Whiting, Indiana

Infobox Settlement
official_name = City of Whiting
native_name =
settlement_type = City
nickname =
motto =

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mapsize = 250x200px
map_caption = Location in the state of Indiana


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subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_name1 = Indiana
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 = Lake
government_type =
leader_title = Mayor
leader_name = Joseph M. Stahura (D)
leader_title1 =
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area_magnitude = 1 E6
area_total_km2 = 8.5
area_total_sq_mi = 3.3
area_land_km2 = 4.6
area_land_sq_mi = 1.8
area_water_km2 = 3.9
area_water_sq_mi = 1.5
area_water_percent = 46.34
area_urban_km2 =
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population_as_of = 2000
population_note =
population_total = 5137
population_density_km2 = 1126.9
population_density_sq_mi = 2914.1
population_metro =
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timezone = CST
utc_offset = -6
timezone_DST = CDT
utc_offset_DST = -5
latd = 41 |latm = 40 |lats = 34 |latNS = N
longd = 87 |longm = 29 |longs = 26 |longEW = W
elevation_m = 179
elevation_ft = 587
postal_code_type = ZIP code
postal_code = 46394
website =
area_code = 219
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 18-84122GR|2
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 0445988GR|3
footnotes = Whiting is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. Whiting is located on the southern shore of Lake Michigan. It is about 16 miles from the Chicago Loop and just short of two miles from Chicago's South Side. Whiting is also home to the largest oil refinery in the Midwest. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_oil_refineries#Indiana] The population was 5,137 at the 2000 census.

Geography

Whiting is located at coor dms|41|40|34|N|87|29|26|W|city (41.676027, -87.490460)GR|1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.3 square miles (8.5 km²), of which, 1.8 square miles (4.6 km²) of it is land and 1.5 square miles (3.9 km²) of it (46.34%) is water.

The Whiting post office (46394) serves not only the City of Whiting, but also the adjacent Hammond neighborhood of Robertsdale, immediately to the west. Addresses in this Hammond neighborhood show “Whiting, Indiana.” While not legally a part of the City of Whiting, locally the area has long been informally considered to be a culturally integrated part of Whiting. References to Whiting businesses or residents often include those technically from Hammond’s Robertsdale. [ [http://www.whitingcommunity.com/history.htm Whiting History ] ] [ [http://www.whitingindiana.com/about_the_chamber.shtml Whiting, Indiana - Chamber of Commerce ] ] [ [http://www.fieldmuseum.org/calumet/Hammond.html Journey Through Calumet - Place ] ]

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 5,137 people, 2,091 households, and 1,281 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,914.1 people per square mile (1,126.9/km²). There were 2,313 housing units at an average density of 1,312.1/sq mi (507.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 87.37% White, 0.56% African American, 0.29% Native American, 0.91% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 9.09% from other races, and 1.69% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 25.56% of the population.

Largest ancestries: Slovak (18.0%), Polish (17.1%), Irish (16.3%), German (11.5%), English (5.8%), Italian (5.2%). The proportion of Whiting's population claiming Slovak ancestryis among the highest in the United States.

There were 2,091 households out of which 30.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.3% were married couples living together, 15.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.7% were non-families. 33.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 3.18.

In the city the population was spread out with 26.0% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 30.7% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 15.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 92.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $34,972, and the median income for a family was $40,994. Males had a median income of $33,565 versus $21,981 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,518. About 10.1% of families and 12.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.5% of those under age 18 and 9.1% of those age 65 or over.

Education

School City of Whiting serves Whiting. Whiting High School is the sole high school serving Whiting.

Notes of interest

Pierogi Fest is held each year on 119th Street in downtown Whiting to honor the venerable pierogi dumpling. Spanning over three 3 days on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday during late July, the event draws in crowds from around the Calumet Region with guests coming from all over the globe.

The nearest airport serving Whiting is Gary/Chicago International Airport.

Roby Tap was a legendary tavern within a suburb of the city that was finally torn down in 1999 to make room for an expansion of the Horseshoe Casino at the nearby marina. A popular watering hole for the workers at the nearby American Maize and Lever Brothers Soap factories as well as surrounding steel mills, it was founded in 1941. Longtime bartender Michael Smaluk and his wife his Margaret (who created the extremely popular Roby Tap Chili) ran the tavern until its eventual demolition in 1999.

Whiting is home to the fourth largest oil refinery in the nation, run by BP. This site began operating in the 1890s, and was the first refinery owned by Standard Oil of Indiana, which went on to became Amoco before it merged with BP. Recently, this BP refinery has received criticism for permits it has been granted to release 1,584 pounds of ammonia and 4,925 pounds of suspended solids (including mercury) into Lake Michigan daily. [ [http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-bp25jul25,1,5876509.story?ctrack=3&cset=true BP takes lumps on Hill - National Government, Chicago, Michael Hawthorne - chicagotribune.com ] ] The permits were issued as BP continues to invest $3 billion to modernize the Whiting Refinery to process Canadian Crude.

Was featured in an episode of MTV's "High School Stories".

Scenes from the movie "Rudy", staring Sean Astin, as well as the 1981 drama "Four Friends", were shot in Whiting.

External links

* [http://whitingindiana.com/ Whiting's official website]
* [http://www.pierogifest.net/ Pierogi Festival website]

References