Northwestern Conference (IHSAA)


The Northwestern Conference was an IHSAA-sanctioned athletic conference involving schools from Gary, Indiana.

History

The conference was formed in 1963, after the West Division of the Northern Indiana Conference split. At this time, the conference encompassed most of the schools in Gary, Hammond, and East Chicago schools, as well as the schools from Valparaiso and Whiting.
The conference expanded to 16 schools in 1966, adding Hobart High School, as well as Gary Roosevelt, Hammond Gavit and Hammond Morton. The expansion moved the conference into divisions: the East Division consisted of the Gary schools, Hobart, and Valparaiso, the West Division consisting of the East Chicago, Hammond, and Whiting schools.
The conference changed its name to the Gary City Series in 1968, as Hobart and Valparaiso became independent, with the rest of the non-Gary schools formed the Indiana Lake Shore Conference. These schools would be replaced by parochial school Andrean, and the new Gary West Side. The next year, Gary Froebel and Tolleston closed, and the conference reverted to the Northwestern Conference moniker. Wirt would join in 1970 from the old Calumet Conference, and Andrean left to be independent in 1975.
The conference membership has decreased over the years as schools closed, with the remaining two schools forced to become independent in 2014.

Membership

Membership timeline


DateFormat = yyyy
ImageSize = width:750 height:auto barincrement:20
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width:15 textcolor:black shift: anchor:from fontsize:s
bar:1 color:red from:1963 till:1969 text:East Chicago Roosevelt
bar:2 color:red from:1963 till:1969 text:East Chicago Washington
bar:3 color:red from:1963 till:1981 text:Gary Emerson
bar:4 color:red from:1963 till:1969 text:Gary Froebel
bar:5 color:red from:1963 till:2004 text:Gary Mann
bar:6 color:red from:1963 till:1969 text:Gary Tolleston
bar:7 color:red from:1963 till:2014 text:Gary Wallace
bar:8 color:red from:1963 till:1969 text:Hammond
bar:9 color:red from:1963 till:1969 text:Hammond Clark
bar:10 color:red from:1963 till:1969 text:Hammond Tech
bar:11 color:red from:1963 till:1969 text:Valparaiso
bar:12 color:red from:1963 till:1969 text:Whiting
bar:13 color:red from:1966 till:end text:Gary Roosevelt
bar:14 color:red from:1966 till:1969 text:Hammond Gavit
bar:15 color:red from:1966 till:1969 text:Hammond Morton
bar:16 color:red from:1966 till:1969 text:Hobart
bar:17 color:red from:1968 till:1976 text:Gary Andrean
bar:18 color:red from:1968 till:end text:Gary West Side
bar:19 color:red from:1970 till:2009 text:Gary Wirt
ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:5 start:1963
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text:"Northwestern Conference Membership History"

Resources