Events collections

The Mermen of Whiting

There was a time when Whiting High School was dominate in the swimming pool. But, like the mythical creature their legacy is now a thing of lore.

FATHER LACH'S 1937 EUROPEAN BAND TOUR

Imagine taking 65 boys to Europe for 84 days with three chaperones!"  So reads the introduction to a book that chronicled a tour, in the midst of the Great Depression, that left a legacy of pride for Whiting's Immaculate Conception parish and local Slovak Americans.

They Danced All Night…All Week…All Month…

They danced for 1,208 hours, which works out to fifty days and eight hours. Or, to put it another way, all they did for just over seven weeks was dance. It was a world record, and it happened right here in Whiting-Robertsdale. But even before the last couple standing stepped off the dance floor, the city of Hammond decided to ban marathon dances forever, calling them a disgrace to the city.

Hemmed in by fire

In 1897, during a crippling summer drought, blazing prairie fires nearly engulfed the new town of Whiting and its neighboring settlements, imperiling lives, homes, Standard Oil's giant, new refinery, and two of the Roby Racing Association's horse racing tracks.

From Rudy to Rockne

In 1992, Whiting was one of the locations where the movie Rudy was filmed.  Rudy is considered by many to be among the best sports movies of all time. But, this isn’t the only connection that Whiting, Indiana has with the Blue and Gold.  In 1927, legendary football coach Knute Rockne made an appearance in the city by the lake.

The Best Laid Plans...A Third Chicago Airport

Thirty years ago, how close did we come to having a major metropolitan commercial airport next door, with jets taking off and landing over our heads?

Model home sweet home

Clubs and organizations played an important role in the social lives of many of Whiting’s early residents. For some members going to the club room was like going to a second home. However in 1928 and 1930 the American Legion actually built two model homes to be raffled off.

tragedy at federated metals in 1949

Did a tragic, fatal accident at Federated Metals actually endanger hundreds, even thousands, of Whiting and Robertsdale residents?

America’s First gambling boat operated in whiting-robertsdale waters

The City of Traverse was an illegal gambling boat operated by some of Chicago’s top bookies. The waters and beaches of Whiting and Robertsdale played an important role in their attempt to evade the law.

the great alewife invasion

They came by the millions, ankle-deep on the shore, covering virtually every inch of lakefront in Whiting, Hammond, and all along Lake Michigan. And…the smell was indescribably bad.

Chautauqua

Traditionally, Summer is a time for musicians to travel a circuit around the country, stopping at ever major city to entertain the masses. In the 1920s, the United States saw a different type of traveling circuit known as Chautauqua, and Whiting, Indiana was one stop on this summer long journey.

Whiting’s 4th of july disaster

Eight men were killed in an explosion at the Standard Oil’s Whiting Refinery just minutes before the 4th of July parade was set to begin. It happened in 1921…100 years ago.

J. J. Newberry Fire

The Summer of 1980 was one to be remembered in the city of Whiting. The circus came to town, magician George Semancik broke a World Record, and a major motion picture was filmed in town. However, the fire on July 6th forever changed the landscape of 119th Street.

Whiting’s Hoosiers

In 1986, the movie Hoosiers chronicled the Cinderella story of Hickory High School and their unbelievable Indiana State Basketball Championship. Five years before the movie was released Whiting High School had their own batch of Hoosiers. Although Hollywood never made a movie about these men their story was just as remarkable.

The Deadly Train Wreck Of 1893

In 1893, a horrific, head-on collision between two trains killed thirteen people and injured dozens more just outside of Roby.

The David Dows Shipwreck

Considered to be the largest sailing vessel to navigate the Great Lakes, the David Dows met its untimely demise on November 30, 1889 off the coast of Whiting.

Battle of the Century in Whiting

Federal oil reserves, Liberty Bonds, the world’s richest man, two national scandals, Teddy Roosevelt’s Rough Riders, the Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court-- what does all of this have to do with Whiting?

Whiting’s Great Train Robbery

For two years Carl Stieler, Jr., was wanted in connection with a $234,000 mail robbery in Whiting, Indiana.  He traveled throughout the West much of this time under his own name.  He gave out Chicago, Illinois as his address. And, he spent his share of the loot $45,000, which amounts to $640,396 when adjusted to today’s dollars.  All the while he never once was questioned by any of the authorities.

Mass shooting in Whiting

Indiana is known as a basketball crazed state, but years ago local school boys put Whiting and Robertsdale on the map shooting smaller objects--marbles.

From Whiting to Williamsport

Unfortunately, there will not be a Little League World Series this year. In the meantime, why not read about the 1952 Whiting All Stars who competed at the World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

Whiting was standard oil’s second choice

Why The First Choice Didn’t Work Out

100 Images, 100 Memories of whiting’s fourth of july

It is no substitute for a parade, but looking at 100 images from 100 years may help fill some of the void this July Fourth.

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT IN WHITING'S EARLIEST DAYS

Way back before Whiting became an actual city, there was crime. In the 21st Century we may be used to reading locally about stolen cars, breaking and entering, burglaries and robberies, and drugs and drinking. While some of these crimes were committed all the time at the turn of the 19th century, a few on the list were not common.

Whiting Court is Now Adjourned

December 30 marked an important event in Whiting’s history. It was officially the last session of Whiting City Court.

Students Strike at WHS

In 1947, approximately 300 students of Whiting High School’s 520 student body went on strike because of misconceptions about attendance enforcement policies.

Whiting’s Tie to the Greatest Disaster on the Great Lakes

The wreck of the Lady Elgin.

Cops chase sky object

In November 1957 the Calumet Region had its own brush with the unknown reaches of outer space. Police officers from both Hammond and Whiting reported seeing a mysterious object in the night sky on Sunday, November 10, 1957.

The Fourth of July Parade

Whiting folk have always loved the 4th of July.  Going way back to the beginning of the 20th century, for many, America was their newly adopted home and this was its big celebration day.

The Blizzard of ‘67

It was Whiting-Robertsdale’s biggest snowfall. It paralyzed the city for days, and left many stranded. But, nobody saw it coming.

Whiting’s Christmas Star

Shining brightly atop Whiting’s biggest “Christmas Tree.”

Whiting Celebrates the End of War

The city has a “monster” celebration as World War One comes to an end, and peace returns.

Whiting’s Foreign-Born: Suspected Terrorists, Patriots and Potential Soldiers During World War One

Fighting a War from the Shores of Lake Michigan: Whiting’s Homefront in World War One

U.S. General William Tecumseh Sherman said it first: “War is hell.” He said it after the brutal and bloody American Civil War. Just over fifty years later, in the late 1910s, Americans were again discovering the truth of that simple statement. And American civilians in Whiting and other communities across the United States, were discovering that if being in combat was hell, being at home while your loved ones and friends were putting their lives on the line was a form of purgatory.

Letters Brought Joy and Sadness to Whiting in World War One

Letters were an incredibly slow way to get news from a loved one who was far away. But 100 years ago, it was all they had.

One Hundred Years Ago: Whiting Starts Paying the Price of War

An ocean, and half a continent, separated Alex Walsko from his home in Whiting. He was flat on the ground in France. Just moments earlier, a German machine gunner aimed his fire at him. One bullet hit his right shoulder. A second bullet ripped through his left forearm. A third bullet lodged in his left hip. And then there were the shrapnel wounds.

WHITING WAS NOT SPARED IN FLU EPIDEMIC
OF 1918

The world had never experienced anything like it. And, yet, it seemed to sneak up on us. Maybe we were distracted. Our attention at the time was focused on the fighting in World War One. Maybe we shrugged it off when we first heard that the flu was going around.

THE EARLY YEARS OF THE WHITING HALLOWEEN PARADE

Although permanent records are not available, there were Halloween parades in Whiting as far back as the late 1920s.

The Railroad Comes to Whiting

1852 was a key year in the history of Whiting, because that’s the year the first railroad tracks were laid on the sandy swampy land that became Whiting.