Ports of Indiana History

It all began when visionary leaders decided that Indiana should invest in an emerging mode of freight transportation by developing an intermodal port that could generate significant economic rewards for Northwest Indiana and the entire state. The year was 1961.

The Great Lakes had just opened to international ships and the "port issue" was a hotly debated topic. State leaders determined an organization with greater authority than the Indiana Board of Public Harbors and Terminals was needed to develop the state's first port. So, in 1961, the Indiana Port Commission, known today as the Ports of Indiana, was created by state legislature as a governor-appointed, bipartisan, quasi-state enterprise. It took most of the decade to establish, construct and develop the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor, which opened in 1970.

In 1969, the organization's authority was extended as the state invested in another emerging mode of freight transportation - barge shipping - by developing two Ohio River ports. The Port of Indiana-Mount Vernon welcomed its first tenant in 1976 and the Port of Indiana-Jeffersonville, located across the Ohio River from Louisville, opened for business in 1985.

Today, the Ports of Indiana system handles more than $1.5 billion in waterborne cargo per year and provides annual intermodal exchanges for 150 ships, 3,500 barges, 40,000 railcars and 600,000 trucks. Private companies have invested $1.4 billion in distribution and manufacturing facilities at the ports, generating $3.5 billion in annual economic impact and 23,000 total jobs. Overall, the state invested $90 million constructing the ports - meaning that every state dollar has generated more than $15 in additional onsite investments in addition to extensive development surrounding the ports.

Here are some milestones in the Ports of Indiana history:

Ports of Indiana Timeline

2008	-	The Indiana General Assembly and Gov. Mitch Daniels pass legislation officially changing the name of the Indiana Port Commission to Ports of Indiana. (July 1)
2007	-	The Port of Indiana-Mount Vernon's landscape changes as Aventine Renewable Energy breaks ground on what will be a $400 million, 116-acre ethanol plant - the state's largest. (July)
2006	-	The Ports of Indiana breaks the previous year's record with a new all-time high of $1.89 billion in cargo shipments.
	-	New study shows Indiana's ports contribute $3.5 billion annually to state economy and 23,000 jobs.
2005	-	The Ports of Indiana handles a record-setting $1.5 billion in cargo.
2004	-	All three of Indiana's ports set new shipping records Port of Indiana-Mount Vernon: 102,000 tons of steel. Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor: 154 ships. Port of Indiana-Jeffersonville: 15,900 rail cars (up20% from previous record).
2003	-	Gov. Frank O'Bannon and Indiana General Assembly pass new legislation allowing Ports of Indiana to offer statewide development financing and to develop intermodal facilities anywhere in the state. (May 8)
	-	The Ports of Indiana teams up with Purdue University to host the first-ever Indiana Logistics Summit. (September)
	-	The Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor ships 50-millionth ton since opening in 1969. (November)
2002	-	Gov. Frank O'Bannon dedicates a new $5 million dock - Berth #9 - at the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor. (August 28)
1990s
1996	-	The Ports of Indiana website www.portsofindiana.com goes live.
1995	-	A $13 million project begins at Burns Harbor to redesign the breakwater and create a new underwater segmented reef to reduce wave force on the breakwater. (June)
1994	-	The opening of I-265 provides direct interstate access to the Port of Indiana-Jeffersonville.
1991	-	Port of Indiana-Mount Vernon is formally designated as a Foreign-Trade Zone by the U.S. Department of Commerce. (March)
1980s
1986	-	After opening its third port, the Indiana Port Commission begins to market itself as the Ports of Indiana.
1985	-	Jeffersonville port handles its first shipments when 100-ton automobile presses arrive from West Germany. (August)
1984	-	Organization moves its headquarters from Portage to downtown Indianapolis in order to increase visibility and better communicate the centralization of the three ports. (June)
1982	-	The organization breaks ground for a third port in Jeffersonville, Ind.
1970s
1979	-	Cargill Inc., a grain trader and food processing company, breaks ground on a $21 million grain elevator at the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor with a 3.4 million bushel storage capacity that is capable of loading grain into ships for export to foreign markets.
1976	-	The Mount Vernon port welcomes its first tenant, the Triple T Fertilizer Co. of Vincennes, Ind.
1973	-	The Indiana General Assembly appropriates $1.75 million for initial land acquisitions for a Jeffersonville port.
	-	The formal groundbreaking ceremony at Mount Vernon celebrates Indiana's first Ohio River port, located in an area with high, flat, flood-resistant land. (June 1)
1971	-	The Indiana General Assembly votes to provide an initial $1 million grant for the Ohio River port project in Mount Vernon.
1970	-	Hoosiers celebrate the official dedication of the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor. Tours of the facilities are given by boat while a lucky few get to view the port from the Goodyear Blimp. (July)
1950s & 1960s
1969	-	Through the work of representatives from Vanderburgh and Posey counties, the organization's powers are broadened to allow the establishment of a port bordering the Ohio River.
	-	The Levy Co. of Detroit becomes the first port tenant at the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor.
	-	The SS Lehigh, a Bethlehem Steel ore boat, becomes the first ship to use the Burns Harbor port. (September 11)
1966	-	The formal groundbreaking ceremony for Indiana's first public port brings approximately 650 people from industry, labor and government to the Burns Harbor/Portage facility. (October 10)
1962	-	Bethlehem Steel opens a plant on Lake Michigan, next to what would become the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor.
1961	-	The Burns Ditch area in Porter County is formally selected as the site for Indiana's first public port. (May 18)
	-	Commissioners are sworn in at the first meeting of the Indiana Port Commission held at the Spa Restaurant in Porter County. (April 10)
	-	Gov. Matthew Welsh and the Indiana General Assembly approve legislation establishing the Indiana Port Commission (now known as the Ports of Indiana), which replaces the Indiana Board of Public Harbors and Terminals. (March 2)
1959	-	Linking the Great Lakes to global markets, the completed St. Lawrence Seaway begins operation with more than 15 major ports on the Great Lakes.
1957	-	The Indiana General Assembly appropriates $2 million for land acquisition at the Burns Ditch area in Porter County.
Indiana's Maritime Origins
1939	-	The Indiana Board of Public Harbors and Terminals (IBPHT) is established to negotiate with the government regarding land acquisition and construction of a public port.
1926	-	To develop suitable land for housing and industry, Randall W. Burns heads the effort to build a drainage ditch that enters Lake Michigan. Upon completion, Burns Ditch in Porter County drains a total of 400 square miles of marshland from the area.
1860	-	The Wabash and Erie Canal closes south of Terre Haute due to competition with the thriving railroad industry. Frequent flood damage and increasing maintenance costs make the Canal difficult to sustain and it shuts down completely in 1874 - remaining areas were sold at auction in 1876.
1853	-	The completed Wabash and Erie Canal links Lake Erie and the Ohio River by approximately 460 miles of canal, the longest ever built in the United States. The Indiana portion stretches from Fort Wayne to the southern tip at Evansville.
1816	-	Before Indiana becomes a state, Congress moves the northern boundary 10 miles north into Lake Michigan, opening the option for a future port.
1803	-	On their way to explore the Louisiana Purchase, William Clark and Meriwether Lewis meet in what would be later be named Clark County, Ind., future home of the Port of Indiana-Jeffersonville, which was originally called "Clark Maritime Centre."
1787	-	A landmark document, the Northwest Ordinance, calls for the eventual organization of the Northwest Territories into separate states and allows for free travel on the navigable waterways. (July 13)