Historically, this little corner of the state was the last area to be settled due to natural barriers and its swampy terrain at the southern tip of Lake Michigan. In the early days, the outsiders who were mostly interested in the Calumet Region were money-motivated industrialists and beauty-seeking botanists. As I've written many times, "Da Region" isn't only a popular slang term or home to the 219 area code.
It's an attitude. It's a calling card. It's a reputation.
(Read this column at NWI.com under a search for my name.) When you tell outsiders where you live, do you describe it as The Region? Do they actually know what this means? Do they already have a preconceived stereotype of who we are? "Ever since I have lived in the Region, I always thought I was in it.
But if you talk with people outside the Region, they don't think Portage is located in the Region," said Portage Mayor Austin Bonta. His insight, which I've heard from other Northwest Indiana residents through the years, is what prompted today's column. Since our discussion, I began asking this question to people who live in other parts of the state: What cities come to mind when you hear the Region? "Gary," one person replied.
"Hammond," another one said. "East Chicago," I was told. I began wondering how many other cities and towns here are considered part of the Region, or not.
How about Michigan City? Dyer? Chesterton? Valparaiso? Merrillville? Lowell? Crown Point? The list goes on. Perception is reality for most .