Elmhurst, Illinois
Encyclopedia
Elmhurst is a suburb
of Chicago
in DuPage
and Cook Counties
, Illinois
. The population is 46,013 as of the 2008 US Census population estimate.
, who settled along Salt Creek just south of where the city would develop, are the earliest known settlers of the Elmhurst area. Around 1836, European immigrants settled on tracts of land along the same creek
. At what would become Elmhurst City Centre, a native of Ohio
named Gerry Bates established a community on a tract of "treeless land" in 1842.
The following year, Cottage Hill Tavern opened where St. Charles Road and Cottage Hill Avenue presently intersect. In 1845, the community
was officially named Cottage Hill when a post office
was established. Four years later the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad
was given right-of-way through Cottage Hill giving farmer
s easier access to Chicago. The community changed its name to Elmhurst in 1869. Elmhurst was incorporated as a village in 1882, with a population of 1,050, and legal boundaries of St. Charles Road to North Avenue, and one half mile west and one quarter mile east of York Street. Elmhurst Memorial Hospital was founded in 1926 as the first hospital in DuPage County.
The Memorial Parade has run every Memorial Day
since 1918, and the Annual Elmhurst St. Patrick's Day Parade continues to be the third largest parade of that sort in the Chicago area, following the more famous parades downtown and on the city's South Side.
The Keebler Company
's corporate headquarters was in Elmhurst until 2001, when the Kellogg Company
purchased the company. The city is home to the headquarters of Sunshine Biscuits
and McMaster-Carr
Supply Co. Famous Amos
cookies are also distributed from Elmhurst.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the city has a total area of 10.3 square miles (26.7 km²), all of it land.
of 2000, there were 42,762 people, 15,627 households, and 11,235 families residing in the city. The population density
was 4,165.9 people per square mile (1,609.2/km²). There were 16,147 housing units at an average density of 1,573.1 per square mile (607.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 93.40% White, 0.94% African American, 0.06% Native American, 3.67% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.97% from other races
, and 0.95% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.02% of the population.
There were 15,627 households out of which 33.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.0% were married couples
living together, 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.1% were non-families. 24.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.19.
In the city the population was spread out with 25.6% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 23.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.4 males.
According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the city was $81,925, and the median income for a family was $97,975. Males had a median income of $57,193 versus $37,087 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $32,015. About 1.9% of families and 2.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.6% of those under age 18 and 3.3% of those age 65 or over.
buses, and there is also a commuter railroad station
with service to downtown Chicago. The Union Pacific Railroad
has freight service on the Metra
line and Canadian National Railway
serves the train line south of the Metra line. O'Hare International Airport
is eighteen minutes from Elmhurst and Chicago Midway International Airport is 33 minutes from Elmhurst.
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
in DuPage
DuPage County, Illinois
As of the 2010 Census, the population of the county was 916,924, White Americans made up 77.9% of Dupage County's population; non-Hispanic whites represented 70.5% of the population. Black Americans made up 4.6% of the population. Native Americans made up 0.3% of Dupage County's population...
and Cook Counties
Cook County, Illinois
Cook County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois, with its county seat in Chicago. It is the second most populous county in the United States after Los Angeles County. The county has 5,194,675 residents, which is 40.5 percent of all Illinois residents. Cook County's population is larger than...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. The population is 46,013 as of the 2008 US Census population estimate.
History
Members of the Potawatomi Indian tribeTribe
A tribe, viewed historically or developmentally, consists of a social group existing before the development of, or outside of, states.Many anthropologists use the term tribal society to refer to societies organized largely on the basis of kinship, especially corporate descent groups .Some theorists...
, who settled along Salt Creek just south of where the city would develop, are the earliest known settlers of the Elmhurst area. Around 1836, European immigrants settled on tracts of land along the same creek
Stream
A stream is a body of water with a current, confined within a bed and stream banks. Depending on its locale or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to as a branch, brook, beck, burn, creek, "crick", gill , kill, lick, rill, river, syke, bayou, rivulet, streamage, wash, run or...
. At what would become Elmhurst City Centre, a native of Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
named Gerry Bates established a community on a tract of "treeless land" in 1842.
The following year, Cottage Hill Tavern opened where St. Charles Road and Cottage Hill Avenue presently intersect. In 1845, the community
Community
The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...
was officially named Cottage Hill when a post office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
was established. Four years later the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad
Galena and Chicago Union Railroad
The Galena and Chicago Union Railroad was a railroad running west from Chicago to Clinton, Iowa and Freeport, Illinois, never reaching Galena, Illinois...
was given right-of-way through Cottage Hill giving farmer
Farmer
A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, who raises living organisms for food or raw materials, generally including livestock husbandry and growing crops, such as produce and grain...
s easier access to Chicago. The community changed its name to Elmhurst in 1869. Elmhurst was incorporated as a village in 1882, with a population of 1,050, and legal boundaries of St. Charles Road to North Avenue, and one half mile west and one quarter mile east of York Street. Elmhurst Memorial Hospital was founded in 1926 as the first hospital in DuPage County.
The Memorial Parade has run every Memorial Day
Memorial Day
Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...
since 1918, and the Annual Elmhurst St. Patrick's Day Parade continues to be the third largest parade of that sort in the Chicago area, following the more famous parades downtown and on the city's South Side.
The Keebler Company
Keebler Company
The Keebler Company is the largest cookie and cracker manufacturer in the United States. Founded in 1853, it has produced numerous baked snacks. Keebler has marketed its brands such as Cheez-Its , Chips Deluxe, Club Crackers, E.L...
's corporate headquarters was in Elmhurst until 2001, when the Kellogg Company
Kellogg Company
Kellogg Company , is a producer of cereal and convenience foods, including cookies, crackers, toaster pastries, cereal bars, fruit-flavored snacks, frozen waffles, and vegetarian foods...
purchased the company. The city is home to the headquarters of Sunshine Biscuits
Sunshine Biscuits
Sunshine Biscuits was an independent American baker of cookies, crackers, and cereals. The company, whose brand still appears today on a few products , was purchased by Keebler Company in 1996 which was subsequently purchased by Kellogg Company in 2000...
and McMaster-Carr
McMaster-Carr
McMaster-Carr Supply Company is a private, family-owned supplier to industrial and commercial facilities worldwide, specializing in next day delivery of Maintenance, Repair and Operations materials and supplies. The company is based in Elmhurst Illinois and has distribution branches in...
Supply Co. Famous Amos
Famous Amos
-History:Wally Amos, an Air Force veteran who worked as a talent agent with the William Morris Agency, would send home-baked chocolate chip cookies to celebrities to entice them to meet with him and maybe sign a deal to be represented by the William Morris Agency...
cookies are also distributed from Elmhurst.
Geography
Elmhurst is located at 41.892280°N 87.943762°W.According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 10.3 square miles (26.7 km²), all of it land.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 42,762 people, 15,627 households, and 11,235 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 4,165.9 people per square mile (1,609.2/km²). There were 16,147 housing units at an average density of 1,573.1 per square mile (607.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 93.40% White, 0.94% African American, 0.06% Native American, 3.67% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.97% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.95% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.02% of the population.
There were 15,627 households out of which 33.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.0% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.1% were non-families. 24.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.19.
In the city the population was spread out with 25.6% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 23.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.4 males.
According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the city was $81,925, and the median income for a family was $97,975. Males had a median income of $57,193 versus $37,087 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $32,015. About 1.9% of families and 2.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.6% of those under age 18 and 3.3% of those age 65 or over.
Points of interest
- Elmhurst YMCA - Elmhurst YMCA
- Theatre Historical Society of AmericaTheatre Historical Society of AmericaThe Theatre Historical Society of America is an IRS-approved 501 non-profit educational organization, located in Elmhurst, Illinois on the second floor of Classic Cinemas historic York Theater....
- Theatre Historical Society - York Theater - York Theater
- Spring Road Business Association
- York & Vallette Business Association
- Wilder Park ConservatoryWilder Park ConservatoryThe Wilder Park Conservatory is a conservatory and botanical garden located in Wilder Park at 225 Prospect Avenue in Elmhurst, Illinois. Situated on a lot, the conservatory shares the land with three greenhouses , the open air Elizabeth Gardens, and the Wilder mansion, which was the former...
- Elmhurst Park District
- Elmhurst Historical Museum
- Elmhurst Art Museum
- Lizzadro Museum of Lapidary Art
- Elmhurst Public Library
- Elmhurst City Centre
- A 150 feet (45.7 m) deep limestoneLimestoneLimestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
quarryQuarryA quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. Quarries are generally used for extracting building materials, such as dimension stone, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, and gravel. They are often collocated with concrete and asphalt plants due to the requirement...
covering about 59 acres (238,764.7 m²) is located half a mile west of downtown along West Avenue and 1st St. A tunnel from Salt CreekSalt Creek (Des Plaines River Tributary)Salt Creek is a stream in northeastern Illinois. It is an important tributary of the Des Plaines River, part of the Illinois River and ultimately the Mississippi River watersheds...
diverts water into the quarry in case of a flood. - Illinois Windmills Fischer Windmill in Mount Emblem Cemetery.
- Elmhurst Memorial Healthcare
Education
- Colleges
- Elmhurst CollegeElmhurst CollegeElmhurst College is a comprehensive private liberal arts college in Elmhurst, Illinois with a tradition of service-oriented learning. It has a rich affiliation with the United Church of Christ.- History :...
- High Schools
- York Community High SchoolYork Community High SchoolYork Community High School is a public secondary school in Elmhurst, Illinois, United States. Most of the students reside in Elmhurst, however the district also draws a small number of students from Addison, Bensenville, and Oak Brook...
- Middle Schools
- Bryan Middle School
- Churchville Middle School
- Sandburg Middle School
- Elementary Schools
- Conrad Fischer Elementary School
- Edison Elementary School
- Emerson Elementary School
- Field Elementary School
- Hawthorne Elementary School
- Jackson Elementary School
- Jefferson Elementary School
- Lincoln Elementary School
- Washington Elementary School, demolished in 1978
- Private Schools
- Immaculate Conception High SchoolImmaculate Conception High School (Elmhurst, Illinois)Immaculate Conception High School is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Elmhurst, Illinois. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Joliet in Illinois. IC competes in the Suburban Christian Conference. The Boys athletic teams are nicknamed the "Knights", while the Girls teams are...
- Timothy Christian SchoolTimothy Christian SchoolTimothy Christian School is a private, coeducational school in Elmhurst, Illinois. It was founded in Chicago as a school for the children of Dutch immigrants in the area...
- Immaculate Conception Grade School
- Immanuel Lutheran Grade School
- Visitation Catholic Grade School
Transportation
Elmhurst is served by PacePace (transit)
Pace is the suburban bus division of the Regional Transportation Authority in the Chicago metropolitan area. It was created in 1983 by the RTA Act, which established the formula that provides funding to CTA, Metra and Pace. In 2010, Pace had 35.077 million riders. Pace's headquarters are in...
buses, and there is also a commuter railroad station
Elmhurst (Metra)
Elmhurst is a Metra commuter railroad station in downtown Elmhurst, a western suburb of Chicago. It is served by the Union Pacific/West Line, and lies from the eastern terminus. Trains go east to Ogilvie Transportation Center in Chicago and as far west as Elburn, Illinois...
with service to downtown Chicago. The Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
has freight service on the Metra
Metra
Metra is the commuter rail division of the Illinois Regional Transportation Authority. The system serves Chicago and its metropolitan area through 240 stations on 11 different rail lines. Throughout the 21st century, Metra has been the second busiest commuter rail system in the United States by...
line and Canadian National Railway
Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
serves the train line south of the Metra line. O'Hare International Airport
O'Hare International Airport
Chicago O'Hare International Airport , also known as O'Hare Airport, O'Hare Field, Chicago Airport, Chicago International Airport, or simply O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop...
is eighteen minutes from Elmhurst and Chicago Midway International Airport is 33 minutes from Elmhurst.
Notable people
- Al WeisAl WeisAlbert John Weis is a former Major League Baseball infielder.Weis grew up in Bethpage, New York, and graduated from Farmingdale, New York, High School in 1955...
, former infielder, Chicago White SoxChicago White SoxThe Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
(1962–1967) and NY Mets (1968–1971). - Eugene V. DebsEugene V. DebsEugene Victor Debs was an American union leader, one of the founding members of the International Labor Union and the Industrial Workers of the World , and several times the candidate of the Socialist Party of America for President of the United States...
, presidential candidate and socialist leader. - Jody GerutJody GerutJoseph Diego Gerut is a former Major League Baseball center fielder. He attended Jackson Middle School, Willowbrook High School, and later Stanford University...
, outfielder for the Milwaukee BrewersMilwaukee BrewersThe Milwaukee Brewers are a professional baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, currently playing in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
. - Fred LorenzenFred LorenzenFred Lorenzen , nicknamed The Golden Boy, Fast Freddie, The Elmhurst Express and Flyin Freddy, is a former NASCAR driver active between 1958 and 1972. He won the 1965 Daytona 500. Lorenzen was born in Elmurst, Illinois.-Early career:Lorenzen first caught the car bug young, and had built his first...
, former NASCARNASCARThe National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
driver. - Keith McCreadyKeith McCreadyKeith McCready is an American professional pool player, nicknamed Earthquake.At one time considered among the top players in America, McCready has been a traveling tournament competitor and notorious hustler since the 1970s...
, professional pool player. - Jack O'CallahanJack O'CallahanJohn J. "Jack" O'Callahan is a retired professional ice hockey player who played 390 NHL regular season games between 1982 and 1989 for the Chicago Blackhawks and New Jersey Devils...
, former Chicago Black HawksChicago BlackhawksThe Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They have won four Stanley Cup championships since their founding in 1926, most recently coming in 2009-10...
hockey player. - Phillip RameyPhillip RameyPhillip Ramey is an American composer, pianist, and writer on music.He studied composition with the Russian-born composer Alexander Tcherepnin from 1959 to 1962, first at the International Academy of Music in Nice, France, then at DePaul University in Chicago...
, composer and pianist. - Steve RushinSteve Rushin- Early life :Rushin grew up in Bloomington, Minnesota, the third in a family of five kids. "Beer has long been in my blood, and not just in the literal sense," he wrote. "My ancestors were much practiced at naming bars." In 1946, his father's father, Jack Rushin, opened a saloon on Market Street...
, Sports IllustratedSports IllustratedSports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
writer. - Carl SandburgCarl SandburgCarl Sandburg was an American writer and editor, best known for his poetry. He won three Pulitzer Prizes, two for his poetry and another for a biography of Abraham Lincoln. H. L. Mencken called Carl Sandburg "indubitably an American in every pulse-beat."-Biography:Sandburg was born in Galesburg,...
, poet, historian, and novelist. - Ian Michael SmithIan Michael SmithIan Michael Smith is an American actor, known for his starring role in Simon Birch. His short physical stature is a result of Morquio syndrome, a rare enzymatic disorder affecting the circulatory, muscular and skeletal systems....
, star of Simon BirchSimon BirchSimon Birch is a 1998 American [drama] film loosely based on A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving. It was directed and written for the screen by Mark Steven Johnson. The film stars Ian Michael Smith, Joseph Mazzello, Ashley Judd, Oliver Platt, and Jim Carrey. It omitted much of the latter half of... - Larry StefankiLarry StefankiLarry Stefanki , is an American tennis coach and former professional tennis player.-Tennis career:...
, former tennis player. - Charles TillyCharles TillyCharles Tilly was an American sociologist, political scientist, and historian who wrote on the relationship between politics and society. He was the Joseph L. Buttenwieser Professor of Social Science at Columbia University....
, sociologist. - Rachel MelvinRachel MelvinRachel Melvin is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Chelsea Brady on Days of our Lives .- Personal life :...
, actress. - Jim RyanJim Ryan (politician)James E. Ryan is an American politician who served two four-year terms as Illinois Attorney General. A career Republican, he received his party's nomination and ran unsuccessfully for Governor of Illinois against Rod Blagojevich in 2002. He has been a professor at Benedictine University since 2003...
, former Illinois Attorney General. - John GrochowskiJohn GrochowskiJohn Grochowski is a gambling columnist and author. His weekly newspaper column began at the Chicago Sun-Times and is now syndicated nationally. He published his first gambling book in 1996 entitled Gaming: Cruising the Casino with a Syndicated Gambling Columnist. He then began a series of...
, author and radio personality. - Keenan CahillKeenan CahillKeenan Cahill is a teenager from Elmhurst, Illinois whose lip-syncing of popular songs has brought his videos on YouTube to some of the most viewed online videos. Guest artists on his channel have included rapper 50 Cent in November 2010, David Guetta in January 2011, and Jersey Shore's Paul...
, internet celebrity for lip-syncing - Jeff HornacekJeff HornacekJeffrey John Hornacek is a retired American basketball player who played at the shooting guard position in the NBA from 1986–2000.-Elementary and high school:...
, former NBA player. - Mark SibleyMark SibleyFor U.S. Representative from New York, see Mark H. Sibley.Donald Mark Sibley, known as Mark Sibley is a retired American basketball player. He was a 6'2" 175 lb guard and attended Northwestern University. He was selected in the fourth round of the 1973 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls but was waived...
, former NBA player. - Daniel KeefeDaniel KeefeDaniel Joseph Keefe was a founder and the first president of the International Longshoremen's Association , a trade union representing waterside workers in Canada and the United States of America.-Early life:...
, president and founder of the International Longshoremen's Association. - Mark WilsonMark Wilson (golfer)Mark Joseph Wilson is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour.Wilson was born in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin and currently resides in Elmhurst, Illinois.-Professional career:...
, pro golfer. - John WittJohn WittJohn Witt American known for catching a large number of Major League baseballs. He is best known for catching over 5,000 baseballs at professional baseball games over the past 34 summers...
, author, sportswriter, actor and ballhawk. - Edwin FeulnerEdwin FeulnerEdwin John Feulner Jr. is President of the conservative think tank Heritage Foundation, a position he has held since 1977....
, President of The Heritage Foundation, a conservative Washington, D.C. think tank. - Donald SageDonald SageDonald Sage is an American track athlete and the winner of the 2002 NCAA Outdoor 1500m championship.- Background :...
, cross country runner.
External links
- Official City Website
- Longreenlinemovie.com, Elmhurst Cross Country Documentary Film featuring Coach Joe Newton
- http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/06/03/porn-search-capital-of-th_n_599856.html