Glenwood Shoreline
Encyclopedia
The Glenwood Shoreline is an ancient shoreline of the precursor to Lake Michigan
, Lake Chicago
. It is named after the town of Glenwood, Illinois
. The shoreline was formed when the lake was higher during the last Ice Age
when ice blocked the Straits of Mackinac
and after the straits were freed the lake receded and left behind a sand ridge at about 640' where the shore resided. This ridge can be seen clearly in Glenwood, Illinois, Dyer, Indiana
, and Schererville, Indiana
, all south of Chicago
.
for many years before it again began to recede northward. Around 12,000 BCE the glacier began receding north of the Valparaiso Moraine. The melt waters began to form a lake between the southern front of the glacier and the moraine, which acted as a dam. The water collected until it found a low spot in the moraine, near modern Palos Hills, Illinois
. Here, it topped the moraine and began cutting an outlet. At around 640 feet (195.1 m), it stopped cutting downward and a stable lake formed.
. Beginning in Dyer, Indiana
along U.S. 30. The beach continues eastward from where U.S. 30 bends southward just east of U.S. 41. Just north of downtown Merrillville
it ends. The next segment can be found west of State Route 51 in Hobart, along the southern flank of Deep River
.
Leaving Lake County, the beach turns northward. The next visible area is along Salt Creek in Porter County. It is visible on the northern bank from just north of I-80/90, southward across State Route 149. The largest area is just south of downtown Chesterton, Indiana. It extends about 1 miles (1.6 km) east and west of Old SR 49.
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...
, Lake Chicago
Lake Chicago
This article is about the prehistoric lake, For other geographic features with this name, see ChicagoLake Chicago was a prehistoric proglacial lake that is the ancestor of what is now known as Lake Michigan, one of North America's five Great Lakes....
. It is named after the town of Glenwood, Illinois
Glenwood, Illinois
Glenwood is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 9,000 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Glenwood is located at ....
. The shoreline was formed when the lake was higher during the last Ice Age
Ice age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
when ice blocked the Straits of Mackinac
Straits of Mackinac
The Straits of Mackinac is the strip of water that connects two of the Great Lakes, Lake Michigan and Lake Huron, and separates the Lower Peninsula of Michigan from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It is a shipping lane providing passage for raw materials and finished goods, connecting, for...
and after the straits were freed the lake receded and left behind a sand ridge at about 640' where the shore resided. This ridge can be seen clearly in Glenwood, Illinois, Dyer, Indiana
Dyer, Indiana
As of the census of 2010, there were 16,390 people residing in the town. The population density was 2,731.67 people per square mile . There were 6,125 housing units at an average density of 1,020.83 per square mile...
, and Schererville, Indiana
Schererville, Indiana
Schererville is a town in St. John Township, Lake County, Indiana, United States. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. The population was 29,243 at the 2010 census.- History :...
, all south of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
.
Development
The Michigan Lobe of the continental glacier had been growing and receding since 70,000 BCE (before common era, i.e., AD). The glacier had been static along the Valparaiso MoraineValparaiso Moraine
The Valparaiso Moraine is a terminal moraine around the Lake Michigan basin in North America. It is a band of high, hilly terrain made up of glacial till and sand that reaches an elevation of near 300 feet above the level of Lake Michigan at its maximum height in Indiana and 17 miles wide at its...
for many years before it again began to recede northward. Around 12,000 BCE the glacier began receding north of the Valparaiso Moraine. The melt waters began to form a lake between the southern front of the glacier and the moraine, which acted as a dam. The water collected until it found a low spot in the moraine, near modern Palos Hills, Illinois
Palos Hills, Illinois
Palos Hills is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is a suburb of Chicago. The population was 17,665 at the 2000 census. It is the home of Moraine Valley Community College as well as Amos Alonzo Stagg High School.-Geography:...
. Here, it topped the moraine and began cutting an outlet. At around 640 feet (195.1 m), it stopped cutting downward and a stable lake formed.
Where to see the shoreline
The beach name comes from Glenwood, IllinoisGlenwood, Illinois
Glenwood is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 9,000 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Glenwood is located at ....
. Beginning in Dyer, Indiana
Dyer, Indiana
As of the census of 2010, there were 16,390 people residing in the town. The population density was 2,731.67 people per square mile . There were 6,125 housing units at an average density of 1,020.83 per square mile...
along U.S. 30. The beach continues eastward from where U.S. 30 bends southward just east of U.S. 41. Just north of downtown Merrillville
Merrillville, Indiana
Merrillville is a town in Ross Township, Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 35,246 at the 2010 census. Merrillville is located in the east-central portion of Lake County.-Geography:Merrillville is located at ....
it ends. The next segment can be found west of State Route 51 in Hobart, along the southern flank of Deep River
Deep River
-Rivers:* The Deep River , a minor tributary of the English River in the United States* The Deep River , in the United States* The Deep River , a minor tributary of the Columbia River in the U.S...
.
Leaving Lake County, the beach turns northward. The next visible area is along Salt Creek in Porter County. It is visible on the northern bank from just north of I-80/90, southward across State Route 149. The largest area is just south of downtown Chesterton, Indiana. It extends about 1 miles (1.6 km) east and west of Old SR 49.
See also
- Calumet ShorelineCalumet ShorelineThe Calumet Shoreline is an ancient shoreline of Lake Michigan located in the Lake Michigan Basin. It can be clearly seen as a sand ridge along Ridge Road south of Chicago. Closer to the lake from the Calumet Shoreline, there are the Tolleston shorelines and farther from the lake are the Glenwood...
- Tinley MoraineTinley MoraineThe Tinley Moraine is a moraine around the Lake Michigan basin in North America. It was formed during the Wisconsin Glaciation and is younger than the higher and wider terminal moraine called the Valparaiso Moraine farther from the lake than it. Compared to the Valparaiso Moraine, the Tinley...
- Valparaiso MoraineValparaiso MoraineThe Valparaiso Moraine is a terminal moraine around the Lake Michigan basin in North America. It is a band of high, hilly terrain made up of glacial till and sand that reaches an elevation of near 300 feet above the level of Lake Michigan at its maximum height in Indiana and 17 miles wide at its...
- Kankakee Outwash PlainKankakee Outwash PlainThe Kankakee Outwash Plain is a flat plain in the Kankakee River valley in northwestern Indiana and northeastern Illinois. It is just south of the Valparaiso Moraine. It was formed during the Wisconsin Glaciation. As the glacier, stopped at the Valparaiso Moraine, melted, the meltwater was carried...