Highwood is a North Shore suburb of Chicago in Moraine Township,

Lake County, Illinois Lake County is situated in the northeastern corner of the U.S. state of Illinois, along the shores of Lake Michigan. As of the 2020 census, it has a population of 714,342, making it the third-most populous county in Illinois. Its county seat ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,074. It is known for its entertainment, restaurants, bars, and festivals.

Geography

Highwood is located in southeastern Lake County at , on a ridge above the elevation of

Lake Michigan Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the east, its basin is conjoined with that o ...

. According to the 2010 census, Highwood has a total area of , all land. The city is located next to Highland Park and Fort Sheridan, and south of the Fort Sheridan Forest Preserve.

History

Originally, the land was owned by the Potawatomi until it was ceded to the United States through the 1833 Treaty of Chicago. The first non-Native American settled in the town in 1846. In 1851 Highwood became the headquarter location of the

Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad The Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad (reporting mark CNSM), also known as the North Shore Line, was an interurban railroad that operated passenger and freight service over an route between the Chicago Loop and downtown Milwaukee, as w ...

, which ran parallel to the

Chicago and North Western Railway The Chicago and North Western was a Class I railroad in the Midwestern United States. It was also known as the "North Western". The railroad operated more than of track at the turn of the 20th century, and over of track in seven states befor ...

, and is known today as

Metra Metra is the commuter rail system in the Chicago metropolitan area serving the city of Chicago and its surrounding suburbs via the Union Pacific Railroad, BNSF Railway, and other railroads. The system operates 242 stations on 11 rail lines. ...

Union Pacific / North Line The Union Pacific North Line (UP-N) is a Metra line in the Chicago metropolitan area. It runs between Ogilvie Transportation Center and Kenosha, Wisconsin; however, most trains terminate in Waukegan, Illinois. Although Metra owns the rolling stoc ...

. Thomas Curley suggested the name High Woods because the land was the highest ground between Chicago and Milwaukee and was covered with trees. In 1886 civil and labor unrest in Chicago eventually led to the Haymarket Riot. Chicago businessmen felt that having a military presence near the city would help alleviate tensions within the city and on November 8, 1887 purchased Camp Highwood. This land would come to host members of the Sixth Infantry Regiment. On February 27, 1888 Camp Highwood was officially named Fort Sheridan in honor of General Philip Sheridan for his ability to maintain order after the

Chicago Fire of 1871 The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left more than 1 ...

. Highwood provided several business and employment opportunities and following the fire, many of those who lost their home and a wave of immigrants settled into the town. Highwood can also give credit to much of their economic success to the Chicago and Milwaukee Electric Railway. However, with increased transportation it also caused a sudden rise in gambling dens and illegal "blind-pig" taverns which catered to off duty soldiers. This eventually provoked federal authorities to enact the "Highwood Quadrangle" which prohibited the sale of liquor within 1 1/8th miles of the army base. Fort Sheridan acted as an entertainment center for the town and on July 18, 1888 the trustees voted to change the name from Highwood to the Village of Fort Sheridan to capitalize on its military glamour. However, 8 years later in 1894 the name was changed back to Highwood due to resident frustration and confusion with postal misrouting. The city's business district became filled with bars and taverns which led Theodore Roosevelt to call the city "one of the toughest towns in America". In the 1920s a large number of Northern Italian immigrants (originally from

Modena Modena (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language#Dialects, Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern I ...

) moved to Highwood, many from Dalzell, Illinois, a coal mining town in Bureau County, to seek jobs. The national prohibition of alcohol at the time also attracted bootleggers who smuggled large quantities of liquor into the city. The fight to prevent Highwood from being known as a whisky den largely brought the community together. Following the start of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Fort Sheridan was used as an active training ground. By the end of the war Highwood had experienced another wave of immigration, this time a majority of immigrants coming from

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. Since then Highwood's business have continued to flourish and the city has become the destination for North Shore dining and nightlife. The city frequently hosts festivals for residents known as Celebrate Highwood which is hosted by the city chambers.

Government

Highwood operates an council-manager government.

Transportation

The main highway to Highwood is

U.S. Route 41 U.S. Route 41, also U.S. Highway 41 (US 41), is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs from Miami, Florida, to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Until 1949, the part in southern Florida, from Naples to Miami, ...

, which connects Chicago to

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...

. Commuter rail is available at two different Metra stations locations within the city ( Fort Sheridan and Highwood). Highwood is also located near the Highland Park and Lake Forest stations which all located on the

which begins in Kenosha and ends in the downtown area of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Ogilvie Transportation Center The Richard B. Ogilvie Transportation Center (; formerly Chicago and North Western Terminal) is a commuter rail terminal in downtown Chicago, Illinois. It is the terminus for the three commuter rail lines of Metra's Union Pacific District to Chica ...

. The city is approximately from

O'Hare International Airport Chicago O'Hare International Airport , sometimes referred to as, Chicago O'Hare, or simply O'Hare, is the main international airport serving Chicago, Illinois, located on the city's Northwest Side, approximately northwest of the Chicago Loop, ...

and from

Midway International Airport Chicago Midway International Airport , typically referred to as Midway Airport, Chicago Midway, or simply Midway, is a major commercial airport on the Southwest side of Chicago, Illinois, located approximately 12 miles (19 km) from the Lo ...

Schools

Highwood residents are served by North Shore School District 112 and

Township High School District 113 Township High School District 113 is a school district in Illinois, with its headquarters in Highland Park, Illinois, Highland Park. It is made up of two high schools and serves Highland Park, Deerfield, Illinois, Deerfield, Highwood, Illinois, Hi ...

. The majority of Highwood's children attend Oak Terrace School for

Kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cent ...

through fifth grade, Northwood Junior High School for sixth through eighth grade, and Highland Park High School for grades nine through twelve. St. James School was a private

Catholic school Catholic schools are pre-primary, primary and secondary educational institutions administered under the aegis or in association with the Catholic Church. , the Catholic Church operates the world's largest religious, non-governmental school syste ...

located in Highwood, but closed in 2015 due to a lack of funding and low enrollment.

Recreation

The Don Skrinar Recreation Center is a public recreation facility located near downtown Highwood. The city is also a host to the

Midwest Young Artists Conservatory Midwest Young Artists Conservatory (MYAC) is a youth music and jazz organization based near Chicago, Illinois. It is the largest youth ensemble music program in the Midwest. MYAC was founded in 1993 in Evanston, Illinois by Dr. Allan Dennis and ...

and The Performer's School. The Fine Art Studio of ROTBLATT-AMRANY which is owned by Julie Rotblatt Amrany is located within the old village of Fort Sheridan.

Demographics

2020 census

''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.''

2010 census

At the 2010 census, Highwood's resident population was 5,405. The median resident age was 32.8. The

racial makeup A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...

of the city was 69.64%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

(38.5% Non-Hispanic White), 1.54%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 2.24%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.31% Native American, 0.02%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 22.92% of some other race and 3.33% of two or more races. 56.87% were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

(of any race).

2000 census

At the 2000 census there were 4,143 people in 1,555 households, including 933 families, in the city. The population density was . There were 1,604 housing units at an average density of . The

of the city was 43.14% White, 2.15% African American, 0.58% Native American, 2.12% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 17.19% from other races, and 4.78% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 38.23%. Of the 1,555 households 29.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.2% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.0% were non-families. 34.1% of households were one person and 13.0% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.31. The age distribution was 23.3% under the age of 18, 10.6% from 18 to 24, 33.8% from 25 to 44, 16.6% from 45 to 64, and 15.7% 65 or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.0 males. The median household income was $42,993 and the median family income was $53,000. Males had a median income of $30,560 versus $27,560 for females. The per capita income for the city was $24,138. These income statistics are significantly lower than in surrounding towns. About 4.3% of families and 7.0% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 9.9% of those under age 18 and 5.2% of those age 65 or over.

Architecture

Highwood was settled in 1887 and was largely developed before the post-World War II building boom that led to much of the suburban development that characterizes Lake County. Therefore, the city has a large collection of pre-war residential and commercial structures that reflect the architecture popular during that period, including neo-classical, Italianate, and arts and crafts bungalow styles. Also common in the business district are brick commercial "store front" structures with commercial businesses on the ground floor and residential apartments above.

Notable people

Frank Bernardi Frank Dominic Bernardi (born June 17, 1933) is a former American football defensive back who played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) and the American Football League (AFL). He played college football at the University of Colo ...

, National Football League defensive back (1955–1960) *

Scott Drury Scott Drury (born 1972) is a former Illinois state representative for the 58th district and a Democratic candidate for Attorney General. The 58th district includes all or parts of Bannockburn, Deerfield, Glencoe, Highwood, Highland Park, L ...

, member of the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 re ...

(2013–2019) * Lowell B. Komie, lawyer and writer *

Francis Joseph Magner Francis Joseph Magner (March 18, 1887 – June 13, 1947) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Marquette in Michigan from 1941 to 1947. Biography Early life Francis Magner was born on Ma ...

, prelate of Catholic church; served as Bishop of Marquette (1941–1947) * Settimio Fernando "Terry" Terracina , Light Heavy-Weight Boxing Champion of Italy 1936 to 1939. Owner of The Rainbow (1949 to 1968) and La Lira(1968 to 1974) Born in Rome: January 11, 1917 Died February 10,1985, Buried at Shalom Memorial Park.

References

External links

City of Highwood

Highwood Chamber of Commerce

Highwood Historical Society
{{authority control Chicago metropolitan area Cities in Lake County, Illinois Populated places established in 1887 Cities in Illinois Illinois populated places on Lake Michigan Majority-minority cities and towns in Lake County, Illinois