These Are The 10 Most Miserable Cities In Indiana

Do you live in one of the most miserable places in Indiana?

According to a Harris Poll taken in October of 2015, only a third of Americans say they are truly happy. That’s too bad, considering that Americans – especially folks in Indiana – don’t really have it too bad, in the grand scheme of things.

But, we were curious – which Indiana cities might be the most miserable? We’re about to find out, using science and data.

After analyzing the largest cities, we sadly present the most miserable cities in the Hoosier State:

1. Gary (Photos)
2. East Chicago (Photos)
3. Anderson (Photos)
4. Connersville (Photos)
5. Hammond (Photos)
6. Dunkirk
7. Union City (Photos)
8. North Vernon
9. Elkhart (Photos)
10. New Castle (Photos)

Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your town ranked. If you have a smile on your face, you probably don’t live in one of these cities.

Oh, and by the way, Highland is the happiest place in Indiana.

Or check out the Most Miserable Cities In America.

If you’re looking for something more positive, check out the best states in America or the best places to live in America.

How We Measured The Most Miserable Cities In Indiana

In order to rank the unhappiest places in Indiana, we had to determine what criteria makes people happy. It isn’t a stretch to assume that happy people earn great salaries, are relatively stress free, and have a stable home life.

So we went to the Census’s American Community Survey 2010-2014 report for the criteria, flipped the list, and it spit out the answer. Like magic.

We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible:

• Percentage of residents with a college degree
• Average commute times
• Unemployment rates
• Cost of living
• % of married couples
• % of home owners
• Poverty rate

After we decided on the criteria, we gathered the data for the 108 places in Indiana with over 2,000 people.

We then ranked each place from one to 161 for each of the seven criteria with a score of one being the most miserable (Any ties were given to the larger place).

Next, we averaged the seven rankings into a Miserable Index for each place with the lowest overall Miserable Index ‘earning’ the title ‘Most Miserable City In Indiana’.

If you’d like to see the complete list of states, most miserable to happiest, scroll to the bottom of this post to see the unabridged chart.

1. Gary

Population: 79,165
People Who Own Their Home: 37.94%
Married Adults: 28.41%

2. East Chicago

Population: 29,387
People Who Own Their Home: 32.4%
Married Adults: 29.7%

3. Anderson

Population: 55,789
People Who Own Their Home: 47.43%
Married Adults: 39.23%

4. Connersville

Population: 13,267
People Who Own Their Home: 48.78%
Married Adults: 40.69%

5. Hammond

Population: 79,585
People Who Own Their Home: 53.77%
Married Adults: 39.97%

6. Dunkirk

Population: 2,365
People Who Own Their Home: 51.99%
Married Adults: 41.01%

7. Union City

Population: 3,606
People Who Own Their Home: 51.16%
Married Adults: 41.2%

8. North Vernon

Population: 6,736
People Who Own Their Home: 48.62%
Married Adults: 40.18%

9. Elkhart

Population: 51,539
People Who Own Their Home: 42.54%
Married Adults: 40.22%

10. New Castle

Population: 17,859
People Who Own Their Home: 47.69%
Married Adults: 41.48%

There You Have It

Like we said earlier, trying to determine the most miserable cities in {state} is usually a subjective matter. But if you’re analyzing cities where people are not stable, where you’re stuck in traffic, and no one spent the time to go to college, then this is an accurate list.

If you’re curious enough, here are the happiest cities in {state}, according to science:
For more Indiana reading , check out:

• These Are The 10 Worst Places To Live In Indiana
• These Are The 10 Most Ghetto Cities In Indiana
• These Are The 10 Most Dangerous Cities In Indiana

Detailed List Of Miserable Places In Indiana