Ogden Dunes

History

Samuel Reck purchased the land from the estate of Francis Ogden in 1923. The town was platted a year later. The town had 50 residents in 1930. By the 1950s, there were almost 800 residents and 1,000 in 1991. The town was incorporated in 1925 to establish long term right of way across the New York Central Railroad tracks. The developers planned to create a resort community with a golf course, clubhouse and hotel. As development lagged, plans were dropped. Sand roads served the community until cinders placed on main street in 1931. In the later 1920s, Ogden Dunes was noted for having the largest ski jump in the country. International skiing competitions were held on this 30-story high, 500-foot long slide until it was dismantled in 1932. In 1927, the Grand Beach Ski Club, later the Ogden Dunes Ski Club, bought a piece of land on one of the high dunes in the town. They constructed a -tall ski jump. The first meet was held on January 22, 1928. For the next four years, meets were held in Ogden Dunes. The longest jump ever reported on this structure was 195 feet. In 1932, the Norwegian Olympic Team of Birger Rund, Hans Beck, and Kaare Wahlberg (gold, silver, and bronze medalists) came to Ogden Dunes to try the tower. During the Great Depression the Ski Club had financial setbacks; combined with little snow, the club looked to sell the tower. *In 1935, a ski club in Rockford, Illinois, purchased the tower and moved it that summer. The Rockford Ski Club built ski jump at along the Kishwaukee River (Rockford Rotary County Forest Preserve) near the end 1920's. It was expanded in 1936 by adding the steel inrun tower from Ogden Dunes. *Moving the tower was repeated a third time in 1955 when the tower was moved to Eau Claire, Wisconsin and erected at Hendrickson Hill along the…

Geography

According to the 2010 census, Ogden Dunes has a total area of , of which (or 50.68%) is land and (or 49.32%) is water. Ogden Dunes is in Portage Township, Porter County, Indiana. It is an exclusively a residential community. Neighboring Ogden Dunes are several similar enclaves within Indiana Dunes National Park: Miller Beach to the west, Beverly Shores and Dune Acres to the east. Like Ogden Dunes, a considerable portion of the residences in these communities are occupied as summer or weekend homes by Chicagoans.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  14,025
• Red-winged Blackbird

  Agelaius phoeniceus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  13,277
• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  13,176
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  13,090
• American Goldfinch

  Spinus tristis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  12,126
• Canada Goose (canadensis Group)

  Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  10,450
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  10,308
• Downy Woodpecker

  Dryobates pubescens (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  10,168

Largest nearby schools

• Portage High School
  High · Portage · 2,243 students · 19:1 ratio
• Chesterton Senior High School
  High · Chesterton · 1,981 students · 20.2:1 ratio
• Willowcreek Middle School
  Middle · Portage · 949 students · 15.6:1 ratio
• Chesterton Middle School
  Middle · Chesterton · 884 students · 17.7:1 ratio
• William Fegely Middle School
  Middle · Portage · 633 students · 15.8:1 ratio
• Discovery Charter School
  Elementary · Porter · 569 students · 16.7:1 ratio
• Liberty Elementary School
  Elementary · Chesterton · 496 students · 16.5:1 ratio
• Westchester Intermediate School
  Middle · Chesterton · 478 students · 17.1:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.9 — 2026-07-08
  21 km ENE of Kenilworth, Illinois
• M 3.2 — 2013-11-04
  1 km SSW of Lyons, Illinois