109-579: West Chicago is a city in DuPage County , Illinois , United States . The population was 25,614 at the 2020 census . It was formerly named Junction and later Turner Junction, after its founder, John Bice Turner, president of the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad (G&CU) in 1855. The city was initially established around the first junction of railroad lines in Illinois, and today is still served by
218-644: A compromise, the railroad gained approval to cut back its service to the Desplaines Avenue station in Forest Park — the westernmost terminus of CTA Garfield Park service, after the CTA ended its unprofitable elevated train service on the CA&;E's Westchester line in 1951. At the new Forest Park terminal, riders would transfer from the CA&E interurban to a CTA train to complete their commute into
327-648: A family in DuPage County is $ 121,009, according to the 2005 census. The per capita income for the county was $ 38,458. About 2.40% of families and 3.60% of the population were below the poverty line , including 3.90% of those under age 18 and 4.30% of those age 65 or over. DuPage County has several hundred Christian churches, and especially around Wheaton is a Bible Belt , with Wheaton College and various other evangelical Christian colleges, and publishing houses including InterVarsity Press , Crossway , Tyndale House , Christianity Today and other smaller ones in
436-464: A female householder with no husband present, and 23.00% were non-families. 19.32% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.74% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.92 and the average family size was 3.40. The city's age distribution consisted of 43.7% under the age of 18, 11.0% from 18 to 24, 25.4% from 25 to 44, 26.4% from 45 to 64, and 9.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age
545-652: A few months of the cutback, half of the line's passengers abandoned it in favor of the parallel commuter service provided by the Chicago and North Western Railroad — today operated by Metra as the Union Pacific West Line . The loss of one-seat commuter service to the Loop devastated the interurban. The railroad's financial condition was already shaky, and schemes to restore downtown service faced various legal or operational obstacles. As early as 1952,
654-743: A few points. DuPage golf courses include: Wheaton's Chicago Golf Club , Arrowhead Golf Club and Cantigny Golf courses; the Medinah Country Club ; the Village Links and Glen Oak Country Club of Glen Ellyn ; Addison's Oak Meadows ; Oak Brook's Oak Brook Golf Club, Butler National Golf Club , and Butterfield Country Club; Wood Dale's Maple Meadows ; Westmont's Green Meadows ; Lisle's River Bend (9 holes); West Chicago's St. Andrews Golf & Country Club and Winfield's Klein Creek Golf Club, among others. DuPage County
763-613: A majority of offices in Naperville and Lisle townships. Between these two victories, Democrats only held two township offices. Mark Starkovich served as York Township Supervisor from 1989 to 1993 and Martin McManamon has served as Wayne Township Highway Commissioner since 2013. In 2020, Democrats won control of the DuPage County Board, expanding on their 2018 lead. In 2022, Democrats expanded their majority in
872-451: A mile outside town in 1835 would become the state's last surviving one-room schoolhouse when it closed in 1991. Meanwhile, in 1857, Dr. Joseph McConnell and his wife Mary platted a second portion of town just north of John B. Turner's plat . They recorded their plat as the Town of Turner in honor of the railroad president. These two “towns” became informally known as Turner Junction. By 1873,
981-547: A plant. Reed-Keppler Park was built on top of a landfill that had received some waste from the plant. Kerr-McGee , which had bought the facility in 1967 and operated it until 1973, settled with the city and cleaned up the waste. The movie Reach the Rock , written by John Hughes , was filmed in downtown West Chicago in 1998. West Chicago is located at 41°53′18″N 88°12′35″W / 41.888378°N 88.209659°W / 41.888378; -88.209659 . According to
1090-600: A small branch to Mt. Carmel Cemetery in Hillside and owned a branch line to Westchester . Wounded by the increased use of automobiles after World War II , the CA&E abruptly ended passenger service in 1957. Freight service was suspended in 1959, and the railroad was officially abandoned in 1961. Most of the right-of-way has since been converted to the Illinois Prairie Path rail trail . The first known attempt to create an electric railway between
1199-443: A stream well known. It took its name from a French trader who settled on this stream below the fork previous to 1800. Hon. H. W. Blodgett, of Waukegan, informs the writer that J. B. Beaubien had often spoken to him of the old Frenchman, Du Page, whose station was on the bank of the river, down toward its mouth, and stated that the river took its name from him. The county name must have the same origin. Col Gurden S. Hubbard, who came into
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#17328012525511308-553: A variety of other services and information to the public schools within 42 school districts of the county that provide education to over 161,000 students in 245 schools. The following is a list of school districts that not only includes those supported by the DuPage County Regional Office of Education, but includes others which may have schools and/or administrative headquarters outside of DuPage County but which have any territory, no matter how slight, within
1417-516: A year, to say nothing of the long-term effects of the new superhighway on the railroad's revenue. Another long-term concern was the railroad's downtown terminal; the new median strip line would have no access to Wells Street Terminal. Instead, the replacement line would access the Loop through the Milwaukee-Dearborn Subway , where wood-bodied cars, which still made up a good portion of CA&E rolling stock, were prohibited. As
1526-475: Is Wheaton . Known for its vast tallgrass prairies , DuPage County has become mostly developed and suburbanized, although some pockets of farmland remain in the county's western and northern parts. Located in the Rust Belt , the area is one of few in the region whose economy quickly became dependent on the headquarters of several large corporations due to its close proximity to Chicago. As quarries closed in
1635-832: Is 982 feet (299 m) above mean sea level. In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Wheaton have ranged from a low of 14 °F (−10 °C) in January to a high of 87 °F (31 °C) in July, although a record low of −26 °F (−32 °C) was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of 105 °F (41 °C) was recorded in July 1995. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.56 inches (40 mm) in February to 4.60 inches (117 mm) in August. Counties that are adjacent to DuPage include: DuPage County's population's distribution by race and ethnicity in
1744-791: Is a Nichiren Shōshū Zen Buddhist temple in West Chicago and a Theravada Buddhist Temple, called the Buddha-Dharma Meditation Center, in Willowbrook . There is also a Reform synagogue , Congregation Etz Chaim, in Lombard and an unaffiliated one in Naperville, called Congregation Beth Shalom. DuPage County is the primary location of the Illinois Technology and Research Corridor . It
1853-1285: Is an important live theatre in DuPage County. The Tivoli Theatre , one of the first theatres in the United States to be equipped with sound, is still in use in Downers Grove. In addition to showing movies, the Tivoli is home to several local performing arts groups. The McAninch Arts Center located on the Glen Ellyn campus of the College of DuPage also presents a variety of music, dance, theater and comedy year round both on its three indoor stages and its outdoor Lakeside Pavilion. The Forest Preserve District of DuPage County owns and manages 25,000 acres (10,000 ha) of prairies , woodlands and wetlands . More than 4 million visitors each year enjoy 60 forest preserves, 145 miles of trails, and five education centers. Local urban parks include Lombard 's Lilacia Park , Naperville 's Centennial Beach , Woodridge 's Cypress Cove Family Aquatic Park and Wheaton 's Cosley Zoo . Privately funded attractions include Lisle 's Morton Arboretum . In
1962-674: Is elected countywide every four years. DuPage County is part of Regional Office of Education #19 which is coterminous with the county's corporate boundaries. As of December 2022, the DuPage County Board is controlled by the Democratic Party by an 11 to 7 margin. DuPage County was historically a stronghold of the Republican Party , and a classic bastion of suburban conservatism. In recent years, DuPage County has joined other suburban counties outside large U.S. cities trending Democratic in presidential election years since
2071-507: Is governed by a County Board whose duties include managing county funds and business, levying taxes, and appropriating funds. The County Board exercises powers not assigned to other elected officials or other boards. The county is divided into six districts. Each district elects three members to the County Board in staggered two-year and four-year terms. The Chairman of the County Board is the chief executive officer of DuPage County, and
2180-524: Is home to many large corporations, including: Shopping malls in DuPage County include Oakbrook Center , which is the largest open-air mall in the nation, Fox Valley Mall , Yorktown Center , Town Square Wheaton , and Stratford Square Mall . In addition, many of DuPage County's towns have prosperous and quaint downtown areas, especially in Naperville , Glen Ellyn , Elmhurst , Wheaton , Downers Grove and Hinsdale , which are mixed with boutiques, upscale chain stores and restaurants. Fermilab , which has
2289-424: Is in the 5th , 6th , 8th , 11th and 14th districts. In the 2018 general election, despite the county's historical Republican dominance, Democrats won every congressional district within the county. Republicans historically controlled local politics in DuPage County from the nineteenth century until modern times. During the twentieth century, Democrats only held countywide office twice. In 1934 William Robinson
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#17328012525512398-516: Is named. Gary also helped bring brothers Jesse and Warren Wheaton, founders of nearby Wheaton, Illinois , the DuPage County seat, from Connecticut to the Midwest . A pioneer cemetery on the old Gary Homestead , where a sawmill had been built by the Garys, just north of Gary's Mill Road, and north of its terminus at Illinois Route 59 , was built over with apartment buildings in the 1960s. In 1849,
2507-655: Is the tallest building in Illinois outside of Chicago. The Elmhurst Art Museum is housed in a Mies Van Der Rohe building. There is a Frank Lloyd Wright house in Elmhurst . Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha , a conservative Hindu sect , has built BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Chicago , a large, intricately carved, marble temple in Bartlett . There are some Sears Catalog Homes in Downers Grove and Villa Park . The Byzantine-style clubhouse of
2616-419: The 2020 census was as follows: The largest European ancestries reported among DuPage County residents in the 2022 American Community Survey are German (147,639 people or 16% of the population), Irish (112,329 people, 12.2%), Polish (89,682, 9.7%), Italian (82,745, 9%), and English (62,404, 6.8%). The largest Hispanic group in the county is Mexican Americans , numbering 106,907 and making up 11.6% of
2725-719: The Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad , the “country trolley” was lightly used, and abandoned in 1937. The right of way is now the Geneva Spur of the Illinois Prairie Path . In the 1980s and 1990s, the city received a nuclear-waste contamination scare. Harmful waste from the Rare Earths Facility had been spread around the community since the 1930s, when the Lindsay Light and Chemical Company built
2834-776: The Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine in Downers Grove ; National University of Health Sciences in Lombard ; Northern Seminary and National Louis University in Lisle ; the Addison and Naperville campuses of DeVry University ; the Naperville campus of Northern Illinois University ; and the Wheaton campus of Illinois Institute of Technology . The DuPage County Regional Office of Education provides regulatory and compliance oversight, quality services and support, and
2943-628: The Galena and Chicago Union Railroad (predecessor of the C&;NW ) reached the site of present-day West Chicago, then continued northwest to Elgin. In 1850, the Aurora Branch Railroad (predecessor of the CB&;Q ) built southwest, making America's first railroad junction point west of Chicago . In 1854, the G&;CURR opened the “Dixon Air Line” branch West thru Geneva . Because of
3052-545: The Medinah Country Club is also an architectural highlight of the county. Lombard is home to over thirty Lustron prefabricated steel homes. Historical museums in DuPage County include: Specialty museums in DuPage County include: Historical sites include: DuPage also plays host to a rich local music scene. Some of the better-known bands to come out of the area include The Hush Sound , Lucky Boys Confusion , and Plain White T's . Oakbrook Terrace's Drury Lane Theatre
3161-627: The U.S. Census Bureau , the county has a total area of 336 square miles (870 km ), of which 327 square miles (850 km ) is land and 8.9 square miles (23 km ) (2.6%) is water. The DuPage River and the Salt Creek flow through DuPage County. According to the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, the highest point in the county is located at the Mallard Lake Landfill, which at its highest point
3270-535: The Union Pacific West Metra service via West Chicago station . Erastus Gary, of Pomfret, Connecticut , homesteaded 760 acres (310 ha) on the banks of the DuPage River , just south of West Chicago's present day city limits in the 1830s. His son became "Judge" Elbert Henry Gary , the first CEO of America's first billion-dollar corporation, U.S. Steel , and for whom Gary, Indiana ,
3379-723: The metropolis of Chicago and the Fox Valley settlement of Aurora was in late 1891. By this time, passengers in Aurora and Elgin were served by steam railways. Elgin was served by the Milwaukee Road , Geneva and West Chicago served by the Chicago and North Western Railway , St. Charles served by the Chicago Great Western , and Aurora was served by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy (CB&Q). However, it
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3488-566: The poverty line , including 16.2% of those under age 18 and 4.5% of those age 65 or over. Jel Sert has its corporate headquarters in West Chicago. Ball Horticultural Company has its Worldwide Headquarters in West Chicago. General Mills had a production facility in West Chicago until 2017. According to the City's 2017 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are: The United States Postal Service operates
3597-610: The 1980s, DuPage County also had another major attraction, Ebenezer Floppen Slopper's Wonderful Water slides in Oakbrook Terrace , which today, stands abandoned and neglected. The Illinois Prairie Path , a 61-mile (98 km) rail-to-trail multi-use path, runs through Cook, DuPage and Kane Counties. It intersects with the Great Western Trail at several points, as well as the Fox River Trail at
3706-435: The 1990s, land that was formerly used for mining and plants was converted into mixed-use, master-planned developments to meet the growing tax base. The county has a mixed socioeconomic profile and residents of Hinsdale , Naperville and Oak Brook include some of the wealthiest people in the Midwest . On the whole, the county enjoys above average median household income levels and low overall poverty levels when compared to
3815-430: The 1990s. The county also leans Democratic in state and local politics. In the 2018 Illinois gubernatorial election , J. B. Pritzker became the first Democratic candidate for the governorship to win the county in nearly 100 years. DuPage County voters backed Pritzker in his 2022 re-election bid by a large margin. The county supported Barack Obama , a Chicago resident, in 2008 and 2012 (albeit narrowly in 2012). Obama
3924-915: The 20% of residents who were born abroad, 45.2% were born in Asia , 25.8% were born in Latin America , 24.3% were born in Europe , 3.5% were born in Africa , 3.1% were born in South America , 0.2% were born in Oceania , and 1.1% were born in Canada . The top countries of birth for immigrants in DuPage County are Mexico (36,146), India (35,486), Poland (14,107), the Philippines (11,352), and China (10,116). The per-capita income in DuPage County
4033-571: The 2008 Democratic wave, three Democrats were elected to the board. After the initial Obama wave, Republicans reasserted themselves on the board and by 2017 Democrats held only one of the eighteen board seats. In the 2018 general election, Democrats won seven seats as well as the offices of County Clerk and Forest Preserve District President. In 1973, a slate of Democrats took eight of nine offices in Addison Township . This feat would not be replicated until 2017 when Democratic candidates won
4142-524: The 2021 census gazetteer files, West Chicago has a total area of 15.72 square miles (40.71 km), of which 15.38 square miles (39.83 km) (or 97.82%) is land and 0.34 square miles (0.88 km) (or 2.18%) is water. As of the 2020 census there were 25,614 people, 7,838 households, and 6,035 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,629.49 inhabitants per square mile (629.15/km). There were 7,801 housing units at an average density of 496.28 per square mile (191.61/km). The racial makeup of
4251-650: The AE&;FRE south to Yorkville then north to Dundee . AE&C management announced later that evening that they planned on opening the line on July 1. The AE&FRE announced soon afterward that it would offer express transfer service from Fox Valley communities to the AE&C. On May 17, the AE&C tested the powerhouse in Batavia and found several problems with its performance. Heavy rains in June stalled construction and washed out some completed roadbed. The opening date
4360-519: The Aurora, Wheaton, & Chicago Rail road Company. Pomeroy-Mandelbaum was the second largest interurban railway company in Ohio and intended to compete against the Everett-Moore group. A meeting between the Everett-Moore syndicate and Pomeroy-Mandelbaum group occurred in either 1900 or 1901 to discuss the future of the two companies. They came to an agreement: Everett-Moore would build and maintain
4469-448: The Batavia powerhouse. The AE&C issued promotional leaflets to citizens of Fox Valley cities and towns. They also sent these pamphlets to settlements west of Aurora, hoping that people would take a steam train to Aurora and then transfer to the electric line. They boasted that the AE&C was the "finest electric railroad in the world." By the end of the year, the AE&C was seeing monthly earnings in excess of $ 16,500. In addition,
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4578-404: The CA&E into the city found themselves stranded when they returned to take the train home. Freight operations continued for two more years until June 10, 1959. No trains ran after this point, but the right-of-way and rolling stock were preserved in the event that a party stepped forward to purchase the property. The official abandonment of CA&E came at 5:00pm on July 6, 1961, four years after
4687-836: The Chicago Aviation Field Office in West Chicago, on the grounds of the airport; it is the regional headquarters of the NTSB Aviation Central Region. Metra has a station on the Union Pacific West Line. The Great Western Trail (Illinois) passes through town. The city of West Chicago has two high schools—one public school, West Chicago Community High School , and one private, Wheaton Academy . There are seven public elementary schools (Currier, Pioneer, Wegner, Turner, Indian Knoll, Gary, and Norton Creek) and two middle schools [Benjamin and Leman Middle School (LMS)] within
4796-503: The Chicago, Elgin & Aurora Electric Railway. Plans called for the railroad to run through Turner (now West Chicago ), Wheaton , and Glen Ellyn . Like its predecessor, the railroad failed to acquire the necessary funds for construction. Yet another group incorporated the DuPage Interurban Electric Railway in 1897, but was met with a similar fate. Small electric lines opened in the 1890s that connected
4905-626: The County Board to 11 seats out of 18. Concurrently, Democrat Deb Conroy was elected as the chairman of the County Board. The College of DuPage , in Glen Ellyn , is one of the largest community colleges in the United States. Wheaton College is one of the most well-known and respected evangelical Christian colleges in the country. Benedictine University , Elmhurst University and North Central College also have long and respected histories in their communities. Other prominent colleges and universities include: Midwestern University and
5014-596: The Everett-Moore group sold off several assets, including their shares of the railroad company totaling $ 200,000. The Pomeroy-Mandelbaum group still held a large share in the company and became leaders in its operation. The G. C. Kuhlman Car Company was tasked with providing thirty passenger cars but, for unknown reasons, the deal fell through. An order was placed with the Niles Car and Manufacturing Company in March 1902 for ten cars. Niles Cars were in such high demand that
5123-458: The G&CU and a resident of Chicago, owned several acres of land in what is now the center of town. As more people settled in Junction, Turner recognized the chance to make a profit by platting his land and selling off lots. He therefore recorded the community's first plat in 1855 under the name of Town of Junction . The community continued its growth, although the one-room schoolhouse built
5232-1046: The Metropolitan West Side Elevated at 52nd Avenue for an additional five cents. Service began at 5:33am and concluded at 11:33pm, with trains running every thirty minutes. Terminals were opened to the public at 52nd Avenue, Austin Avenue (in Chicago), Oak Park , Harlem Avenue (in Forest Park ), Maywood , Bellwood , Wolf Road (in Hillside ), South Elmhurst , Secker Road (in Villa Park ), Lombard , Glen Ellyn, College Avenue (in Wheaton), Wheaton, Gary Road (in Wheaton), Chicago Golf Grounds, Warrenville, Ferry Road (in Warrenville), Eola Junction (in Aurora), and Aurora. A one-way trip from Aurora to Chicago
5341-528: The North American headquarters of the Theosophical Society Adyar , provides lectures and classes on theosophy , meditation , yoga , Eastern and New Age spirituality . Islamic mosques are located in Villa Park , Naperville (two mosques), Glendale Heights, Willowbrook, Westmont, Lombard, Bolingbrook, Addison, Woodale, West Chicago, and unincorporated Glen Ellyn. There are Hindu temples in Bartlett, Bensenville, Bloomingdale, Carol Stream, Itasca and Medinah, and an Arya Samaj center in West Chicago. There
5450-494: The Turner Cabinet Company and the Turner Brick Company. The community continues to attract quality business and residential development that contributes to the culturally diverse community that exists today. In 1909, one more railroad came to West Chicago. The Chicago, Wheaton and Western Railway , a lightly built interurban electric railway, came in from the east, running down the middle of Junction and Depot (now both Main) streets, then curved back west toward Geneva. Soon bought by
5559-446: The U.S. House of Representatives voted to impeach Donald Trump , Carol Stream -based Christianity Today published a controversial editorial calling for the removal of Trump from office, citing the need to hold him to the same standards to which they held Bill Clinton in the 1990s (who was the last Democratic nominee for president to get less than 40% of the DuPage County vote). In the U.S. House of Representatives , DuPage County
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#17328012525515668-440: The West Chicago Post Office. As of 2021, Ruben Pineda is the mayor of West Chicago. The city maintains the West Chicago Public Library downtown. West Chicago is home to the Truitt-Hoff Nature Preserve, part of DuPage County ’s West Chicago Prairie Forest Preserve , one of the largest and best preserved prairies in the Midwest. This prairie was discovered by then-mayor Richard Truitt in 1976 during one of his frequent walks in
5777-402: The age of 18 living with them, 60.90% were married couples living together, 7.90% had a female householder with no husband present and 28.00% were non-families. 22.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.27. In the county, 26.70% of the population
5886-440: The area. Well-known churches include the Community Christian Church of Naperville, College Church of Wheaton, Wheaton Bible Church , and First Baptist Church of Wheaton . There is also a large Catholic population, the county being part of the Diocese of Joliet and the National Shrine of St Therese in Darien. There is also the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Glendale Heights. The Theosophical Society in America in Wheaton,
5995-406: The city was 40.99% White , 2.92% African American , 2.18% Native American , 8.04% Asian , 0.02% Pacific Islander , 28.85% from other races , and 17.00% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 51.85% of the population. There were 7,838 households, out of which 81.09% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.68% were married couples living together, 12.75% had
6104-455: The city. This terminal consisted of two loop tracks (one for CA&E and one for CTA) where passengers could make a cross-platform transfer between the interurban and trains of the CTA operating over the temporary street-level trackage — and presumably the eventual new median strip Congress line . Unfortunately, with the change being put into effect on September 20, 1953, CA&E riders lost their one-seat ride to downtown Chicago. Within
6213-444: The city. The West Chicago Wildcats is the name of the WCCHS teams. West Chicago has one sister city.: DuPage County, Illinois DuPage County ( / d uː ˈ p eɪ dʒ / doo- PAYJ ) is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois , and one of the collar counties of the Chicago metropolitan area . As of the 2020 census , the population was 932,877, making it Illinois' second-most populous county . Its county seat
6322-484: The community had taken on a substantial and permanent character, so the residents incorporated as the Village of Turner . In 1888, a new railroad, the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern , built a freight line through town. It offered free factory sites for any industry willing to locate along its right-of-way. As part of the effort to attract industry, the community changed its name in 1896 to the Village of West Chicago . Area businessmen, particularly Charles Bolles, reasoned that
6431-428: The company was unable to fulfill the full order, but did deliver the AE&C's first six cars on July 29, 1902. The cars were 74,325 pounds (33,713 kg) with four 125 horsepower (93 kW) motors and 36-inch (910 mm) wheels. They were described as "miniature Pullmans " and could seat forty-six or fifty-two passengers. Another twenty cars were ordered from the John Stephenson Car Company and would arrive after
6540-404: The country in 1818, informs the writer that the name DuPage, as applied to the river then, was universally known, but the trader for whom it was named lived there before his time. Mr. Beaubien says it is pronounced Du Pazhe (having the sound of ah, and that the P should be capitalized). This was in reply to Mr. Blodgett's inquiry of him concerning the matter. The first white settler in DuPage County
6649-431: The county's population, and over 70% of the total Hispanic population. The most common Asian ancestries in the county are Indian (59,305, or 6.4% of the total population), Filipino (20,141, 2.2%), Chinese (17,031, 1.8%), and Pakistani (11,046, 1.2%). The population of DuPage County has become more diverse. The population of foreign-born residents increased from about 71,300 in 1990 to 184,000 by 2022 estimates. Of
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#17328012525516758-409: The county: K-12: Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad The Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad ( CA&E ), known colloquially as the "Roarin' Elgin" or the "Great Third Rail" , was an interurban railroad that operated passenger and freight service on its line between Chicago and Aurora , Batavia , Geneva , St. Charles , and Elgin , Illinois . The railroad also operated
6867-427: The early 1950s not only loomed as a source of further drain on CA&E traffic, but the right-of-way of the new highway necessitated the demolition of the CTA's Garfield Park elevated line, which the CA&E depended upon to reach its downtown terminus. The expressway's construction plans provided a dedicated right-of-way for trains in the highway's median strip . However, during the estimated five years to complete
6976-399: The election for County Clerk and Daniel Hebreard won the President of the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County. During that same period Democrats were sporadically elected to the county board and township government. In 1972, Don Carroll was elected to the County Board. In the Democratic wave of 1974, Jane Spirgel, Mary Eleanor Wall, and Elaine Libovicz were elected. All four were from
7085-480: The final passenger trains had run. The real estate became part of the Aurora Corporation of Illinois, a small conglomerate, which slowly sold off the right-of-way and other properties. Portions of the right-of-way are now operated as a multi-use trail called the Illinois Prairie Path . Besides the right-of-way , most of which has been retained as the Illinois Prairie Path , there are two depots, two combination depot/substations, and 19 pieces of rolling stock from
7194-508: The inspection was otherwise considered a success. For the next three days, engineers tested the line from Aurora to Wheaton so that they would have a familiarity with the track. Despite a malfunctioning power system, a group of nearly-untrained motormen, and only six pieces of operational rolling stock, the Aurora branch of the Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad opened on August 25, 1902. Fares were 25 cents one-way and 45 cents round-trip. Passengers who wanted to enter The Loop had to transfer to
7303-426: The intended rolling stock. Original plans called for the third rail to guide the car, but the company experienced many electrical problems along its power lines. By the time the third rail was functioning properly, two hundred and fifty utility poles had burned to the ground due to faulty insulators . A final inspection took place on August 21 from Wheaton to Elmhurst. Although problems with the utility poles were noted,
7412-401: The intention of retiring the oldest wooden cars that had been on the railroad's roster from its earliest years. However, the postwar years saw increasing shifts of passengers away from rail traffic and into automobiles, and then the CA&E found the rug pulled from beneath the railroad. The plans for construction of the Congress Street Expressway (now known as the Eisenhower Expressway ) in
7521-435: The interurban's lines used a third rail for power collection, which was relatively unusual for interurban railroads. While third rail had become the standard for urban elevated railroad and subway systems, most interurban railroads used trolley poles to pick up power from overhead wire ; the AE&C only used trolley wire where necessary, such as in the few locations where the interurban had street running . Originally,
7630-449: The largest obstacles in the railway's construction. Construction escalated following the winter months; by April, the third rail had been completed between Aurora and Wheaton. Later that month, the railway connected to the Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad at 52nd Avenue (modern day Laramie Avenue) in Chicago. The company operated steam locomotives on completed portions to deliver construction goods to where they were needed. Wheaton
7739-423: The main line at Wheaton, and allowed trains from Chicago to reach the Fox Valley city in sixty-five minutes. When opened, the AE&C was able to change its schedules to allow trains to leave 52nd Avenue every fifteen minutes, alternating between Aurora and Elgin. All trains at this point ran locally, stopping at every station. The AE&C briefly considered expanding to Mendota in late 1903, but determined that it
7848-487: The management of Dr. Thomas Conway Jr. A branch from Bellwood to Westchester opened October 1, 1926. CRT's elevated train service was extended onto the branch; the "L" company was the sole provider of passenger service on the branch and this new service replaced the CA&E's own local service on its main line east of Bellwood. Utilities magnate Samuel Insull gained control of the CA&E in 1926. Insull and his corporate interests had already taken over and improved
7957-565: The municipalities of the Fox River Valley. A profitable streetcar railway stretched from Aurora north to Carpentersville . The success of this railway inspired investors to again attempt an electric connection to Chicago. A group led by F. Mahler, E. W. Moore, Henry A. Everett, Edward Dickinson, and Elmer Barrett formed independent railway lines that were projected to stretch from Aurora and Elgin to Chicago. These two companies were incorporated on February 24, 1899. The Everett-Moore group
8066-518: The national average. Prior to European-American settlement, the area that is now DuPage County was inhabited by the Potawatomi people. By 1800, the Potawatomi had established 4 major villages along local rivers within the county, and had a network of trails crisscrossing the area. The first European-American settlers arrived in what is now DuPage County in 1832, and the Potawatomi population
8175-475: The nearby Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad had a dramatic decrease of passengers between Aurora and Chicago. The twenty cars from Stephenson arrived in December 1902. Fifteen cars were equipped with motors (even numbers 30–58) and five did not (odd numbers 101–109); these latter five cars were intended to only be used as trailing cars. Trailing cars would often be added or removed at Wheaton depending on
8284-460: The new name sounded more cosmopolitan, and would help draw prospective factory owners. As industry located in West Chicago and new jobs opened up, the population increased. At the turn of the century, West Chicago was number two in population in DuPage County, behind Hinsdale . By 1910, the population was 2,378 and several new industries had located here, including the Borden's milk condensing plant,
8393-480: The northeastern portion of DuPage, which at that time was the most Democratic region of the county. Eventually, Republicans regained all seats on the board when Jane Spirgel ran for Illinois Secretary of State with Adlai Stevenson III under the Solidarity Party banner. In 2000, Linda J. Bourke Hilbert was elected. Like her 1970s counterparts, she was from the northeastern portion of the county. During
8502-476: The number of passengers. The Stephenson cars were almost identical in every respect to the Niles cars. These new cars reduced the travel time between Aurora and Chicago to one hour. The new cars also allowed the railroad to operate at faster speeds—one run from 52nd Avenue to Aurora averaged 65 miles per hour (105 km/h). Service to Elgin began on May 29, 1903. The 17.5-mile (28.2 km) branch split off from
8611-420: The number of trains passing through town, water and fuel facilities for locomotives and a roundhouse were built here, as well as an early eating-house and hotel for travelers. As a result, a number of new employees and their families located to this community. The original settlers were primarily English and Irish, with Germans arriving in the 1860s and Mexican immigrants by the 1910s. John B. Turner, president of
8720-498: The open land west of the city. The prairie had been preserved because it was on railroad right-of-way land that had never been cultivated. The city is also home to Kline Creek Farm , an 1890s living history farm . as well as the West Chicago City Museum , located in a historic building that once served as Town Hall. The DuPage Airport is located in the city. The National Transportation Safety Board operates
8829-438: The previously incorporated Everett-Moore companies were merged into one, renamed the Aurora, Elgin & Chicago Railway Company (AE&C). Three million dollars' worth of bonds were issued in 1901 to support track construction. Construction commenced on September 18, 1900, when the AE&C started to grade its right-of-way . The AE&C received permission to cross existing track lines in February 1902, alleviating one of
8938-570: The properties of the North Shore and South Shore Lines. Insull's plans to make similar improvements to the CA&E were scrapped as the result of the Great Depression . With the collapse of his utilities empire, Insull was forced to sell his interest in the CA&E, and the railroad was once again bankrupt by 1932. The line connecting West Chicago with Geneva and St. Charles was abandoned October 31, 1937. The railroad
9047-597: The railroad had sought to substitute buses for trains, and after years of financial losses, in April 1957 the Illinois Commerce Commission authorized the railroad to discontinue passenger service. Passenger groups and affected municipalities sought injunctions that forced the railroad to temporarily continue service, but as soon as court rulings cleared the way, management abruptly ended passenger service, at noon on July 3, 1957. Commuters who had ridden
9156-629: The railroad's Chicago terminus was the 52nd Avenue station that it shared with the Garfield Park elevated railroad line of the Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad , and where passengers transferred between interurban and elevated trains. Beginning on March 11, 1905, the interurban began operating over the Metropolitan's "L" tracks, allowing AE&C trains to directly serve downtown Chicago. At
9265-409: The railway was opened. One final problem for the AE&C was finding enough qualified motormen to run the trains. The company found none in the immediate area and had to recruit sixteen men from Dayton , Ohio . Another inspection tour occurred on August 4, from Wheaton to 52nd Avenue. A Niles Car was pulled by a steam locomotive along the track to ensure that none of the curves were too sharp for
9374-543: The railways connecting Aurora to Chicago while the Pomeroy-Mandelbaum group would control railways linking cities in the Fox River Valley (eventually consolidating as the Aurora, Elgin and Fox River Electric Company [AE&FRE]). A third railway, the Batavia & Eastern Railway Company, was incorporated by the Everett-Moore group in 1901 to link the town of Batavia to the Aurora line. On March 12, 1901, all of
9483-409: The same time, the Metropolitan's Garfield Park service was extended west of 52nd Avenue, replacing the AE&C as the provider of local service over the interurban's surface-level trackage as far west as Desplaines Avenue in Forest Park . The interurban's trains terminated at the stub-ended Wells Street Terminal , adjacent to the Loop elevated . The interurban continued to use the "L" tracks through
9592-403: The superhighway, both "L" and interurban trains would need to use a temporary street-level right-of-way. When the plans circulated in 1951, CA&E objected to the arrangement, citing the effects on running time and scheduling of its trains as they negotiated the streets of Chicago's busy West Side at rush hour. The railroad estimated that the delays would cost the railroad nearly a million dollars
9701-417: The third rail. Steam boilers were fed with coal provided by the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad . On April 11, 1902, they signed a contract with General Electric to provide electrical generators, transformers, and converters for the powerhouse. The line completed a network of utility poles through the right-of-way, allowing communication and power exchange between electrical substations along
9810-480: The track in Aurora, Warrenville , and Lombard . A fifth station was built southeast of Wayne for the Elgin branch. The substations converted the alternating current in the power lines to a lower- voltage direct current for use in the third rail. After its completion, the power station also provided power for at least three small trolley lines and several Fox Valley communities. The Cleveland Construction Company
9919-523: The vote in 2020. DuPage County has not voted for a Republican candidate for president since 2004. Donald Trump was the first Republican nominee for president since 1912 to get less than 40% of the DuPage County vote, both in the 2016 and 2020 general elections. Many DuPage County communities which normally vote Republican, including but not limited to Naperville , Lisle , Wheaton , Glen Ellyn , Carol Stream , Downers Grove , and Elmhurst did not support Donald Trump in 2016. In December 2019, shortly after
10028-521: The world's second-highest-energy particle accelerator , is in Batavia , where it straddles the border between Kane and DuPage counties. Argonne National Laboratory , one of the United States government's oldest and largest science and engineering research laboratories, is in unincorporated, southeast DuPage County. Both laboratories conduct tours of their facilities. The 31-story Oakbrook Terrace Tower in Oakbrook Terrace , designed by Helmut Jahn ,
10137-665: The years of Chicago Rapid Transit Company (CRT) ownership and into the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) era. World War I was tough for the AE&C, and the railroad entered bankruptcy in 1919. Having shed the Fox River Lines (an interurban which paralleled the Fox River ), the reorganized company emerged from bankruptcy as the Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad on July 1, 1922, under
10246-513: Was Ohio 's largest interurban railroad company and had experience administrating several lines around Cleveland , most notably the Lake Shore Electric Railway . These two companies, the Aurora, Wheaton & Chicago Railway and Elgin & Chicago Railway, were incorporated on February 24, 1899. Only one day after their founding, a second group of Cleveland-based investors, led by the Pomeroy-Mandelbaum group, incorporated
10355-498: Was $ 88,588 according to 2022 data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. This was the second highest of any county in Illinois, surpassed only by that of Lake County , located in north of Chicago. As of 2022, DuPage County has a poverty rate of 6.7%, much lower than the national and state average. 8% of children under 18 and 6% of seniors in the county are in poverty. There were 325,601 households, out of which 37.00% had children under
10464-409: Was 34.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $ 77,098, and the median income for a family was $ 88,509. Males had a median income of $ 39,214 versus $ 27,870 for females. The per capita income for the city was $ 30,245. About 9.3% of families and 10.5% of the population were below
10573-460: Was Bailey Hobson who, with Lewis Stewart, built a house in 1831 for the Hobson family at a site about 2 miles (3.2 km) south of present-day downtown Naperville. Hobson later built a mill to serve surrounding farmers. Today, the Hobson house still stands on Hobson Road in Naperville, and the location of the mill is commemorated with a millstone and monument in today's Pioneer Park. According to
10682-499: Was elected Circuit Clerk and Arthur Hellyer was elected Treasurer. That year also saw the first ever Democratic majority county board and only such majority that century. Robinson and Hellyer each served one term; Robinson lost his bid for a full term in 1936 and Hellyer left the Treasurer's office to make a failed bid for probate judge in 1938. In 2018, as part of a larger suburban realignment, Democratic candidate Jean Kaczmarek won
10791-521: Was forced out of the region only one year later after ceding their land in the Treaty of Chicago . DuPage County was officially formed on February 9, 1839, out of Cook County . The county took its name from the DuPage River , which was, in turn, named after a French fur trapper, DuPage. The first written history to address the name, the 1882 History of DuPage County, Illinois , by Rufus Blanchard, relates: The DuPage River had, from time immemorial, been
10900-573: Was hired to build the line. All three rails were traditional "T" design rails laid on stone ballast . Wooden railroad ties were laid 2,816 ties to the mile and separated at standard gauge . Every fifth tie was 9 feet (2.7 m) long to support the third rail. The majority of the line was a double track , with a single track running from the Chicago Golf Club to Aurora. Roadbeds for the double track were 30 feet (9.1 m) wide and were surrounded by woven wire fencing . The third rail
11009-531: Was not worth the financial risk. Though cars primarily carried passengers, some early morning cars carried light freight. Notably, the AE&C reached a deal with the Chicago Record Herald in October 1903 to distribute the paper to the suburbs along the line. On December 1, 1909, the railroad added a branch from near Wheaton to Geneva. This was extended to St Charles August 25, 1910. Most of
11118-564: Was pushed to July 12, but delays in rolling stock production further stalled it to August. Poor investments forced the Everett-Moore syndicate to sell its shares in the AE&C in mid-1902. The company had formed a telephone company, but struggled to compete with the Bell Telephone Company . In addition, one of their construction companies went bankrupt , spurring a credit crisis in Cleveland. Creditors demanded pay, and
11227-409: Was selected as the site of the railroad's headquarters, car barn, and machine shop . $ 1.5 million in preferred stock was issued in April 1902 to cover unexpected costs. AE&C purchased a 28-acre (11 ha) lot south of Batavia and constructed a power station to provide electricity. Commercial electric power was not yet available at the time, so the railroad needed to provide its own power for
11336-576: Was seventy-five minutes. The final four cars from the Niles Car Company arrived on September 5 and were put into service seven days later. The original train schedules posted at stations showed service on the Batavia branch. However, actual service did not begin until the last week of September 1902. The Batavia branch met the Aurora branch at Eola Junction. Even when opened, the Batavia branch experienced little traffic and may have been primarily used as convenient transport for railroad officials to
11445-722: Was the first Democratic presidential nominee to win the county since Franklin Pierce in 1852 . The only time prior to 2008 that a Republican had failed to win the county was in 1912, when the GOP was mortally divided and former president and Progressive Party nominee Theodore Roosevelt won over half the county's vote. DuPage County has historically been a fiscally and socially conservative Republican stronghold, though in recent years has become more politically liberal especially on issues of race and immigration. DuPage County has been shifting more Democratic, with Joe Biden winning nearly 58% of
11554-441: Was thought that an electric line would greatly facilitate interurban travel, as there would be no freight trains to slow passenger trains. A group of investors founded the Chicago & Aurora Interurban Railway with a $ 1 million investment. However, the railroad was unable to secure additional funds; it failed to meet an 1893 construction deadline and effectively ceased operation thereafter. A second attempt came two years later with
11663-442: Was unable to exit from bankruptcy until 1946. Even though the railroad suffered from low revenue, high debt, and shortage of capital, wartime revenues and hopes for a stronger customer base in the growing west suburban region led the railroad to undertake an improvement of its service. The railroad made substantial improvements to its physical plant and acquired ten new all-steel passenger cars in 1946 and made plans for eight more, with
11772-480: Was under the age of 18, 8.20% was from 18 to 24, 32.40% from 25 to 44, 22.80% from 45 to 64 and 9.80% was 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.20 males. For every 100 females, age 18 and over, there were 94.20 males. The median income for a household in the county was $ 98,441 and the median income for a family was $ 113,086. Males had a median income of $ 60,909 versus $ 41,346 for females. The mean or average income for
11881-409: Was usually placed on the inner sides of the double track, providing safety for residents and employees. The third rail was interrupted at railroad crossings , where a cable was placed underground to carry the current across the 75-foot (23 m) gap. The first inspection trip of the 34.5-mile (55.5 km) line was held on May 16, 1902. the train departed from 52nd Avenue to Aurora, then traversed
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