The Calumet River refers to a system of heavily industrialized river

River

A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...

s and canals in the region between the neighborhood of South Chicago

South Chicago, Chicago

South Chicago, formerly known as Ainsworth, is one of the 77 well-defined community areas of Chicago, Illinois.This chevron-shaped community is one of Chicago's 16 lakefront neighborhoods near the southern rim of Lake Michigan 10 miles south of downtown...

 in Chicago, Illinois, and the city of Gary, Indiana

Gary, Indiana

Gary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The city is in the southeastern portion of the Chicago metropolitan area and is 25 miles from downtown Chicago. The population is 80,294 at the 2010 census, making it the seventh-largest city in the state. It borders Lake Michigan and is known...

.
The name "Calumet" refers to the calumet, an elaborate pipe that served as a universal sign of peace among the Illiniwek

Illiniwek

The Illinois Confederation, sometimes referred to as the Illiniwek or Illini, were a group of twelve to thirteen Native American tribes in the upper Mississippi River valley of North America...

, and which was presented to Pere Marquette

Jacques Marquette

Father Jacques Marquette S.J. , sometimes known as Père Marquette, was a French Jesuit missionary who founded Michigan's first European settlement, Sault Ste. Marie, and later founded St. Ignace, Michigan...

 in 1673.

The area is extremely flat and the course and even the direction of the river system has changed repeatedly.