Indiana Dunes National Park
IUCN category II (national park)
Location	Porter County, Lake County and LaPorte County, Indiana, United States
Nearest city	Beverly Shores, Indiana Porter, Indiana
Coordinates	41°38′53″N 87°06′29″W / 41.64806°N 87.10806°W / 41.64806; -87.10806
Area	15,349 acres (62.12 km2)
Established	November 5, 1966 (national lakeshore) February 15, 2019 (national park)
Visitors	2,834,180 (in 2022[1])
Governing body	National Park Service
Website	Indiana Dunes National Park

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 and was redesignated as the nation's 61st national park on February 15, 2019.^[2] The park runs for about 20 miles (32 km) along the southern shore of Lake Michigan and covers 15,349 acres (6,212 ha). Along the lakefront, the eastern area is roughly the lake shore south to U.S. 12 or U.S. 20 between Michigan City, Indiana, on the east and the Cleveland-Cliffs steel plant on the west. This area's conservation scheme is enhanced by the older Indiana Dunes State Park. To the west of the steel plant lies West Beach and a small extension south of the steel mill continues west along Salt Creek to Indiana 249. The western area is roughly the shoreline south to U.S. 12 between the Burns Ditch west to Broadway in downtown Gary, Indiana. In addition, there are several outlying areas, including Pinhook Bog, in LaPorte County to the east; the Heron Rookery in Porter County, the center of the park; and the Hoosier Prairie State Nature Preserve and the Hobart Prairie Grove, both in Lake County, the western end of the park.

History

There is little evidence of permanent Native American communities forming during the earlier years; rather, the evidence suggests that seasonal hunting camps were the norm. The earliest evidence for permanent camps was the occupation of the Ohio valley by the Hopewell culture. Five groups of mounds have been documented in the dunes area. These mounds are consistent with the period of 200 BCE (Goodall Focus) to 800 CE (early Mississippian),^[3] though even that was a short lived permanency. Beginning in the 1500s, European exploration and trade introduced more changes to the human environment. Tribal animosities and traditional European competition affected tribal relations^{[not specific enough to verify]}. Entire populations began moving westward, while others sought to dominate large geographic trading areas. Once again, the dunes became a middle point on a journey from the east or the west. It continued to remain a key hunting ground for villages over a wide area.^[4]

It wasn't until the 19th century that native villages once again were scattered through the area, but this was soon followed by European settlement.^[5] Joseph Bailly was the earliest recorded settler in the dunes. He moved here from trading villages around Niles, Michigan. Settling along the Calumet River.^[5] Soon he was joined by a series of other settlers and the communities in the dunes began to develop. They included Chesterton, Porter, Tremont, and the Town of the Pines. These pioneer communities grew and expanded.

City West was one of several "ghost towns" situated in the dunes. Planned as a rival to Chicago,^[6] it was partly built in 1837 but failed that summer, during a national economic panic. The remains of the town, partly carted off to be used as lumber, were located near where the pavilion in the state park now stands, until a forest fire in the 1850s destroyed whatever was left.^[6] Today, most of the coastline has been settled for use as homes, factories, and businesses, with some areas reserved for public parks.

Preserving the dunes and National Lakeshore

Triggered by a publication on the unique flora of the dunes in the 1899 Botanical Gazette by University of Chicago botanist Henry Chandler Cowles,^[7] a movement began to preserve the dunes habitat.^[8] In 1916, the visionary National Parks Director Stephen Mather held hearings in Chicago on a "Sand Dunes National Park".^[9] Another factor leading to the desire to preserve the dunes was the disappearance of the Hoosier Slide, a particularly large dune along this shore. The sand from this dune was found to be ideal for glass manufacture, and much of this sand was transported to the Ball Brothers and Hemingray Glass Co. plants in Muncie, producing the well-known 'Ball Blue' canning jars and 'Hemingray Blue' insulators. The Hoosier Slide was completely consumed by 1920, and a power plant sits on the site today.^[10] In 1926, the Indiana Dunes State Park opened. In the 1950s, a desire to maximize economic development through a "Port of Indiana" spurred interest in preservation. The Save the Dunes Council, including its president Dorothy Richardson Buell and activist Hazel Hannell, began a nationwide campaign to buy the land. Their first success was the purchase of 56 acres (23 ha) in Porter County, the Cowles Tamarack Bog.^[9] The Kennedy Compromise entailed the creation of a national lakeshore and a port.^[8] Illinois Senator Paul H. Douglas led the Congressional effort to save the dunes. In late 1966, the bill passed and the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore became a reality. Four subsequent expansion bills for the park (1976, 1980, 1986, and 1992) have increased the size of the park to more than 15,000 acres (61 km²).^[9]

Redesignation as National Park

A bill to reclassify Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore as Indiana Dunes National Park was sponsored by Representative Pete Visclosky and Senators Todd Young and Mike Braun and previously by Senator Joe Donnelly, who wanted to bring the site more recognition.^[11][12] Deputy Director of the National Park Service Paul Daniel Smith testified that the Service opposed the redesignation because it would be inconsistent with the Service's naming conventions and the Indiana Dunes have more in common with other national lakeshores and seashores than national parks, which are typically much larger.^[11][13]

H.R. 1488 originally passed in the House of Representatives on November 1, 2017, but it did not receive a vote in the Senate during the 115th Congress. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2019 included the bill as a provision and was signed by President Donald Trump on February 15, creating the country's 61st National Park and the first in Indiana.^[14][15]

Geography

The creeks and rivers of the national park include:

• Dunes Creek is a northwards-flowing 4.3-mile-long (6.9 km) stream^[16] which drains the flows northward, receiving first the Great Marsh tributary from the east and then the West Branch tributary which drains Cowles Bog. Dunes Creek passes through the coastal sand dunes to empty into Lake Michigan.^[17]
• East Arm Little Calumet River, also known as the "East Branch Little Calumet River", is a 22.1-mile-long (35.6 km) portion of the Little Calumet River^[16] that begins just east of Holmesville, Indiana, in New Durham Township in LaPorte County and flows west to Porter County where it is diverted to the Port of Indiana-Burns Waterway and Lake Michigan.^[18]
• Salt Creek is a 24.0-mile-long (38.6 km)^[16] tributary of the East Arm Little Calumet River that begins south of Valparaiso in Porter County, Indiana, and flows north until it joins the East Arm Little Calumet River just before it exits to Lake Michigan via the Port of Indiana-Burns Waterway.^[19]
• Trail Creek is a 7.3-mile-long (11.7 km) north- by northwest-flowing stream^[16] whose main stem begins at the confluence of the West Branch Trail Creek and the East Branch Trail Creek in LaPorte County, Indiana, and flows through the Michigan City harbor into Lake Michigan.^[20]

Climate

According to the Köppen climate classification system, Indiana Dunes National Park has a hot summer Humid continental climate (Dfa). According to the United States Department of Agriculture, the plant hardiness zone at Indiana Dunes National Park at 614 ft (187 m) is 6a with an average annual extreme minimum temperature of −9.4 °F (−23.0 °C).^[21]

The primary feature of Indiana Dunes National Park is Lake Michigan. The lake brings with it several weather-related conditions that can create threats to the enjoyment of the area.

• Winter: Winter months bring the risk of shelf ice. This is a condition where the winter winds push ice from Lake Michigan onto the beaches. As the cold depends, the ice can build up into long ridges creating an arctic dunescape. Much of this ice is floating. It may be dangerous to walk on the ice as there can be air pockets into which you can sink. Rescue is extremely difficult.
• Summer: During the summer months, rip currents can occur in Lake Michigan. These occur suddenly and can sweep swimmers far out into the lake. Rip currents are most prevalent on days with a strong north wind.^[22] Rip currents are created when masses of water are pushed against the shoreline by a north wind. The mass of water becomes trapped between the beach and the first sandbar. As the wind continues, the volume of water increases until weight of incoming water and the mass of the sandbar are unable push back the growing volume of water behind the sandbar. Then, the trapped water creates a narrow channel through the sandbar. The water rushes back into the lake forming a river in the lake. Anything or anyone in the current is taken out into the lake.^[22]