Highland, Lake County, Indiana

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Coordinates: 41°32′59″N, 87°27′29″W
Town of Highland, Indiana
Location in the state of Indiana
County	Lake
Government
- Town Council President	Daniel E. Dernulc
Area
- City	17.8 km² (6.9 sq mi)
- Land	17.8 km² (6.9 sq mi)
- Water	0.1 km² (0 sq mi)
Population (2000)
- City	23,546
- Density	1,323.3/km² (3,427.3/sq mi)
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
- Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Website: www.highland.in.gov

Highland is a town in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 23,546 at the 2000 census. It was incorporated on April 4, 1910. Highland is a southeastern suburb of Chicago, Illinois.

1 History
2 The "Deluge of 9-13"
3 Geography
4 Demographics
5 Transportation
6 Education
7 The Battle of The Bridge
8 External links

[edit] History

In 1847, two pioneers, Michael and Judith Johnston, became Highland's first settlers (Judith Johnston Elementary School is named in her honor). The current area of the town was nearly completely submerged, save for a large sandy ridge. The name "Highland" developed from this feature. Today, Ridge Road runs along that strip of land. Most of the town is flood-prone

The town slowly expanded until 1880, when the arriving railroad brought Dutch settlers. 304 people resided in Highland when it was incorporated in 1910.

[edit] The "Deluge of 9-13"

On September 13, 2006, heavy rains caused what became know as the "Deluge of 9-13." Kids at the high school and middle school call it "The Great Flood." Nearly six inches of rain fell on Highland and neighboring towns in less than nine hours; Highland and Griffith were hardest hit. Areas along the Little Calumet River and Cady Marsh Ditch were under as much as four feet of water. Students from Southridge Elementary School had to be evacuated by boat. As many as 70 houses along the "Little Cal" were flooded and six homes collapsed.

Governor Mitch Daniels declared a State of Disaster Emergency on September 14 for Lake County. According to a letter sent to President Bush requesting assistance, over 70% of Highland homes were affected by the flood.

The houses that weren't affected by the disaster were the houses along Ridge Road, or U.S. Route 6, because this is the highest point for both Highland and Griffith. Houses a block or two away from the ridge got up to six feet of water in their basements, and some even had up to a couple inches on their main floors. Everything past this point was the same if not worse. It was the worst disaster in Highland since the blizzard of 1998.

No houses in Meadows Subdivision (South of Cady Marsh Ditch, North of 45th St, West of US 41, and East of the Munster/Highland border were flooded by the disaster.

Shops in Highland, Indiana (2nd St. & Highway Av.)

[edit] Geography

Highland is located at 41°32′59″N, 87°27′29″W (41.549851, -87.458064)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 17.8 km² (6.9 mi²). 17.8 km² (6.9 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (0.29%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 23,546 people, 9,636 households, and 6,677 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,323.3/km² (3,428.3/mi²). There were 9,925 housing units at an average density of 557.8/km² (1,445.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 94.45% White, 1.26% African American, 0.15% Native American, 1.10% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.80% from other races, and 1.21% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.61% of the population.

Ancestries: German (22.5%), Polish (17.6%), Irish (14.9%), English (9.2%), Dutch (6.8%), Italian (6.4%).

There were 9,636 households out of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.5% were married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.7% were non-families. 26.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the town the population was spread out with 21.5% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 92.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.2 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $51,297, and the median income for a family was $59,106. Males had a median income of $46,217 versus $28,635 for females. The per capita income for the town was $24,530. About 1.8% of families and 3.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.4% of those under age 18 and 3.7% of those age 65 or over.

The southern portion of Highland, bordering Munster, has a much higher median household income- $87,802.

[edit] Transportation

The commercial airport closest to Highland is the Gary/Chicago International Airport in Gary, but most Highland residents and visitors travel from Chicago's O'Hare International Airport or Chicago Midway International Airport.

Highland lies just south of the Borman Expressway. Due to proximity to Chicago, many other highways are within a 20 mile radius. U.S. Route 41 also runs through the town, locally known as Indianapolis Boulevard.

[edit] Education

School Town of Highland, the town's public school system, operates one high school (Highland High School), one middle school, and four elementary schools (formerly six). The area where one of the now-defunct schools once stood was marked by a gazebo, which was demolished in October 2006, and is currently being rebuilt. It and the surrounding grass and playground is named Main Square Park, after Highland Main School which stood on the site until the early 1970s. The other defunct school, Lincoln Elementary, was converted into a community center in the early 1980s.

In addition, Highland is home to Our Lady of Grace, an elementary and middle Catholic school, and Highland Christian School (elementary to middle school as well).

[edit] The Battle of The Bridge

The Highland Munster Rivalry in football is one of Northwest Indiana's finest. The series was dominated by Munster, unil recently when Highland won two games in three years. Because of this, the rivalry has been revived. When the winning team wins they get to paint the Bridge, which spans between Highland and Munster. Joe Stanisz became the first punter in the storied rivalry to punt a negative yard punt during a Bridge Game.