On South Main Street, on the right when traveling south.
The Crown Point Public Library opened in February, 1908 at this location. Andrew Carnegie donated $12,000 for construction of the community would commit to contributing annually to library maintenance. The Carnegie Building was adjoined by the new . . . — — Map (db m241002) HM
The Old Courthouse has been, since its erection in 1878, a landmark in Lake County, Indiana. Construction of the central portion, including the clock tower, began with 500,000 hand-kilned bricks from the Henry Wise Brickyard in Crown Point, . . . — — Map (db m27806) HM
On North Main Street at East Goldsborough Street, on the right when traveling north on North Main Street.
Dedicated by the citizens of Crown Point in memory of all who served their Country that Freedom shall not perish from this Earth — — Map (db m43408) HM
On South Main Street, on the right when traveling north.
The Lake County Sheriff's house and jail were built in the Second Empire style. The house was a residence for the Lake County Sheriff. The jail was 50x120 feet with six cells. The building was enlarged in 1926, and the residence was converted to . . . — — Map (db m241003) HM
On Joliet Street (Road 30) west of Northwinds Drive, on the right when traveling east.
Pioneer Indian trail originally connecting Rock Island and Detroit. Indians and early settlers traversed this route including Black Hawk (1767-1838), Chief of the Sauk Indians. Trail now alternates between US 30 and 330 across Lake County. — — Map (db m204911) HM
On Joliet Street (U.S. 30) west of Northwinds Drive, on the left when traveling west.
A model stretch of object-lesson road built by the Lincoln Highway Association with the co-operation and financial aid of the federal government, the State of Indiana, and Lake County, Indiana, with funds contributed by the United States . . . — — Map (db m213120) HM
On Joliet Street (U.S. 30) west of Northwinds Drive, on the right when traveling east.
Ideal Section
During the first few years of its existence, the Lincoln Highway Association (LHA) worked feverishly to promote the idea of a transcontinental highway. The excitement and enthusiasm of Americans for better roads became well . . . — — Map (db m213124) HM
On US-30, Lincoln Highway, Joliet Street (U.S. 30), on the right when traveling east.
The Lincoln Highway. United States' first transcontinental highway, constructed 1913-1928, from New York City to San Francisco. Dedicated to the memory of Abraham Lincoln. Conceived by Carl G. Fisher to encourage building "good roads." . . . — — Map (db m213119) HM
On Madison Street north of Madison Lane, on the right when traveling north.
U.S. Representative Katie Hall, standing second from left, witnesses along with other national dignitaries as Ronald Reagan, 40th President of the United States of America, signs federal legislation establishing a national holiday honoring the . . . — — Map (db m241793) HM
On West 6th Avenue at Washington Street, on the left when traveling east on West 6th Avenue.
Front Side
In the early 1900s, immigrants, white migrants, and black southerners came to Gary for work in the steel industry. Rev. William G. Seaman founded City Church downtown in 1926 to serve as a Christianizing influence on the diverse . . . — — Map (db m200385) HM
On East Dunes Highway (U.S. 12) at East 6th Avenue, on the right when traveling east on East Dunes Highway.
Dedicated to the memory of the men and women whose love for this nation enabled them to make the supreme sacrifice of life itself in its defense. — — Map (db m226841) WM
On West 15th Avenue at Madison Street, on the right when traveling west on West 15th Avenue.
Froebel opened here, 1912, as many European immigrants and southern blacks moved to Gary for jobs in steel mills. An experiment in progressive education, it served students of diverse backgrounds and the local community. Despite early status as . . . — — Map (db m200372) HM
On West 25th Avenue, on the right when traveling west.
Front Side
As Gary grew in the early 1900s, African American students were segregated within white schools or overcrowded into small, separate schools. To compensate, officials transferred some Black students to Emerson High School in . . . — — Map (db m200382) HM
On East 4th Avenue (U.S. 12/20) at Broadway, on the left when traveling east on East 4th Avenue.
Gateway Park
This park, along with City Hall and the County Court Building, was envisioned by the Gary Commerce Club as a "front door" to the city. The City and the Gary Public Transportation Corporation (GPTC) used federal transportation . . . — — Map (db m240904) HM
On Colfax Street at King Street, on the right when traveling south on Colfax Street.
The Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus. The Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus, organized in 1907, became one of the largest and most recognized shows to tour the united States. Resembling a small city, by 1918, it featured over twenty tents, 1000 workers and . . . — — Map (db m238554) HM
On Harrison Street, on the right when traveling north.
This Memorial Honors American Veterans Of All Wars Who Have Shared A Common Goal - To Valiantly Protect Our Country's Freedom.
The Memory Of Their Heroism, Sacrifice, Loyalty, and Valor Will Live On Whenever And Wherever Democracy Exists. — — Map (db m200607) WM
On West 35th Avenue at Washington Street, on the right when traveling west on West 35th Avenue.
By 1921, Indiana University offered courses in Lake County, later establishing extension centers in the Calumet Region. As manufacturing jobs in the area drew Black Americans from the South and European and Latino immigrants. IU offered . . . — — Map (db m244325) HM
On Jackson Street at West 23rd Street, on the left when traveling north on Jackson Street.
Whereas; Michael Jackson was born on August 29, 1958 in Gary, Indiana. He was the seventh of nine children and is recognized as one of Gary's favorite sons, and Whereas; Michael Jackson was an American recording artist, world's greatest . . . — — Map (db m241000) HM
On Jackson Street south of West 23rd Avenue, on the right when traveling south.
In Loving Memory Of
Michael J. Jackson
(1958 - 2009)
"You gave us a lifetime of love"
The Jackson Family
Parents: Joseph & Katherine
Brothers: Jackie, Jermaine, Marlon, Randy, Tito
Sisters: Janet, LaToya, Rebbie . . . — — Map (db m200431) HM
On Madison Street south of West 19th Avenue, on the left when traveling south.
Representative Katie Hall (1938-2012).
Democratic leader Katie Hall was born in rural Mississippi and moved to Indiana in 1960. She taught in Gary before serving in the Indiana General Assembly, 1974-82. Hall became the first African American . . . — — Map (db m241795) HM
On Taft St at W. 10th Ave, on the right when traveling north on Taft St.
St. John's Church, the oldest surviving institution in Gary and north of the Little Calumet River, began with the work of the Rev. Henry Wunder in the early 1860's. He regularly came from Chicago by horse and buggy. Baptism records date from 1863; . . . — — Map (db m200365) HM
On East Massachusetts Street at West 15th Avenue, on the right when traveling east on East Massachusetts Street.
Stewart House was organized during depression of 1921 to provide social services for Gary’s black community. A vital neighborhood center for unemployed WWI veterans and southern blacks who migrated for jobs in steel mills, it helped thousands . . . — — Map (db m200378) HM
Genesis Plaza - Omri Amrany's The Fusion Centennial Sculpture The 40' sculpture, often called "The Steelworkers' Monument," was completed and dedicated in 2006 and installed to mark Gary's centennial,. — — Map (db m240999) HM
On East 4th Avenue (U.S. 12/20) at Broadway, on the right when traveling west on East 4th Avenue.
During the 1920's, the population of Gary would double. In order to attract and keep good leadership. U.S. Steel needed quality housing available for its managers. Plans were soon conceived for a 68-unit apartment building near the heart of . . . — — Map (db m226732) HM
On East 4th Avenue (U.S. 12/20) at Broadway, on the right when traveling west on East 4th Avenue.
Gary's first Methodist Church was established in 1906. In October of 1916, Dr. William Gran Seaman became pastor. Seaman relished his role in the growing congregation, but he had bigger dreams; he wanted to build a new church to serve the . . . — — Map (db m227755) HM
On East 4th Avenue north of Broadway, on the right when traveling east.
Gary City Hall - Bryant Baker's Elbert H. Gary Statue
The bronze statue was sculpted and erected in 1927. Elbert Gary was the key founder of U.S. Steel, bringing together J.P. Morgan, Andrew Carnegie, and Charles . . . — — Map (db m241907) HM
On East 4th Avenue (U.S. 12/20) at Broadway, on the right when traveling west on East 4th Avenue.
Gary School Superintendent William Wirt used the Ralph Waldo Emerson School to be the first to use his new Work-Study-Play system of education, a "Whole Child" philosophy. This philosophy drew international attention to Emerson.
The building . . . — — Map (db m227754) HM
Architect Philip Brooks Maher's Gary City Hall Building
City Hall was completed in 1927 by Philip Maher after his father and original architect George W. Maher's death. George drafted a Prairie-style design while . . . — — Map (db m241909) HM
On Broadway at 5th Avenue, on the right when traveling north on Broadway. Reported damaged.
The founding of Gary in 1906 occurred at a time when electric street cars were booming in cities across the country. Provisions were made in the original layout of Gary for electric passenger car rail lines to be placed down the middle of major . . . — — Map (db m241910) HM
This house was the first permanent structure built in Gary, and was the home of Gary's first town hall, polling place, post office, and high school. In 1981 the house was placed on the National Register of Historic Places, and restored in 1982 . . . — — Map (db m236261) HM
On East 4th Avenue (U.S. 12/20) at Broadway, on the right when traveling west on East 4th Avenue.
Gary Public Library (GPL) was organized on March 30, 1908 when its first library board met, and Ora L. Wildermuth, Gary Public Library's founder, moved "that we have a Public Library and that the Board proceed to arrange for the same." The . . . — — Map (db m227756) HM
On East 4th Avenue (U.S. 12/20) at Broadway, on the right when traveling west on East 4th Avenue. Reported missing.
In 1906, a two-level building was erected on the corner of Sth Avenue and Broadway and became the Gary State Bank which operated in the building above until it was razed in 1925 to make way for a new high-rise building.
On East 4th Avenue (U.S. 12/20) at Broadway, on the right when traveling west on East 4th Avenue.
At first, Horace Mann consisted of two portable trailers near the street on the large property. The first class consisted of 45 students who had previously attended Jefferson School. Demand for the west side school was greater than initially . . . — — Map (db m227757) HM
On East 4th Avenue (U.S. 12/20) at Broadway, on the right when traveling west on East 4th Avenue.
Shortly after the city's founding by U.S. Steel in 1906, the Gary Heat, Light, and Water Company constructed the utilities necessary for tens of thousands of new residents and businesses. The company hired civil engineer John W. Alvord of . . . — — Map (db m226733) HM
On Broadway at 5th Avenue, on the right when traveling north on Broadway.
500 Broadway - Jason Bord's Lake Wind Sand Composition Sculpture
This piece, installed in 2018, was part of a public art contest supported by the City of Gary, Legacy Foundation, and the Knight Foundation. The . . . — — Map (db m241912) HM
On Massachusetts Street, on the right when traveling north.
Gary City Hall - Gary Tillery's Mayor Richard G. Hatcher Statue
This statue honors Mayor Hatcher, one of the first two black mayors to be elected in major cities in the U.S. The bronze statue celebrates this . . . — — Map (db m241908) HM
On East 4th Avenue (U.S. 12/20) at Broadway, on the right when traveling west on East 4th Avenue.
Gary Public Schools Memorial Auditorium was built in 1927 to honor Gary residents who died in World War I. It was part of an emerging movement to build structures of significant public utility rather than traditional monuments.
On Massachusetts Street south of East 4th Street (U.S. 20), on the left when traveling north.
In 1967, Mayor Richard Gordon Hatcher became the first elected African American mayor of a major US city. A civil rights luminary, Mayor Hatcher served as advisor to Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Jimmy Carter on issues of civil rights and urban . . . — — Map (db m236263) HM
On Broadway north of Interstate 90, on the right when traveling north.
Built in 1910, just four years after the city was founded, the station is located between the elevated lines of the Norfolk Southern and CSX Railroads. The station transported the thousands of workers who came from around the country to work in . . . — — Map (db m236260) HM
On Oak Avenue, 1 mile west of Montgomery Street, on the right when traveling west.
The glider you see above you and to your left was designed by Octave Chanute, whose statue you see on your right. In June of 1896 (ten years before Gary, Indiana was founded), Chanute, a leading civil engineer, came across Lake Michigan from . . . — — Map (db m227829) HM
This is to certify that Gary Bathing Beach Aquatorium was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on the 25th day of November 1994 by the United States Department of the Interior in cooperation with the Indiana Department of Natural . . . — — Map (db m226861) HM
Near Oak Avenue west of Montgomery Street, on the right when traveling west.
In 13,000 BC the shoreline of Lake Michigan was several miles south of this marker, at what is now Ridge Road. As the lake receded over the centuries the shoreline inched north to where you are standing. In 1675 Jesuit explorer Father Marquette . . . — — Map (db m236264) HM
On Marquette Drive at Oak Avenue, on the left when traveling east on Marquette Drive.
A French Jesuit Priest. One of the earliest Christian teachers of the American Indians landed here AD 1673 in company with the French explorer Louis Joliet. — — Map (db m226864) HM
On Oak Avenue at North Grand Boulevard, on the left when traveling south on Oak Avenue.
Marquette Pavilion, built in 1924, is an example of prairie-style architecture.
Can you find these features that are emblematic of this style?
• Strong geometry and massing
• Horizontal and vertical lines
• Brick or stucco exteriors . . . — — Map (db m227758) HM
On Oak Avenue west of Montgomery Street, on the right when traveling west.
Octave Chanute arrived at Miller Beach, Gary, Indiana on June 22, 1896 to perform gliding flight experiments in the dunes just west of this site. Over 700 successful flights provided him with significant aerodynamic data.
Chanute willingly . . . — — Map (db m227760) HM
On Oak Avenue west of Montgomery Street, on the right when traveling west.
Octave Chanute, a French-born engineer, is celebrated for his pioneering aviation experiments here on the dunes of Lake Michigan. He was an innovator for railroads as well.
He designed wood and iron trestle bridges for some of the most . . . — — Map (db m227830) HM
On Oak Avenue, 1 mile west of Montgomery Street, on the right when traveling west.
Made the first successful flights in heavier-than-air craft from these dunes in 1896. This glacial boulder dedicated to his memory in 1936. — — Map (db m236259) HM
On Oak Avenue, 1 mile west of Montgomery Street, on the right when traveling west.
The figure of Octave Chanute is pointing toward the dune where, in July of 1896, he conducted his famous experiments with gliders. These experiments had a dramatic impact on the history of aviation. The publicity generated by the experiments . . . — — Map (db m227824) HM
Near Oak Avenue north of Marquette Drive, on the right when traveling south.
For decades people have enjoyed strolling the bridges to Patterson Island. The small island located in the Grand Calumet Lagoon was enhanced for access during the Great Depression through the Works Progress Administration (WPA). . . . — — Map (db m226859) WM
Near Oak Avenue west of Montgomery Street, on the right when traveling west.
Of the estimated 1,500 shipwrecks in Lake Michigan, there are 14(*) within Indiana waters. Two lie offshore of Gary. They are identified only as "Unknown 5" and "Unknown 6."
"Unknown 5 and 6" have been identified by archeologists as barges . . . — — Map (db m226863) HM
On Oak Avenue west of Montgomery Street, on the right when traveling west.
World's largest freshwater sand dunes in the world line the southern shores of Lake Michigan.
5th largest lake in the world and largest lake in Indiana.
Over 3,500 ships and planes lay at the bottom of Lake Michigan.
You are . . . — — Map (db m226866) HM
On Oak Avenue, 0.2 miles west of Montgomery Street, on the right when traveling west.
In 1941 the American military did not want the Tuskegee Airmen to fly. By May 8, 1945, the end of World War II in Europe, only the Nazis felt that way.
The heroics of the Tuskegee Airmen led to President Truman's 1948 order ending racial . . . — — Map (db m227759) HM WM
On East Avenue A at South Broad Street, on the right when traveling east on East Avenue A.
The EJ&E interlocking tower stood as a sentinel for more than 75 years, controlling rail and automotive traffic on Broad Street. Improvements in technology and the development of satellites replaced the need for such a building and it was phased . . . — — Map (db m200787) HM
On East Avenue A at South Broad Street, on the right when traveling east on East Avenue A.
This small Grand Trunk combination depot was one of three railroad stations that once stood in Griffith. Eleven tracks then crossed Broad Street, representing five railroads - the Michigan Central, the Grand Trunk, the Erie, the Elgin, Joliet and . . . — — Map (db m200793) HM
On North Broad Street at Columbia Avenue, on the right when traveling south on North Broad Street.
Racing Hall of Famer Ray Nichels attended Franklin School, which now houses the Griffith Historical Society. In 1954 Ray and his wife Eleanor established Nichels Engineering, eventually becoming one of auto racing's elite race car building and . . . — — Map (db m226579) HM
On Kleinman Rd, 0.1 miles south of Ridge Rd (Business U.S. 6), on the left when traveling south.
Dutch immigrants after 1850 began moving to this area because of its similarities to their homeland. They helped to locate ditches to drain water from the extensive marshes, leaving rich land to expand successful horticultural activities. — — Map (db m64160) HM
On Ripley Street (U.S. 6) 0.1 miles north of East 21st Place, on the right when traveling north.
Here, the Potawatomi Indian Trail, a southern branch of the old, historic Ft. Wayne - Ft. Dearborn Trail, proceeded in a southwesterly direction through old Lake Station (East Gary), Liverpool, and on past the Indian ceremonial grounds at . . . — — Map (db m202721) HM
On East Main Street at Halsted Street, on the left when traveling east on East Main Street.
The oldest brick house in Lake County,
home of Melvin Halsted, founder of
Lowell, was built in 1849. His pit and
kilns were located just across Cedar
Creek.
Acquired for the community through the
combined efforts of interested . . . — — Map (db m231125) HM
On East Main Street at North Union Street, on the right when traveling west on East Main Street.
This is the site of the Main Street School grades 1 thru 12, built in 1896 with bricks from the Lowell brick yard. The high school students moved to a new high school in 1916. This school closed in 1973. — — Map (db m231122) HM
Henry D. Palmer, M.D. (1809-1877) located at this site in 1836. First physician in Lake County, he was also counselor to the pioneers for 40 years and member of the underground railroad aiding escaped slaves. — — Map (db m27716) HM
On Van Buren Street at 73rd Avenue (Old Lincoln Highway), in the median on Van Buren Street. Reported missing.
Part of a transcontinental trail used by prehistoric peoples of North America, it passed through modern Detroit, Rock Island and Davenport in the Midwest. The trail was important into the 19th century. — — Map (db m231382) HM
On Joliet Street (U.S. 30) at Caroline Avenue, on the right when traveling east on Joliet Street.
The "Ideal Section," a portion of the Lincoln Highway (US 30), was a prototype of construction technology intended to make it the finest road in the world.
The section begins one half mile west of US 41 and extends 1.3 miles westward to Bank . . . — — Map (db m213121) HM
On Joliet St (U.S. 30) 0.1 miles east of St. John Rd, on the right when traveling east.
Built, 1853, approximately one half mile south; closed, 1907; moved to this site and restored for educational and community uses, 1993-1994. One of twelve St. John Township schools; structure typical of early one-room school buildings in Indiana. — — Map (db m64172) HM
On Joliet Street (U.S. 30) 0.2 miles east of Wicker Avenue (U.S. 41), on the right when traveling east.
This plaque is dedicated to the history of America's first transcontinental highway, which passed 137 feet south of this spot. A section of Macadam is displayed in the sidewalk. The highway in the Schererville area followed the Sauk . . . — — Map (db m204887) HM
On West Lincoln Highway Highway (U.S. 30) at Janice Drive, on the right when traveling west on West Lincoln Highway Highway.
The Lincoln Highway. United States' first transcontinental highway, constructed 1913-1928, from New York City to San Francisco. Dedicated to the memory of Abraham Lincoln. Conceived by Carl G. Fisher to encourage building "good roads." . . . — — Map (db m213118) HM
