La Porte, Indiana and Its Environs

Originally part of the Pottawatomie Nation, the northern Indiana area of La Porte, which is French for "The Door," was named for the access it provided settlers who passed westward into the Calumet River valley. Now known as "The Maple City" for its many beautiful and colorful trees, La Porte boasts a rich and varied history. From its beginnings in 1833 when the city's founding fathers donated the land for the public square, through the 1930s and beyond, La Porte has been central to the area's b