Geography of Indiana

Further information: List of Indiana counties

Regions of Indiana

The Geography of Indiana refers to the U.S. State of Indiana. Indiana is in the north-central U.S. and borders on Lake Michigan. Surrounding states are Michigan to the north, Illinois to the west, Kentucky to the south, and Ohio to the east. The entire southern boundary is the Ohio River.

Overview

Indiana is bounded on the north by Lake Michigan and the state of Michigan; on the east by Ohio; on the south by Kentucky, with which it shares the Ohio River as a border; and on the west by Illinois. Indiana is one of the Great Lakes states.

The northern boundary of the states of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois was originally defined to be a latitudinal line drawn through the southernmost tip of Lake Michigan. Since such a line did not provide Indiana with usable frontage on the lake, its northern border was shifted ten miles (16 km) north when it was granted statehood in 1816.

The 475 mile (764 km) long Wabash River bisects the state from northeast to southwest before flowing south, mostly along the Indiana-Illinois border. The river has given Indiana a few theme songs, such as On the Banks of the Wabash, The Wabash Cannonball and Back Home Again, In Indiana. The Wabash is the longest free-flowing river east of the Mississippi River, traversing 400 miles (640 km) from the Huntington dam to the Ohio River. The White River, a tributary of the Wabash, zigzags through central Indiana.

The topography of Indiana is very diverse. Northern Indiana is mostly gently rolling forest and prairie, with a few regional areas that are hillier, such as along rivers, on moraines, or in the dunes along Lake Michigan. Northeast Indiana has many natural lakes and is known as the "Indiana Lake Country". Northwest Indiana has many wetland areas and unique sand dune landscapes. Central Indiana is also rolling forest and prairie, but East Central Indiana is high at about 1,000 feet (300 m) above sea level and features the highest point in Indiana. Southern Indiana starkly contrasts with the rest of Indiana. It is very hilly (the Knobstone Escarpment) and heavily forested.

There are 24 Indiana state parks, nine man-made reservoirs, and hundreds of lakes in the state. Areas under the control and protection of the National Park Service or the United States Forest Service include:

• George Rogers Clark National Historical Park in Vincennes
• Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore near Michigan City
• Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial in Lincoln City
• Hoosier National Forest in Bedford

Regions

The state of Indiana is divided into several regions.

Northern Indiana

Main articles: Northern Indiana, Northwest Indiana, Michiana, and Rust Belt

Highlighted are the counties in Northern Indiana.

Northern Indiana consists of 27 counties in the northern third of the state.

The landscape is characterized physically by fairly level terrain ranging from 600 to 1,000 feet (180 to 300 m) above sea level and is probably the flattest part of the state. The Eastern Continental Divide goes through Northern Indiana following the top of the Valparaiso Moraine part of the way. Besides some urban areas, much of Northern Indiana is farmland.

Heavy industry is as much a part of the economy in the eastern two thirds of Northern Indiana as agriculture and as a result, the region tends to be associated with the Rust Belt. Northern Indiana as a whole is also the most ethnically diverse region in Indiana.

The northwest corner of the state is part of the Chicago metropolitan area and has nearly one million residents. Gary, and the cities and towns that make up the northern half of Lake, Porter, and La Porte Counties bordering on Lake Michigan, are effectively commuter suburbs of Chicago. Porter and Lake counties are commonly referred to as "The Calumet Region". The name comes from the fact that the Grand Calumet and Little Calumet rivers run through the area. These counties are in the Central Time Zone, the same as Chicago. NICTD owns and operates the South Shore Line, a commuter rail line that runs electric-powered trains between South Bend and Chicago. Sand dunes and heavy industry share the shoreline of Lake Michigan in northern Indiana. Along the shoreline of Lake Michigan in Northern Indiana one can find many parks between the industrial areas. The Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore and the Indiana Dunes State Park are two natural landmarks of the area.

The region is marked with swell and swale topography as it retreats South from Lake Michigan. The ecology changes dramatically between swells, or on opposite sides of the same swell. Plants and animals adapted to marshes are generally found in the swales, while forests or even prickly pear cactus are found in the dryer swells.

Most of northern and central Indiana is flat farmland dotted with small cities and towns, such as North Manchester. Much of Northern Indiana is considered part of Amish Country and holds the nation's second largest population of such people.

The Kankakee River, which winds through northern Indiana, serves somewhat as a demarcating line between suburban northwest Indiana and the rest of the state. Before it was drained and developed for agriculture, the Kankakee Marsh was one of the largest freshwater marshes in the country. South of the Kankakee is a large area of prairie, the eastern edge of the Grand Prairie that covers Iowa and Illinois. The Prairie Chicken and American Bison were common in Indiana's pioneer era, but are now extinct as wild species within the state.

The South Bend metropolitan area, in north central Indiana, is the center of commerce in the region better known as Michiana. Other cities located within the area include Elkhart, Mishawaka, Goshen, and Warsaw. Fort Wayne, the state's second largest city, is located in the northeastern part of the state where it serves the state as a transportation hub. Other cities located within the area include Huntington and Marion. East of Fort Wayne is an area of extremely flat land that, before development, was the western-most reach of the Great Black Swamp.

Northeastern Indiana is home to a number of lakes, many of which are the remains of the glaciers that covered Indiana thousands of years ago and Glacial Lake Maumee. Some of these lakes include Lake James in Pokagon State Park, Lake Maxinkuckee, Lake Wawasee and Lake Tippecanoe. Lake Wawasee is the largest natural lake in Indiana, while Lake Tippecanoe is the deepest lake, reaching depths of over 120 feet (37 m). Both lakes are located in Kosciusko County. Chain O' Lakes State Park, located in Noble County, contains 11 lakes, 8 of which are connected by natural channels.

Michiana

Main article: Michiana

The center third of this region is known as the Indiana section of Michiana. South Bend is the cultural and economic center of the Michiana region.

Maumee Valley

The Eastern third of this region centers around the Fort Wayne area and the Maumee River basin.

Central Indiana

See also: Indianapolis metropolitan area

Highlighted are the counties in Central Indiana.

Central Indiana refers to the 33 counties in the middle third of the state. However, many Hoosiers consider Central Indiana as the Indianapolis metropolitan area. The region's dominant city by far is Indianapolis. Other prominent cities include Lafayette, Anderson, Muncie, and Terre Haute. Central Indiana is the most populous region of Indiana. The primary economic engines of Central Indiana are education and research, agriculture and manufacturing, and as a result, some of the larger cities in the region are dealing with Rust Belt issues similar to Northern Indiana. Major universities include Purdue University, Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis, Ball State University, and Indiana State University.

Physically, the land in Central Indiana is characterized primarily by low, gently rolling hills and shallow valleys. Some counties of the region, like Howard County, are more flat in nature, while others, such as Morgan County are more rugged and hilly, while Tippecanoe County, trisected by the Wabash River, Tippecanoe River, and Wildcat Creek, has perhaps the most diverse physiography of the region. Elevation ranges from 600 to 1,000 feet (180 to 300 metres) (and more) above sea level. Forests and farmland line Central Indiana's gently rolling plains and river valleys. The highest point in Indiana is Hoosier Hill, at 1,257 feet (383 m) above sea level in northern Wayne County.

The state capital and largest city, Indianapolis, is situated in the central portion of the state. It is intersected by numerous Interstates, U.S. highways, and railways giving the state its motto as "The Crossroads of America". Other large cities and located within the area include Anderson, Carmel, Columbus, Kokomo, Lafayette, Richmond, and Terre Haute.

Rural areas in the central portion of the state are typically composed of a patchwork of fields and forested areas. The geography of Central Indiana consists of gently rolling hills and sandstone ravines carved out by the retreating glaciers. Many of these ravines can be found in west-central Indiana, specifically along Sugar Creek in Turkey Run State Park and Shades State Park.

Southern Indiana

Main article: Southern Indiana

See also: Southwestern Indiana and Louisville metropolitan area

Highlighted are the counties of Southern Indiana.

Evansville, the third largest city in Indiana, is located in the southwestern corner of the state. It is located in a tri-state area that includes Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky. The south-central cities of Clarksville, Jeffersonville, and New Albany are part of the Louisville metropolitan area. Vincennes, founded by French traders in 1732 and the oldest settlement in the state, is located on the Wabash River as served as the first capital of the Indiana Territory. Vincennes is also home of the Pantheon Theatre. Indiana was settled from its southern periphery northward; many more of its oldest settlements, including its first capital, Corydon, are in southern Indiana. Until 1950, the United States Census found the center of population to lie in southern Indiana.

Southern Indiana is a mixture of farmland, forest and very hilly areas, especially near Louisville and in the south central lime hills areas. The Hoosier National Forest is a 200,000-acre (810 km²) nature preserve in south central Indiana. Southern Indiana's topography is more varied than that in the north and generally contains more hills and geographic variation than the northern portion, such as the "Knobs," a series of 1,000 ft (300 m) hills that run parallel to the Ohio River in south-central Indiana. The bottomlands of Indiana, where the Wabash and Ohio converge, hosts numerous plant and animal species normally found in the Lower Mississippi and Gulf Coast region of the United States. Brown County is well known for its hills covered with colorful autumn foliage, the former home of T. C. Steele, and Nashville, the county seat and shopping destination. Harrison and Crawford Counties boast three of the state's most popular commercial caves at Wyandotte, Marengo, and Squire Boone Caverns.

The limestone geology of Southern Indiana has created numerous caves and one of the largest limestone quarry regions in the United States. Many of Indiana's official buildings, such as the Indiana Statehouse, the downtown monuments, the Indiana University School of Law in Indianapolis, many buildings at Indiana University Bloomington, and the Indiana Government Center, are all examples of Indiana architecture made with Indiana limestone. Indiana limestone has also been used in many other famous structures in the United States, such as the Empire State Building, the Pentagon, and the Washington National Cathedral. In addition, 35 of the 50 state capitols are made of Indiana limestone.

Physiography

Indiana is broken up into three main physical regions: The Great Lakes Plain in the northern third of the state, the Tipton Till Plain in the central third, and the Southern Hills and Lowlands region in the southern third.

See also

• Indiana
• Midwestern United States