Riverside, Illinois
Encyclopedia
Riverside is an affluent suburban village in Cook County
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,...

. A significant portion of the village is in the Riverside Landscape Architecture District
Riverside Historic District (Riverside, Illinois)
Riverside Historic District, also known as Riverside Landscape Architecture District is a site significant for its status as one of the first planned communities in the United States. The district encompasses the majority of the Village of Riverside...

, designated a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...

 in 1970. The population was 8,895 at the 2000 census. It is a suburb
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...

, located roughly 9 miles west of downtown Chicago
Chicago Loop
The Loop or Chicago Loop is one of 77 officially designated Chicago community areas located in the City of Chicago, Illinois. It is the historic commercial center of downtown Chicago...

 and two miles outside city limits.

History

Riverside is arguably the first planned community in the United States, designed in 1869 by Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted was an American journalist, social critic, public administrator, and landscape designer. He is popularly considered to be the father of American landscape architecture, although many scholars have bestowed that title upon Andrew Jackson Downing...

. The village was incorporated in 1875. The Riverside Landscape Architecture District, an area bounded by 26th St., Harlem and Ogden Aves., the Des Plaines River, and Forbes Rd., was designated a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...

 in 1970.

In 1863 the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington or as the Q, the Burlington Route served a large area, including extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri,...

 was built heading southwest from downtown Chicago to Quincy, Illinois
Quincy, Illinois
Quincy, known as Illinois' "Gem City," is a river city along the Mississippi River and the county seat of Adams County. As of the 2010 census the city held a population of 40,633. The city anchors its own micropolitan area and is the economic and regional hub of West-central Illinois, catering a...

, passing through what is now the Near West Suburban area of Chicago in a western-southwestern direction. This new access to transportation and commerce brought about a significant housing and construction boom in what was once farmland far from the bustle of the city of Chicago.

In 1868, an eastern businessman named Emery E. Childs formed the Riverside Improvement Company, and purchased a1600 acres (6.5 km²) tract of property along the Des Plaines River
Des Plaines River
The Des Plaines River is a river that flows southward for through southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois in the U.S. Midwest, eventually meeting the Kankakee River west of Channahon to form the Illinois River, a tributary of the Mississippi River....

 and the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad line. The site was highly desirable due to its natural oak-hickory forest and its proximity to the Chicago Loop
Chicago Loop
The Loop or Chicago Loop is one of 77 officially designated Chicago community areas located in the City of Chicago, Illinois. It is the historic commercial center of downtown Chicago...

. The company commissioned well-known landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted and his partner, Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux , was an architect and landscape designer. He is best remembered as the co-designer , of New York's Central Park....

, to design a rural bedroom community. The town's plan, which was completed in 1869, called for curvilinear streets, following the land's contours and the winding Des Plaines River. The plan also accorded for a central village square, located at the main railroad station, and a Grand Park system that uses several large parks as a foundation, with 41 smaller triangular parks and plazas located at intersections throughout town to provide for additional green spaces.

The Great Chicago Fire
Great Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...

 of 1871 and the financial Panic of 1873
Panic of 1873
The Panic of 1873 triggered a severe international economic depression in both Europe and the United States that lasted until 1879, and even longer in some countries. The depression was known as the Great Depression until the 1930s, but is now known as the Long Depression...

 brought about the demise of the improvement company, bringing new construction nearly to a halt for some time. A village government was established in September 1875 and Olmsted's original development plan remained in force. Building resumed in the following years, with the opening of the Riverside Golf Club in 1893, the striking Chateauesque Riverside Township Hall in 1895, and the Burlington line train station in 1901. Many homes and estates were designed by architects such as Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator, who designed more than 1,000 structures and completed 500 works. Wright believed in designing structures which were in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture...

, Daniel Burnham
Daniel Burnham
Daniel Hudson Burnham, FAIA was an American architect and urban planner. He was the Director of Works for the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. He took a leading role in the creation of master plans for the development of a number of cities, including Chicago and downtown Washington DC...

, Louis Sullivan
Louis Sullivan
Louis Henri Sullivan was an American architect, and has been called the "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism" He is considered by many as the creator of the modern skyscraper, was an influential architect and critic of the Chicago School, was a mentor to Frank Lloyd Wright, and an...

, William Le Baron Jenney
William Le Baron Jenney
William Le Baron Jenney was an American architect and engineer who became known as the Father of the American skyscraper.- Life and career :...

, Frederick Clarke Withers
Frederick Clarke Withers
Frederick Clarke Withers was an successful English architect in America, especially renowned for his Gothic Revival church designs.-Biography:...

, and Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux , was an architect and landscape designer. He is best remembered as the co-designer , of New York's Central Park....

 at the time as well.

A major period of residential development came again in the 1920s and late 1930s, when many modest houses were constructed on smaller parcels. The population grew to 7,935 by 1940 and consisted primarily of small proprietors, managers, and professionals who were predominantly of Anglo-American and German American background. The remaining residential areas were developed during the post–World War II boom and by 1960 the village was almost entirely developed. The population peaked at 10,357 in 1970 and dropped below 8,500 by the mid-1990s.

Riverside, much like Chicago, has become an architectural museum, which is recognized by the village's National Historic Landmark designation. The village housing stock varies from well-maintained 1920s bungalows and huge Victorian and early-twentieth-century mansions that attract architectural tours. The charming village center houses several restaurants as well as coffee shops, and hosts stores selling antiques and Victorian house fixtures, reflective of the village's older affluent population.

Geography

Riverside is located at 41°49′51"N 87°48′58"W (41.830881, -87.815981).

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 village has a total area of 2 square miles (5.2 km²), of which, 2 square miles (5.2 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square mile (0.1035995244 km²) of it (1.00%) is water. Bordering suburbs include North Riverside, Berwyn
Berwyn
Berwyn originally referred to the Berwyn range of mountains in northeast Wales:*Cadair Berwyn or Cader Berwyn is a mountain summit in north east Wales*Cadair Berwyn North Top or Cadair Berwyn is a top of Cadair Berwyn in north east Wales...

, Brookfield
Brookfield
Brookfield is a common place name in English-speaking countries.It is formed from the conjoining of the common words brook and field.- United Kingdom :*Brookfield, Derbyshire, in Derbyshire, England*Brookfield, Lancashire, England...

 and Lyons
Lyons, Illinois
Lyons is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 10,255 at the 2000 census.-History:Incorporated in 1888, Lyons is steeped in earlier historical roots. In 1673 French Explorer Louis Joliet and Jesuit missionary Father Pierre Marquette left Green Bay, Wisconsin by canoe...

. The Des Plaines River
Des Plaines River
The Des Plaines River is a river that flows southward for through southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois in the U.S. Midwest, eventually meeting the Kankakee River west of Channahon to form the Illinois River, a tributary of the Mississippi River....

 runs through the village.

Demographics

As of the census
Census
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 8,895 people, 3,552 households, and 2,436 families residing in the village. 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 4,509.1 people per square mile (1,743.3/km²). There were 3,668 housing units at an average density of 1,859.4 per square mile (718.9/km²). The racial makeup
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...

 of the village was 95.38% White, 0.26% African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...

, 0.08% Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...

, 1.60% Asian
Asian American
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian descent. The U.S. Census Bureau definition of Asians as "Asian” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan,...

, 0.01% Pacific Islander
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islander , is a geographic term to describe the indigenous inhabitants of any of the three major sub-regions of Oceania: Polynesia, Melanesia and Micronesia.According to the Encyclopædia Britannica, these three regions, together with their islands consist of:Polynesia:...

, 1.57% 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 1.10% from two or more races. Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...

 or Latino
Latino
The demonyms Latino and Latina , are defined in English language dictionaries as:* "a person of Latin-American descent."* "A Latin American."* "A person of Hispanic, especially Latin-American, descent, often one living in the United States."...

 of any race were 5.50% of the population.

The top five ancestries reported in Riverside as of the 2000 census were Irish
Irish American
Irish Americans are citizens of the United States who can trace their ancestry to Ireland. A total of 36,278,332 Americans—estimated at 11.9% of the total population—reported Irish ancestry in the 2008 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau...

 (20.8%), Polish
Polish American
A Polish American , is a citizen of the United States of Polish descent. There are an estimated 10 million Polish Americans, representing about 3.2% of the population of the United States...

 (18.4%), German
German American
German Americans are citizens of the United States of German ancestry and comprise about 51 million people, or 17% of the U.S. population, the country's largest self-reported ancestral group...

 (17.7%), Italian
Italian American
An Italian American , is an American of Italian ancestry. The designation may also refer to someone possessing Italian and American dual citizenship...

 (13.8%) and Czech
Czech American
Czech Americans are citizens of the United States who were born in, or who descended from, the territory of the historic Czech lands, , or succession states, now known as the Czech Republic...

 (8.0%).

There were 3,552 households out of which 30.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.4% 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, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.4% were non-families. 27.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.08.

In the village the population was spread out with 23.9% under the age of 18, 5.9% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 26.6% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 92.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.2 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $64,931, and the median income for a family was $80,146. Males had a median income of $56,808 versus $36,349 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 village was $34,712. About 1.8% of families and 3.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.2% of those under age 18 and 5.1% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Riverside is in Illinois' 3rd congressional district
Illinois' 3rd congressional district
The 3rd Congressional District of Illinois includes part of Cook County, and has been represented by Democrat Dan Lipinski since January 2005. The district was previously represented by his father Bill Lipinski beginning in 1993....

.

The United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...

 operates the Riverside Post Office at 45 East Burlington Street and the North Riverside Post Office at 7300 West 25th Street.

Education

Riverside is served by District 96 for public schools. District 96 has 4 elementary schools, and one junior high school. High school District 208 serves Riverside high school students.
The elementary schools are:
  • Central Elementary School located at 61 Woodside Rd
  • Ames School located at 86 Southcote Rd
  • Blythe Park School located at 735 Leesley Rd
  • Hollywood School (in Brookfield
    Brookfield, Illinois
    Brookfield is a suburb of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, west of downtown. The population was 19,085 at the 2000 census...

    ) located at 3423 Hollywood Avenue


The middle school is:
  • L. J. Hauser Junior High School
    L. J. Hauser Junior High School
    -School:L. J. Hauser Junior High School is a public school located at 65 Woodside Road in Riverside, Illinois. Its current enrollment is approx. 450, as of 2010. There are 25 teachers at the school, with an average class size of 21. The principal of the school is Leslie Berman. The school serves...

     located at 65 Woodside Rd.


The high school is:
  • Riverside Brookfield High School
    Riverside Brookfield High School
    Riverside Brookfield High School is a public high school located in Riverside, IL. It serves the towns of Riverside, Brookfield, LaGrange Park, North Riverside and Broadview . The mascot of Riverside Brookfield is Rouser the Bulldog....

     more commonly known as RB, and is located at 160 Ridgewood Rd.


The private schools are:

Notable residents

  • Johnny "Red" Kerr (Chicago Bulls)
  • Judy Baar Topinka
    Judy Baar Topinka
    Judy Baar Topinka is the Illinois State Comptroller and former Illinois State Treasurer, having served as Treasurer from 1995 to 2007, and former chairwoman of the Illinois Republican Party. She was the first woman to become state treasurer, first to be elected to three consecutive terms and the...

     (Former Illinois State Treasurer
    Illinois State Treasurer
    The Treasurer of Illinois is an elected official of the U.S. state of Illinois. The office was created by the Constitution of Illinois.-Current occupant and duties:, the Treasurer of Illinois is Dan Rutherford, a member of the Republican Party...

    )
  • Larry Wert (President, Central & Western Region NBC)
  • Tony Peraica
    Tony Peraica
    Anthony J. "Tony" Peraica was the Cook County Commissioner for the 16th district, and was the Republican nominee for Cook County Board President in 2006.-Life:...

     (Represents the 16th District on the Cook County Board of Commissioners
    Cook County Board of Commissioners
    The Cook County Board of Commissioners is a legislative body made up of 17 commissioners who are elected by district for four year terms. Cook County, which includes the City of Chicago, is the nation's second largest county with a population of 5.2 million residents...

    )
  • Frank Nitti
    Frank Nitti
    Francesco Raffaele Nitto , also known as Frank "The Enforcer" Nitti, was an Italian American gangster. One of Al Capone's top henchmen, Nitti was in charge of all strong-arm and 'muscle' operations...

     (Mafia)
  • Frederick Law Olmsted
    Frederick Law Olmsted
    Frederick Law Olmsted was an American journalist, social critic, public administrator, and landscape designer. He is popularly considered to be the father of American landscape architecture, although many scholars have bestowed that title upon Andrew Jackson Downing...

  • Harry Lippe (Championship Bowler)
  • Eddie Tancl (Prize Fighter)
  • "Screwey" Claude Maddox
    Claude Maddox
    "Screwy" Claude Maddox , also known as J.E. Moore, was a Chicago mobster and head of the Circus Cafe Gang whose ranks included future Chicago mobsters Anthony "Tough Tony" Capezio, Vincenzo De Mora and Antonino "Tony" "Joe Batters" Accardo...

     (Mafia)
  • Tom Kondla
    Tom Kondla
    -Biography:Kondla was born on November 30, 1946 in Brookfield, Illinois. He attended Riverside Brookfield High School in Riverside, Illinois.-Career:Kondla played for the Minnesota Pipers and the Houston Mavericks of the American Basketball Association...


Popular culture

  • Parts of the movie The Lake House
    The Lake House (film)
    The Lake House: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack was released in 2006.# "This Never Happened Before" - Paul McCartney# " Make You Mine" - The Clientele# "Time Has Told Me" - Nick Drake# "Ant Farm" - Eels...

    were filmed at the Riverside train station, the former Henniger's Pharmacy, and at a home on Riverside Rd.
  • Christmas with the Kranks
    Christmas with the Kranks
    Christmas with the Kranks is a 2004 American comedy film directed by Joe Roth and starring Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis. The screenplay by Chris Columbus is based on the 2001 novel Skipping Christmas by John Grisham.-Plot:...

    (2004) was set in Riverside, although filming took place in Vancouver
    Vancouver
    Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...

  • Made for TV Movie, "In the Company of Darkness," was filmed throughout Riverside.

Business

Riverside has a historical feel to it, and very few commercial enterprises.

The Central Business District, located around the Riverside Metra station
Riverside (Metra)
Riverside is a station on Metra's BNSF Railway Line in Riverside, Illinois. The station is from Union Station, the east end of the line. In Metra's zone-based fare system, Riverside is in zone C. A staffed station building is on the south side of the three tracks.- External links :*...

 has a collection of shops, including several cafes, banks, florists, and wealth management offices.

See also

  • Garden city movement
    Garden city movement
    The garden city movement is a method of urban planning that was initiated in 1898 by Sir Ebenezer Howard in the United Kingdom. Garden cities were intended to be planned, self-contained communities surrounded by "greenbelts" , containing proportionate areas of residences, industry and...

  • Garden real estate
    Garden real estate
    A category in the niche real estate market containing property with good gardens. The market can be sub-classified as follows:* Property with gardens by well-known Landscape designers. This is normally the work of designers whose work has been published in books and magazines...

  • Riverside (Metra)
    Riverside (Metra)
    Riverside is a station on Metra's BNSF Railway Line in Riverside, Illinois. The station is from Union Station, the east end of the line. In Metra's zone-based fare system, Riverside is in zone C. A staffed station building is on the south side of the three tracks.- External links :*...

  • Riverside Historic District
    Riverside Historic District (Riverside, Illinois)
    Riverside Historic District, also known as Riverside Landscape Architecture District is a site significant for its status as one of the first planned communities in the United States. The district encompasses the majority of the Village of Riverside...


External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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