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Counties: Lake County Lake County Area: 497 square miles Location: Extreme northwestern Indiana, bordered on the north by Lake Michigan, to the east by Porter County, to the southeast by Jasper County, to the south by Newton County, and to the west by Illinois. Population: 484,564 (2000 Census) 1860 1870 1880 1890 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 9,136 12,339 15,091 23,886 37,892 82,864 159,957 261,310 293,195 368,152 513,269 546,253 522,965 475,594 484,564 Cities & Towns: Gary (2000 population = 102,746), Hammond (83,048), East Chicago (32,414), Merrillville (30,560), Hobart (25,363), Schererville (24,851), Highland (23,546), Munster (21,511), Crown Point (County Seat, 19,806), Griffith (17,334), Lake Station (13,948), Dyer (13,895), Cedar Lake (9,279), St. John (8,382), Lowell (7,505), Whiting (5,137), Winfield (2,298), New Chicago (2,063), Schneider (317). Named For: Lake Michigan Topography: The divide between the Mississippi River and St. Lawrence River drainages crosses Lake County along an east-west line that passes south of Crown Point. The Little Calumet River drains to Lake Michigan, while southern portions of the county drain into the Kankakee River. Much of the lakefront has been altered for industrial purposes, but remnants of the dunes and swales that ring Lake Michigan still exist. The pre-settlement vegetation consisted primarily of deciduous hardwoods and prairie grasses. Attractions: Golf Courses · Hoosier Prairie Nature Preserve · Majestic Star Casino Notable Natives: Astronaut Frank Borman, entertainers Janet Jackson and Michael Jackson, football player Alex Karras, actor Karl Malden, operatic tenor James McCracken, and Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Samuelson. Economy: Heavy industry predominates, particularly steel manufacture.