•  Gary’s Genesis Convention Center, a modern structure featuring rounded corners and an imposing glass wall across the front, is well worth viewing.
• Built in 1921, the Gary Bathing Beach Aquatorium is one of the first examples of modular block construction in the world.
•  Other notable buildings include the old City Methodist Church, a massive Gothic structure of limestone completed in 1926. Recently, well known for its photogenic value.
•  The old Westside neighborhood historic district, part of the company town built by U.S. Steel Corporation in 1906, which reflects a variety of architectural styles.

• The Indiana Dunes extend intermittently along the lakeshore from Gary to Michigan City, Indiana. Poet Carl Sandburg described the dunes as being “to the Midwest what the Grand Canyon is to Arizona and Yosemite is to California. They constitute a signature of time and eternity.” The dunes, home to woodland hiking and miles of sandy beaches, have been recognized as a national treasure by the U.S. Congress. The Paul H. Douglas Environmental Center at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore provides an opportunity to learn about the disciplines of ecology and environmental science. Also at the dunes is the Bailly Homestead, which offers a look at pioneer and Native American life, and the Chellberg Farm, where visitors may catch a glimpse of turn-of-the-century farming.
•  James Reed Nature Play Park in honor of the late resident who devoted a lot of his own time to maintain the green space in the Midtown section of the city. Reed served as Fourth District Captain with the Gary Democratic Precinct Organization. The park pays tribute to Gary’s ecological heritage with elements that are designed to remind visitors of Lake Michigan’s beach, dune and swale, oak savanna and other natural features. The park is home to the city’s largest community garden.

Gary SouthShore RailCats
Professional, independent league baseball is played by Gary’s SouthShore RailCats www.railcatsbaseball.com. Home games are played at the beautiful Steel Yard stadium.

•  Lake Etta Park offers 70 acres of open space with a stocked fishing lake, a fish cleaning station, a fishing pier, concession, a swimming beach, a playground, picnic shelters, walking trails, and paddle boats.
•  Gary has fifty-one other parks, including North Gleason Park, Marquette Park and Beach, and Wells Street Beach. Northwest Indiana has more than one hundred privately and publicly run golf courses, including Gary’s Calumet Golf Club and South Gleason Golf Course.
•  The Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore Park preserves over 12,000 acres in its natural splendor, and offers swimming, fishing, hiking, picnicking and horseback riding along the miles of sandy beaches on Lake Michigan.