Glen Ellyn, Illinois

Village of Glen Ellyn, Illinois
Glen Ellyn Main Street
County: DuPage
Township: Milton
Incorporated: 1892
President: Mark Pfefferman
ZIP code(s): 60137 and 60138 (PO BOX Only)
Area code(s): 630 and 331
Population (2000): 27,450
Change from 2000: up 1.7%
Density: 4,080.6/mi² (1,574.7/km²)
Area: 6.6 mi² (17.2 km²)
Per capita income: $39,783
(median: $74,846)
Home value: $297,293
(median: $274,800 (2000))
Website: www.glenellyn.org
Demographics (2000)[1]
White Black Hispanic Asian
86.7% 3% 6.6% 6.5%
Islander Native Other
0.01% 0.1% 1.83%

Glen Ellyn is an affluent village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2000 Census, the village population was 26,999.

Contents

Geography

Location of Glen Ellyn

The Village of Glen Ellyn is located at (41.870979, -88.063011)[2]. It is a suburb of Chicago, and it lies about 20 miles (32 km) to the west of the city. According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 6.6 square miles (17 km2), of which, 6.6 square miles (17 km2) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.10 km2) of it (0.30%) is water.

Demographics

As of the 2000 census,[3] there were 26,999 people, 10,207 households, and 7,195 families residing in the village. The population density was 4,080.6 people per square mile (1,574.7/km²). There were 10,515 housing units at an average density of 1,589.2 per square mile (613.3/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 89.50% White, 2.13% African American, 0.14% Native American, 4.74% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.83% from other races, and 1.66% from two or more races. Hispanic of any race composed 4.72% of the population.

There were 10,207 households, of which 36.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them. Additionally, 61.0% of households were married couples living together, 6.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.5% were non-families. Individuals accounted for 25.2% of all households, and 9.3% were people 65 years of age or older living alone. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.21.

In the village the population was spread out with 28.4% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 30.0% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 11.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.2 males.

According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the village was $88,332, and the median income for a family was $111,937.[4] Males had a median income of $68,630 versus $36,287 for females. The per capita income for the village was $39,783. A total of 2.8% of the population, and 1.3% of families, had incomes below the poverty line. By age, 2.4% of those under the age of 18, and 2.0% of those 65 and older, were living below the poverty line.

Transport

Glen Ellyn is served by the Metra Union Pacific/West Line. The Glen Ellyn station is located at 551 Crescent Blvd, near the heart of the downtown business district. The station is located 22.4 miles (36.0 km) away from Ogilvie Transportation Center, the eastern terminus of the West Line.[5]

Glen Ellyn is served by Pace bus routes 715, 654 and 657 (north-south service, essentially), with route 747 (east-west) passing through the village on Roosevelt Road.

The Illinois Prairie Path bicycle trail bisects the village.

At the east end of the village, Roosevelt Road provides access onto Interstate 355.

History

Deacon Winslow Churchill and family arrived from New York in 1834 to become the first landowners in the area that is now Glen Ellyn. Moses Stacy, a soldier in the War of 1812, arrived here in 1835. His inn, Stacy's Tavern, built in 1846 and his second home, was a halfway stop between Chicago and the Fox River Valley and a probable stop for Galena, Illinois stagecoaches on their way to Rockford, Illinois. Stacy's Tavern, now a historical monument, stands at what is now the intersection of Geneva Road and Main Street.

The nucleus of settlement shifted to the south when the railroad came through the village in 1849. Although no stop was planned for the area, Lewey Q. Newton deeded a right-of-way to the railroad and offered to build a depot and water tank at his own expense if it would permit a stop there. This became known as Newton Station. Within three years, the new postmaster named the town Danby after his birthplace in Vermont.

Religious services were conducted by circuit riders until the first Congregational church was established in 1862. Various Protestant churches rose in the village; it would be more than 60 years before Roman Catholics built St. Petronille and the Maryknoll Seminary.

In 1889, Thomas E. Hill and Philo Stacy arranged to dam the stream near town to form Lake Glen Ellyn, named for the glen where it rests and a Welsh spelling of Hill's wife's name, Ellen. The following year, nearby mineral springs were discovered.

In 1891, Glen Ellyn, advertised as Chicago's newest suburb and health resort, became the town's official name. The large Lake Glen Ellyn Hotel opened in 1892, the same year much of the business district was destroyed by fire. Fourteen years later, the hotel was struck by lightning and burned to the ground.

In 1907, Glen Ellyn's first fire department was organized. By the end of the twentieth century, it was known as the last all-volunteer fire organization in DuPage County, Illinois. By World War I, Glen Oak Country Club served the Oak Park and Glen Ellyn communities, and in 1922 the first Glenbard high school was built.

The town went through several names, including Babcock's Grove, DuPage Center, Stacy's Corners, Newton's Station, Danby, Prospect Park, and finally Glen Ellyn.

Notable people

Popular culture

Glen Ellyn is the setting for the novel The Girl Who Owned a City by O. T. Nelson. The protagonist lives in the Lake Ellyn area of the village. After a virus kills all adults on the planet, she, with several other children, moved into Glenbard West High School.

Glen Ellyn and Glenbard West High School were used as the setting in the movie Lucas, Winona Ryder's first movie, also starring Charlie Sheen. The Fox Network documentary/reality show Yearbook was filmed At Glenbard West. Glen Ellyn was also used in June 2007 for the movie Witless Protection, featuring Larry the Cable Guy. The film was released in 2008.

Education

Higher education

The main campus of College of DuPage is also in Glen Ellyn. Its most famous alumni are the comedy legend John Belushi and his brother the actor James Belushi.

Public schools

Glen Ellyn's primary schools are part of Glen Ellyn School District 41 and Community Consolidated School District 89. Its high schools are a part of Glenbard Township High School District 87. There is also a private school called St. Petronille, a catholic school that goes from kindergarten to 8th grade.

Private schools

Twinned cities

See also

References

External links