Vernon Hills is a suburb north of
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
, Illinois in
Lake County,
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
,
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 ...
. The population was 26,850 at the 2020 census. Vernon Hills serves as a retail hub for its surrounding area (
Libertyville,
Lake Forest,
Long Grove,
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...
and
Buffalo Grove
Buffalo Grove, officially the Village of Buffalo Grove, is a village in Lake and Cook County, Illinois. A suburb of Chicago, it lies about northwest of Downtown Chicago. As of the 2020 Census, Buffalo Grove has a population of 43,212. It tota ...
).
History
The land that was to become Vernon Hills, founded by Richard Theodore Freese, Ron Freese, and Jim Carswell, began with the establishment of a farm in 1857. Use of the land remained relatively static until the 1960s, when part of it was purchased for a residential community and golf course; the development was the first use of the name "Vernon Hills." On June 16, 1958, the village officially incorporated with 123 residents and 125 houses in a single subdivision built by Quinn Hogan and Barney Loeb.
During these times, the village and police department were run from a local motel until 1971 when village trustees bought two portable buildings.
It saw steady but slow growth until the annexing of a plot of land near the corner of IL-60 and
IL-21 in 1971, which led to the building of
Hawthorn Center. By 1980, the village's population had grown to almost 10,000 residents, and by 2000, it had surpassed 20,000.
Through the 1980s and 1990s, the village grew geographically through the annexation of surrounding areas. This included land that would become the Corporate Woods business park and Centennial Crossing residential development (1986), a section of
Hawthorne-Mellody Farms (1988), and part of the village of
Half Day (1994).
Geography
According to the 2010 census, Vernon Hills has a total area of , of which (or 97.39%) is land and (or 2.61%) is water.
Climate
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
As of the
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...
of 2010, there were 20,120 people, 7,568 households, and 5,312 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 7,813 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 81.86%
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 on ...
, 1.69%
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 ...
, 11.67%
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 ...
, 0.10%
Native American, 0.03
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...
, 2.92% from
other races
Other often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack
* ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 1.72% from two or more races.
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 ...
or
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 were 7.19% of the population.
There were 7,568 households, out of which 42.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.2% were
married couples
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...
living together, 8.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.8% were non-families. 24.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.24.
In the village, the population was spread out, with 29.2% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 36.8% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 6.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.8 males.
The
median income
The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two equal groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways of ...
for a household in the village was $101,297, and the median income for a family was $123,806. Males had a median income of $94,807 versus $78,136 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population.
Per capita i ...
for the village was $72,219. About 0.9% of families and 1.2% 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 3.0% of those under the age of 18 and 6.8% of those ages 65 and older.
In 2011 Vernon Hills had 4,858 persons of Asian ancestry, 19.3% of the village's population, the sixth highest percentage of Asians of any Chicago suburb. The Asian population figure was more than twice that of 2001. John Kalmar, the village manager, said that despite the increase from 2001 to 2011, "We haven't seen a specific increase in Asian-oriented types of businesses, and I haven't noticed in any significant way changes in what businesses are carrying."
[Selvam, Ashok.]
Asian population booming in suburbs
" ''Daily Herald
Daily or The Daily may refer to:
Journalism
* Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks
* ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times''
* ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...
'' (Arlington Heights, Illinois
Arlington Heights is a municipality in Cook County with a small portion in Lake County in the U.S. state of Illinois. A suburb of Chicago, it lies about northwest of the city's downtown. Per the 2020 Census, the population was 77,676. Per the ...
). March 6, 2011. Retrieved on June 19, 2013. "Vernon Hills, for example, saw its Asian population more than double in the decade to 4,858 — almost 20 percent of the village's population. And yet that change has not led to any marked changes in Vernon Hills' business landscape. "We haven't seen a specific increase in Asian-oriented types of businesses, and I haven't noticed in any significant way changes in what businesses are carrying," Village Manager John Kalmar said."
Economy
*
American Optical Company
The American Optical Company, also known as AO Eyewear, is a luxury American eyewear and sunglass company based in Vernon Hills, Illinois near Chicago. AO designs and manufactures in the United States.
History
Founded in 1833 by William Beecher, ...
, a luxury eyewear designer and manufacturer
*
CDW
CDW Corporation, headquartered in Lincolnshire, Illinois, is a provider of technology products and services for business, government and education. The company has a secondary division known as ''CDW-G'', devoted solely to United States govern ...
, a provider of technology products and services for business, government and education, is based out of Vernon Hills.
*
Zebra Technologies
Zebra Technologies Corporation is an American mobile computing company specializing in technology used to sense, analyze, and act in real time. The company manufactures and sells marking, tracking, and computer printing technologies. Its product ...
, a manufacturer of thermal bar code label and receipt printers used by over 90 percent of
Fortune 500
The ''Fortune'' 500 is an annual list compiled and published by ''Fortune'' magazine that ranks 500 of the largest United States corporations by total revenue for their respective fiscal years. The list includes publicly held companies, along ...
companies, is based out of Vernon Hills.
*
American Hotel Register Company, a well-known manufacturer and supplier of hospitality products and services, is based out of Vernon Hills.
*
Rust-Oleum Corporation, a worldwide leader in protective paints and coatings for both home and industry, is based out of Vernon Hills.
*
Elorac, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on advancing treatments in dermatology, is based in Vernon Hills.
*
Cole-Parmer
Cole-Parmer Instrument Company, now known as Antylia Scientific. The company serves professionals in biopharma, environmental and life sciences.
History
The company was founded by Jerry Cole and John Parmer in 1955 and took up shop in a loft ...
, a scientific and industrial instrument distributor
Recently, Vernon Hills developed a former 52 acre soybean field into a $200 million shopping center known as Mellody Farm, whose tenants are a host of restaurant and retail businesses.
When
Tiger Electronics
Tiger Electronics Ltd. (also known as Tiger and Tiger Toys) was an independent American toy manufacturer best known for its handheld LCD games, the Furby, the Talkboy, Giga Pets, the 2-XL robot, and audio games such as ''Brain Warp'' and the Br ...
was an independent company, its headquarters were in Vernon Hills.
Top employers
According to the Village's 2021 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report,
the top employers in the city are:
Arts and culture
Vernon Hills is one of six communities which, in part, comprise the
Cook Memorial Public Library District. The Evergreen Interim library, which was one of the District's two library facilities, closed on July 3, 2010. On July 10, 2010, the new Aspen Drive Library opened to the public. This building is located across the street from the Vernon Hills Elementary and Grade School Campus at 701 N Aspen Drive.
The Aspen Drive Library in Vernon Hills is the village's first full-service library. The new library is 20,000 sq. ft. and offers 120,000 volumes of books, movies and music. The library also has an interactive children's department, a high-tech teen area, a state-of-the-art computer lab, small group study spaces and community meeting rooms.
The remainder of Vernon Hills is in the
Vernon Area Public Library District.
Parks and recreation
In 2000, the village acquired land that had belonged at different times to the
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
as a
Nike missile base, the
U.S. Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage of ...
as a naval training center, and the
Curtiss Candy Company
The Curtiss Candy Company was founded in 1916 by Otto Schnering near Chicago, Illinois. Wanting a more "American-sounding" name (due to anti-German sentiment during World War I), Schnering named his company using his mother's maiden name.
Their ...
; it was converted to what is now the
Vernon Hills Athletic Complex(VHAC).
Government
Vernon Hills lies in the
Illinois 10th Congressional District.
Education
There are six grade schools in the village served by the
Hawthorn School District. In 2006, Hawthorn Junior High School was formally divided into Hawthorn Middle School North and Hawthorn Middle School South. High school students, who formerly went to
Libertyville High School
Libertyville High School, or LHS, is a public four-year high school located in Libertyville, Illinois, a northern suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. Located at the intersection of Park Avenue (IL Rte 176) and Dawes Street, on the ...
, now attend (as of 2000–2001) either
Vernon Hills High School
Vernon Hills High School, or VHHS, is a public four-year high school located in Vernon Hills, Illinois, a northern suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part of Community High School District 128, which also includes Libert ...
or Libertyville High School.
Students living in the southwest corner of Vernon Hills attend
Long Grove grade schools (Country Meadows & Woodlawn). Some subdivisions in southern Vernon Hills send students to
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...
schools, including
Adlai E. Stevenson High School. A small area in the southwest corner of the village is zoned to attend the high school in Mundelein, IL.
Elementary Schoolers may be enrolled in 4 different Hawthorn Schools. Hawthorn Elementary South, Hawthorn Elementary North, Aspen Elementary, or Townline Elementary. Currently, a Kindergarten Building is being constructed, expected to be finished by the school year of 2021. This may be delayed due to COVID-19.
Infrastructure
Transportation
Vernon Hills has a
station on
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. I ...
's
North Central Service
The North Central Service (NCS) is a Metra commuter rail line running from Union Station in downtown Chicago through northwestern and far northern suburbs to Antioch, Illinois. In June 2018, the public timetable shows 10 weekday departures from C ...
, which provides daily rail service between
Antioch, Illinois
Antioch is a village in the U.S. state of Illinois. Antioch is part of the larger Antioch Township within Lake County. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,622. The village is nestled into the Chain O'Lakes waterway system and borders ...
and
Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
(at
Union Station
A union station (also known as a union terminal, a joint station in Europe, and a joint-use station in Japan) is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway companies, allowing passengers to ...
). It is also serviced by
Pace
Pace or paces may refer to:
Business
*Pace (transit), a bus operator in the suburbs of Chicago, US
* Pace Airlines, an American charter airline
*Pace Foods, a maker of a popular brand of salsa sold in North America, owned by Campbell Soup Compan ...
buses.
Notable people
*
Sam Acho
Samuel Onyedikachi Acho (born September 6, 1988) is a Nigerian-American ESPN sports analyst, a nine-year veteran of the NFL, a Vice President of the NFL Players Association, and author of ''Let the World See You: How to Be Real in a World Full ...
, football player
*
Alex Brown, football player
*
Desmond Clark
Desmond Darice Clark (born April 20, 1977) is a former American football tight end who played in the National Football League. He was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the sixth round of the 1999 NFL Draft. He played college football at Wake Fore ...
, football player
*
Tarik Cohen
Tarik Cohen (born July 26, 1995) is an American football running back who is a free agent. Cohen played the same position for North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University before being selected in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL Dra ...
, football player
*
DaVaris Daniels
DaVaris Daniels (born December 18, 1992) is a professional Canadian football wide receiver for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at Notre Dame. After going undrafted in the 2015 NFL Draft, ...
, football player
*
Phillip Daniels
Phillip Bernard Daniels (born March 4, 1973) is a former American football defensive end and coach who most recently served as defensive line coach for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Seattle ...
, football player and coach
*
David Dobrik
David Dobrik (
Dávid Julián Dobrík (; ; born July 23, 1996)) is a Slovak Internet personality. He found early success on the video-sharing platform Vine, before starting his vlog on YouTube in 2015. In 2019, he co-founded the photography app ...
, YouTuber
*
Steve Dubinsky
Steven Dubinsky (born July 9, 1970) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played in the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks, Calgary Flames, Nashville Predators, and St. Louis Blues. He played centre and shot left-handed.
Biography ...
, hockey player
*
Leonard Floyd
Leonard Cornilus Floyd (born September 8, 1992) is an American football outside linebacker for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia and was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the firs ...
, football player
*
Robert P. Hanrahan, politician
*
Devin Hester
Devin Devorris Hester Sr. (born November 4, 1982) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver and return specialist in the National Football League (NFL). He is widely regarded as the greatest return specialist i ...
, football player
*
Christopher Howarth
Christopher "Chris" Howarth (born 25 December 1960) is a British former competitive figure skater. He is the 1981 British national champion and competed at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, where he placed 15th.
Howarth is a c ...
, figure skater
*
Kathleen A. Ryg, politician
*
Cairo Santos
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...
, football player
*
Carol Sente, politician
*
Nicole Sladkov, rhythmic gymnast
*
Evan Spencer
Evan Spencer (born May 26, 1993) is a former American football wide receiver. He played college football at Ohio State. He was originally drafted by the Washington Redskins in the sixth round of the 2015 NFL Draft.
College career Ohio State ...
, football player
*
Tim Spencer, football player and coach
*
Nathan Vasher
Nathaniel DeWayne Vasher (born November 17, 1981) is a former American football cornerback who played seven seasons in the National Football League. He played college football at Texas and was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the fourth round of ...
, football player
*
Kevin Walter
Kevin Patrick Walter (born August 4, 1981) is a former American football wide receiver. He was drafted by the New York Giants in the seventh round of the 2003 NFL Draft. He played college football at Eastern Michigan.
Walter also played for the ...
, football player
*
Cody Whitehair
Cody Michael Whitehair (born July 11, 1992) is an American football offensive guard for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Kansas State.
High school career
A native of Abilene, Kansas, Whiteh ...
, football player
References
External links
Village website
{{Authority control
Villages in Lake County, Illinois
Populated places established in 1958