 9th Avenue and west of Interstate 65. Downtown West borders Ambridge Mann to the west and Midtown to the south, but it is separated from the Aetna and Pulaski neighborhoods to the east and south by an industrial corridor.
Indiana City was a notional community in northern Lake County, Indiana, at the mouth of the Grand Calumet River. It was located in present-day Marquette Park in Miller Beach, near the southern tip of Lake Michigan. Indiana City was one of a handful of early contenders to be a port city on southern Lake Michigan, alongside Chicago, City West, and Michigan City.
The Grand Calumet River is a 13.0-mile-long (20.9 km) river that flows primarily into Lake Michigan. Originating in Miller Beach in Gary, it flows through the cities of Gary, East Chicago and Hammond, as well as Calumet City and Burnham on the Illinois side. The majority of the river's flow drains into Lake Michigan via the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal, sending about 1,500 cubic feet (42 m3) per second of water into the lake. A smaller part of the flow, at the river's western end, enters the Calumet River and ultimately drains into the Illinois and ultimately the Mississippi River.
Hessville is a neighborhood of Hammond, Indiana. Located in the southeast corner of Hammond, it adjoins the Hammond neighborhood of Woodmar to the west, the East Chicago neighborhood of Calumet to the north, the Gary neighborhoods of Westside and Black Oak to the east, and the town of Highland to the south.
Ridge and swale, or in dunal areas dune and swale, is a landform consisting of regular, parallel ridges alternating with marshy depressions. Ridge-and-swale landscapes are most commonly formed by the gradual movement of a beach, for example as a result of gradually fluctuating water levels, or the shifting meanders of a river. In the river context, ridge-and-swale landscapes are commonly formed by scroll bars. They are also found along ocean coasts, for example on the Outer Banks of North Carolina.
