''(the barn)'' , nickname = , motto = ''Tradition & Pride – Moving Forward'' , anthem = ''My La Grange'' by

Jimmy Dunne James Dunne (3 September 1905 – 14 November 1949) was an Irish footballer who played for, among others, Shamrock Rovers, Sheffield United, Arsenal and Southampton. Dunne was also a dual internationalist and played for both Ireland teams: th ...

, image_map = File:Cook County Illinois Incorporated and Unincorporated areas La Grange Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 260px , map_alt = , map_caption = Location of La Grange in Cook County, Illinois , pushpin_map = Chicago#Illinois#USA#North America , pushpin_label_position = , pushpin_label = La Grange , pushpin_map_alt = , pushpin_mapsize = , pushpin_relief = , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , coor_pinpoint = , coordinates_footnotes = , grid_name = , grid_position = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = State , subdivision_name1 = , subdivision_type2 = County , subdivision_name2 =

Cook Cook or The Cook may refer to: Food preparation * Cooking, the preparation of food * Cook (domestic worker), a household staff member who prepares food * Cook (professional), an individual who prepares food for consumption in the food industry * ...

, subdivision_type3 = Township , subdivision_name3 = Lyons Township , subdivision_type4 = , subdivision_name4 = , established_title = Settled , established_date = 1830 , established_title1 = Incorporated , established_date1 = June 11, 1879 , established_title2 = , established_date2 = , established_title3 = , established_date3 = , established_title4 = , established_date4 = , established_title5 = , established_date5 = , established_title6 = , established_date6 = , established_title7 = , established_date7 = , extinct_title = , extinct_date = , founder = Franklin Dwight Cossitt , named_for =

La Grange, Tennessee La Grange is a town in Fayette County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 133 at the 2010 census. A large area in the town is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as La Grange Historic District. Geography La Grange is l ...

, in turn named after the ancestral home of

Marquis de Lafayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette (6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (, ), was a French aristocrat, freemason and military officer who fought in the American Revolutio ...

, seat_type = , seat = , seat1_type = , seat1 = , government_footnotes = , government_type = , governing_body = , leader_party = , leader_title = Village President , leader_name = Mark Kuchler , leader_title1 = Trustees , leader_name1 = Beth Augustine
Lou Gale
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Shawana McGee
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2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...

, population_footnotes = , population_total = 16321 , population_rank = , population_density_km2 = 2495.85 , population_density_sq_mi = 6463.76 , population_metro_footnotes = , population_metro = , population_density_metro_km2 = , population_density_metro_sq_mi = , population_density = , population_density_rank = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , population_density_blank1_km2 = , population_density_blank1_sq_mi = , population_blank2_title = , population_blank2 = , population_density_blank2_km2 = , population_density_blank2_sq_mi = , population_demonym = La Granger , population_note = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics_type2 = , demographics2_footnotes = , demographics2_title1 = , demographics2_info1 = , timezone1 = CST , utc_offset1 = -6 , timezone1_DST = CDT , utc_offset1_DST = -5 , timezone2 = , utc_offset2 = , timezone2_DST = , utc_offset2_DST = , postal_code_type = ZIP code(s) , postal_code = 60525 , postal2_code_type = , postal2_code = , area_code_type = , area_code = 708 , geocode = , iso_code = , blank_name =

FIPS code The Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) of the United States are a set of publicly announced standards that the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed for use in computer systems of non-military, Americ ...

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The village of La Grange ( ; often spelled LaGrange), a suburb of Chicago, is a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...

Cook County Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40% of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. As of 20 ...

, in the U.S. state of

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rock ...

. The population was 16,321 at the 2020 census.

History

The area around La Grange was first settled in the 1830s, when Chicago residents moved out to the west due to the rapid population increase in the city in the decade since its incorporation. The first settler, Robert Leitch, came to the area in 1830, seven years before the City of Chicago was incorporated. La Grange's location, at approximately from the

Chicago Loop The Loop, one of Chicago's 77 designated community areas, is the central business district of the city and is the main section of Downtown Chicago. Home to Chicago's commercial core, it is the second largest commercial business district in Nort ...

, is not considered far from the city by today's standards, but in that time the residents enjoyed the peace of rural life without much communication with urban residents. The village was officially incorporated on June 11, 1879. It was founded by Franklin Dwight Cossitt, who was born in Granby, Connecticut, and raised in

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 36th-largest by ...

, and moved to Chicago in 1862 where he built a successful wholesale grocery business. In 1870, Cossitt purchased several hundred acres of farmland in Lyons Township, along the Chicago-Dixon Road, known today as Ogden Avenue (

U.S. Highway 34 U.S. Route 34 (US 34) is an east–west United States highway that runs for from north-central Colorado to the western suburbs of Chicago. Through Rocky Mountain National Park it is known as the Trail Ridge Road where it reaches elevation , ...

). Ogden Avenue, on the site of a defunct Native American trail, was also referred to as the "Old Plank Road". Planks were often stolen by settlers to be used as building material, which made traveling very bumpy. When the

Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illin ...

came to town, La Grange was a milk stop called Hazel Glen. A few miles to the south, through present-day Willow Springs, the Illinois and Michigan Canal had emerged as a major shipping corridor, connecting Chicago and the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...

with the

and

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

rivers. Cossitt set out to build the ideal suburban village – laying out streets, planting trees, donating property for churches and schools, and building quality homes for sale between $2,000–$8000 USD. He also placed

liquor Liquor (or a spirit) is an alcoholic drink produced by distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar, that have already gone through alcoholic fermentation. Other terms for liquor include: spirit drink, distilled beverage or h ...

restrictions in the land deeds he sold to prevent the village from becoming a saloon town. When Cossitt began his development, the area was served by a post office known as Kensington. But upon learning of another community already with that name in Illinois, Cossitt decided to name his town in honor of

, where he had been raised as a youth on an uncle's cotton farm. To this day, Kensington remains the name of one of the village's major avenues. After the

Great Chicago Fire 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 ...

of 1871 destroyed much of that city, thousands of its citizens sought new homes and opportunities far from the city's ills but within a convenient commute. La Grange was ideally situated to accommodate them. Telephones were first set up by Dr. George Fox in the 1880s for quick communication between his home office and a drug store, enabling him to order prescriptions to be delivered by buggy in a moment's notice. Growing to 52 lines in 1894, it increased twofold to 120 by the next year, and surged to 2,346 by 1921 (36 percent of the population at the time). There was a large spike in population is the 1880s and 1890s as the village grew from just over 500 to nearly 4,000 residents, over 600% growth in twenty years. The population continued to grow steadily through the 1960s, peaking at 17,814 according to the 1970 census. The population declined slightly in the '70s & '80s and has been relatively stable since then.

Geography

La Grange is located at (41.807938, −87.873455), about west of Chicago. The village is roughly flat, only deviating from the elevation of 645 feet by at most ten feet. La Grange is surrounded by incorporated places of similar sizes on all sides except to the South West, where the generously named La Grange Highlands are. As of 2020, La Grange has a total area of , all land. Two major railroad tracks run through the village, including the Burlington Northern Santa Fe, and the CSX/Indiana Harbor Belt lines. Some 14,000 years ago, the land under La Grange sat on the western shore of

Lake Chicago Lake Chicago was a prehistoric proglacial lake that is the ancestor of what is now known as Lake Michigan, one of North America's five Great Lakes. Fed by retreating glaciers, it drained south through the Chicago Outlet River. Origin The ...

, a predecessor to

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 ...

. The prehistoric shoreline today is delineated by Bluff Avenue, a north–south street on the village's east side.

Demographics

As of the 2020 census there were 16,321 people, 5,445 households, and 3,974 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 6,415 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 84.09%

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 ...

, 3.71%

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 ...

, 0.29% Native American, 1.72% Asian, 0.01%

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 ...

, 2.88% from other races, and 7.30% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, 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 viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race were 8.71% of the population. There were 5,445 households, out of which 80.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.07% were married couples living together, 10.49% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.02% were non-families. 25.18% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.69% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.35 and the average family size was 2.76. The village's age distribution consisted of 29.5% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 18.7% from 25 to 44, 30.2% from 45 to 64, and 16.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.5 males. The median income for a household in the village was $122,629, and the median income for a family was $151,026. Males had a median income of $104,060 versus $43,089 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 $60,162. About 1.2% of families and 3.6% 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 ...

, including 1.3% of those under age 18 and 3.9% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Business and commerce

La Grange is the mailing address for the headquarters of

Electro-Motive Diesel Progress Rail Locomotives, doing business as Electro-Motive Diesel (EMD), is an American manufacturer of diesel-electric locomotives, locomotive products and diesel engines for the rail industry. The company is owned by Caterpillar through its s ...

, formerly

General Motors The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...

' Electro-Motive Division, a major manufacturer of railroad

locomotive A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, motor coach, railcar or power car; the ...

s and

diesel engine The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-cal ...

s. The headquarters, engineering facilities and parts-manufacturing operations actually are located in the adjacent village of McCook; originally, the locomotives were also built there, but in more recent years final assembly has moved to EMD's other facility in

Muncie, Indiana Muncie ( ) is an incorporated city and the seat of Delaware County, Indiana. Previously known as Buckongahelas Town, named after the legendary Delaware Chief.http://www.delawarecountyhistory.org/history/docs/lenape-villages.pdf It is located in ...

. The downtown area, centered along and around La Grange Road ( US 45) and the

BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is one of the largest freight railroads in North America. One of seven North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 35,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and nearly 8,000 locomotives. It has three transcontinental routes that ...

line, grew somewhat run-down during the 1980s; however, the mid-to-late 1990s saw a revival, with many new businesses opening including many restaurants. This expansion of the downtown led to increased congestion; often, parking became difficult to find, especially on

weekends The weekdays and weekend are the complementary parts of the week devoted to labour and rest, respectively. The legal weekdays (British English), or workweek (American English), is the part of the seven-day week devoted to working. In most of t ...

. A parking structure was paid for by a grant from the state for the advancement of public transportation (since increasing parking for train commuters would increase the number of people willing to use the train). The upkeep is paid for by an increase in the sales tax at restaurants and other entertainment establishments. There was no increase in the local property taxes.

Arts and culture

La Grange holds numerous public activities and festivals. Art fairs, historic housewalks, carnivals, and farmer's markets are also common, mostly taking place in the downtown area.

Pet Parade

An annual event known as the ''Pet Parade'' has been conducted every year since 1947 and attracts thousands of people from the La Grange area. The parade marches through downtown and includes a wild variety of animal pets like dogs, cats, hamsters, birds, and farm animals. There is a long history of Grand Marshals for the parade including Elephants and Donkeys from the Brookfield Zoo (1948), Luci Baines Johnson – Daughter of the President Lyndon B. Johnson (1964), and Susan Dey and Danny Bonaduce of "The Partridge Family" (1971). Included in the long history of the event is the Pet Parade Queen; including Erin Vondrasek – Daughter of Jim and Mary Vondrasek (2001). In 2019 the theme for the Pet Parade was 'Celebrating the Heroes and Superheroes' and drew an estimated 15,000 people. The theme for 2020 is 'Roaring 20's: Then and Now'.

Architecture

The La Grange Village Historic District makes up a large section of the village and includes over 1,000 buildings representing several popular architectural styles of late 19th century and early 20th century. A few homes in district were designed by

Frank Lloyd Wright Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key role in the architectural movements o ...

. There is even a "bootleg" house, one he designed on the side, contrary to his employment agreement, when he was supposed to be working exclusively for architect

Louis Sullivan Louis Henry Sullivan (September 3, 1856 – April 14, 1924) was an American architect, and has been called a "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism". He was an influential architect of the Chicago School, a mentor to Frank Lloy ...

. Wright was reportedly fired over this and similar employment agreement infractions.

Parks and recreation

The Park District of La Grange maintains 78.5 acres of parkland at 11 locations, and offers over 1,500 recreation programs annually for its more than 16,000 residents. Parks within the village limits include: *Community Center & Park (1 acre) *Denning Park (10 acres) *Elm Park (2 acres) *Gilbert Park (6 acres) *Gordon Park (17 acres) *Meadowbrook Manor Park *Rotary Centennial Park (0.3 acres) *Sedgwick Park (25 acres) *Spring Park (0.85 acres) *Spring/Gurrie School Park (8 acres) *Stone Park (0.5 acres) *Waiola Park (3.5 acres)

Government

The Village of La Grange is a non-

home rule Home rule is government of a colony, dependent country, or region by its own citizens. It is thus the power of a part (administrative division) of a state or an external dependent country to exercise such of the state's powers of governance wi ...

municipal corporation and operates under a board-manager form of government. A seven-member

board of trustees A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit org ...

, elected as provided by state law, serves four-year overlapping terms. A village manager is appointed by the board. The village has six operating departments: administration, finance, police, fire, community development and public works. The village is in

Illinois's 3rd congressional district Illinois's 3rd congressional district includes part of Cook County, and has been represented by Democrat Marie Newman since January 3, 2021. The district was previously represented by Dan Lipinski from 2005 to 2021, and by Lipinski's father Bi ...

, and is represented by

Marie Newman Marie Newman (née Klassen; born April 13, 1964) is an American politician and marketing consultant who served as the U.S. representative from Illinois's 3rd congressional district from 2021 to 2023. The district encompasses parts of southweste ...

, a resident of the village. The village is served by the Park District of La Grange with a five-member

board of commissioners A county commission (or a board of county commissioners) is a group of elected officials (county commissioners) collectively charged with administering the county government in some states of the United States; such commissions usually comprise ...

, elected as provided by state law, which serves four-year overlapping terms. An executive director is appointed by the board.

Endorsing organizations

A Citizens' Council has existed in La Grange for over 75 years. As all such organizations under the village manager form of government, it is non-partisan. The council in particular seeks, evaluates, and recommends candidates for the village, library and park district boards. Other non-partisan slating organizations form periodically to seek and support candidates for the various elected boards.

Education

Public schools

Students in the village are served by one of three K-8 public school districts. The northern half of the village (roughly any students north of 47th Street) is part of La Grange School District 102. District 102 elementary schools within the village include: Cossitt School (named after Franklin Cossitt) and Ogden Avenue School (named after the local name for U.S. Route 34, which in turn is named after William Butler Ogden, first mayor of Chicago). Some elementary students attend Forest Road School in neighboring

La Grange Park, Illinois La Grange Park is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 13,475. Geography La Grange Park is located at (41.829831, -87.869233). According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, La Grange Park ...

, and Congress Park School in neighboring

Brookfield, Illinois Brookfield (formerly Grossdale) is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, located west of downtown Chicago. Per the 2020 census, the population was 19,476. The city is home to the Brookfield Zoo. Geography Brookfield is located ...

. Middle school students in District 102 attend Park Junior High, located in neighboring La Grange Park. The southern half of the village (roughly any students south of 47th Street) is part of La Grange School District 105. District 105 elementary schools within the village include: Seventh Avenue School and Spring Avenue School, both located on the streets that share their names. Middle school students in District 105 attend Gurrie Middle School. A small number of students in the southwest portion of La Grange are served by

LaGrange Highlands School District 106 LaGrange Highlands School District 106 is an elementary school district based in La Grange Highlands, an outlying suburb of Chicago located in Cook County, Illinois, near the border with DuPage County DuPage County ( ) is a county in the U.S ...

, attending Highlands Elementary School and Highlands Middle School in nearby

La Grange Highlands, Illinois La Grange Highlands is an unincorporated community south of La Grange in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Located near I-294 and I-55, the town is bordered by Countryside, Indian Head Park, La Grange, and Western Springs. It primarily co ...

. Lyons Township High School District 204 serves the entire village grades 9 through 12. North Campus, located in La Grange, is used by Juniors and Seniors and was the original high school. Freshmen and Sophomores go to South Campus, founded in 1956, located in neighboring Western Springs. The Campus was split due to lack of available land for expansion around the original building. Previously there also was a junior college associated with the high school but due to increasing enrollment, lack of space, and new rules that separated junior colleges from high schools, it was merged with

College of DuPage College of DuPage is a public community college with its main campus in Glen Ellyn, Illinois. The college also owns and operates facilities in the Illinois communities of Addison, Carol Stream, Naperville and Westmont. With more than 20,000 ...

in 1967. When it was open, Lyons Township Junior College was nicknamed Tick-Tock Tech, due to its location near the clock tower.

Private schools

St. Cletus and St. Francis Xavier serve as the two

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

K-8 schools in La Grange. St. John's Lutheran is the one

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...

K-8 school within the village limits. Preschool programs are available at Kensington School of La Grange, Creative World Montessori School, Little People's Country, Grace Lutheran Church, and First United Methodist Church.

Media

One of the newspapers of La Grange is ''The Doings'', a subsidiary of the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

''.

Lyons Township

Lyons Township High School by far provides the most media outlets. The first one established, ''LION Newspaper'', was founded over a century ago and distributes news to all over the district. The second form of media, WLTL, first aired in 1968 and has been broadcasting music for fifty years. LTHS also hosts Lyons Township Television (LTTV), which transmits sports or programs created by students of Lyons Township.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Roads

Two major highways traverse La Grange: The village's main street,

La Grange Road Mannheim Road, also known as La Grange Road from Cermak Road to U.S. Route 30 (US 30; Lincoln Highway), is a north–south major street in the near-western suburbs of Chicago. It carries US 12 from Des Plaines to 95th St near Hickory ...

(U.S. Routes 12/ 20/ 45), runs north–south and intersects

Interstate 55 Interstate 55 (I-55) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route, connecting the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes. The h ...

(Stevenson Expressway) south of the village.

Ogden Avenue Ogden Avenue is a street extending from the Near West Side of Chicago to Montgomery, Illinois. It was named for William B. Ogden, the first mayor of Chicago. The street follows the route of the Southwestern Plank Road, which opened in 1848 acr ...

( U.S. Route 34) runs east–west and intersects

Interstate 294 Interstate 294 (I-294) is a tolled auxiliary Interstate Highway in northeastern Illinois. It forms the southern portion of the Tri-State Tollway in Illinois. I-294 runs from South Holland at I-80/ I-94 and Illinois Route 394 (IL 394) t ...

(Tri-State Tollway), west of the village.

Bus service

Commuter bus service is provided 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 ...

, the suburban bus division of the Regional Transportation Authority.

Train service

The first rail link to Chicago dates to 1864, established by the

Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illin ...

. La Grange currently has three tracks belonging to the

that run through the north end of the village, with passenger rail service provided by

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 ...

and

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada. ...

. Metra's

BNSF Railway Line The BNSF Line (also known informally as the "Racetrack") is a Metra commuter rail line operated by the BNSF Railway in Chicago and its western suburbs. In 2010, the BNSF Line continued to have the highest weekday ridership (average 64,600) of t ...

provides frequent commuter service between

Aurora An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...

and Chicago, with two stations in La Grange. Express service to Downtown Chicago ( Union Station) from

takes approx. 23 minutes. Amtrak's ''

Illinois Zephyr The ''Illinois Zephyr'' and ''Carl Sandburg'' are a pair of passenger trains operated by Amtrak on a route between Chicago and Quincy, Illinois. As ''Illinois Service'' trains, they are partially funded by the Illinois Department of Transport ...

'' and ''

Carl Sandburg Carl August Sandburg (January 6, 1878 – July 22, 1967) was an American poet, biographer, journalist, and editor. He won three Pulitzer Prizes: two for his poetry and one for his biography of Abraham Lincoln. During his lifetime, Sandburg ...

'' (both destined for

Quincy, Illinois Quincy ( ), known as Illinois's "Gem City", is a city in and the county seat of Adams County, Illinois, United States, located on the Mississippi River. The 2020 census counted a population of 39,463 in the city itself, down from 40,633 in 2010. ...

) run twice daily trains through La Grange stopping at

. Freight rail traffic on the BNSF line is extremely heavy, with BNSF operating freight trains on all three mainline tracks through the village. During non-rush hours, a freight train may run along the line as frequently as once every ten minutes on average. The

Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad The Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad is a Class III railroadSurface Transportation BoardThe Belt Railway Company of Chicago -- Trackage Rights Exemption -- Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad Company January 9, 2002 in the United States. Ownership The IHB ...

, running north–south through the east end of the village, also has extremely heavy freight traffic.

Airport

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 Loop busines ...

and

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 ...

are approx. away from La Grange, respectively. A proposed passenger rail line connecting the two airports would have a station in La Grange. La Grange was once home to a municipal air field called Stinson Airport. The airport was closed in the late 1950s and is now a large quarry.

Health care

AdventHealth La Grange, operated by AdventHealth, is a level-two

trauma center A trauma center (or trauma centre) is a hospital equipped and staffed to provide care for patients suffering from major traumatic injuries such as falls, motor vehicle collisions, or gunshot wounds. A trauma center may also refer to an emerge ...

. The hospital has 270

inpatient A patient is any recipient of health care services that are performed by healthcare professionals. The patient is most often ill or injured and in need of treatment by a physician, nurse, optometrist, dentist, veterinarian, or other health car ...

beds. A$79 million renovation and expansion of the facility was completed in early 2007.

Notable people

* John Briscoe, pitcher for the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The t ...

Sarah Wayne Callies Sarah Wayne Callies (born June 1, 1977) is an American actress. She is known for starring as Sara Tancredi in Fox's ''Prison Break'' and as Lori Grimes in AMC's '' The Walking Dead''. She has also starred as Katie Bowman in USA Network's ''Col ...

, actor (''

Prison Break ''Prison Break'' is an American serial drama television series created by Paul Scheuring for Fox. The series revolves around two brothers, Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell) and Michael Scofield ( Wentworth Miller); Burrows has been sentenced ...

'' and '' The Walking Dead'') * Patrick Chovanec, business professor at

Tsinghua University Tsinghua University (; abbr. THU) is a national public research university in Beijing, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education. The university is a member of the C9 League, Double First Class University Plan, Projec ...

, economics and political commentator *

John Curulewski John Curulewski (October 3, 1950 – February 13, 1988) was an American musician who was one of the original members of Styx. Career In 1969 Curulewski joined the Chicago-based band TW4, featuring college friends Dennis DeYoung, Chuck Panozz ...

, guitarist, vocalist, composer, teacher, producer, and original member of

Styx In Greek mythology, Styx (; grc, Στύξ ) is a river that forms the boundary between Earth (Gaia) and the Underworld. The rivers Acheron, Cocytus, Lethe, Phlegethon, and Styx all converge at the centre of the underworld on a great marsh, ...

Luis Armand Garcia {{all plot, date=March 2012 This is a list of characters from '' George Lopez''. Main characters George Lopez George Edward Lopez (played by George Lopez) is the main protagonist of the series. He is the son of Manny and Benny Lopez. George mar ...

, actor (the '' George Lopez'' TV series) * Kevin Guilfoile, novelist and essayist residing in La Grange *

David Hasselhoff David Michael Hasselhoff (born July 17, 1952), nicknamed "The Hoff", is an American actor, singer, and television personality. He has set a Guinness World Record as the most watched man on TV. Hasselhoff first gained recognition on '' The Yo ...

, actor (''

Baywatch ''Baywatch'' is an American action drama television series about lifeguards who patrol the beaches of Los Angeles County, California, and Hawaii, starring David Hasselhoff. It was created by Michael Berk, Douglas Schwartz, and Gregory J. Bo ...

'') and German pop superstar * Fred Herbert, pitcher for the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisio ...

Jeff Hornacek Jeffrey John Hornacek (; born May 3, 1963) is an American professional basketball coach and a former player who is a coaching consultant for the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He previously was the head coach for both the ...

, basketball player, NBA All-Star and former coach of

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associat ...

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Suns are the only team in t ...

* Otto Hunziker, educator and technical innovator in the dairy industry * Richard H. Jeschke, Marine Corps Brigadier General during

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

Jason Karnuth Jason Andre Karnuth (born May 15, 1976) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher most recently with the Milwaukee Brewers organization. In 2007, Karnuth was the accidental victim of an attack by Roman Colón. During Colón's rehab assig ...

, pitcher for the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

and

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

* Reed G. Landis (1896–1975), military aviator and

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. He resided in La Grange in 1947. *

John Lewis John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020) was an American politician and civil rights activist who served in the United States House of Representatives for from 1987 until his death in 2020. He participated in the 1960 Nashville ...

, jazz pianist, composer and arranger; founder and musical director of the

Modern Jazz Quartet The Modern Jazz Quartet (MJQ) was a jazz combo established in 1952 that played music influenced by classical, cool jazz, blues and bebop. For most of its history the Quartet consisted of John Lewis (piano), Milt Jackson (vibraphone), Percy ...

* Helen Lynd, professor and author * Benjamin Roy Mottelson, Nobel Prize in Physics, 1975 *

, congresswoman * George Paskvan, fullback and defensive back for the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. It is the t ...

* Alfred F. Schimek, architect *

Tim Stapleton Timothy Gabriel Stapleton (born July 19, 1982) is an American former professional ice hockey center. He played in the National Hockey League with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Atlanta Thrashers and Winnipeg Jets between 2008 and 2012. In 2011, Staplet ...

, retired NHL forward *

Quint Studer Quinton D. Studer (born 1951) is a Pensacola, Florida businessman and philanthropist, known as the co-owner of the minor league baseball team the Pensacola Blue Wahoos and founder of the healthcare consulting company, Studer Group. Early life a ...

, founder and CEO of the health care consulting company Studer Group, LLC; co-owner of the

Pensacola Blue Wahoos The Pensacola Blue Wahoos are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are based in Pensacola, Florida, and play their home games at Admiral Fetterman Field. In 2012, the team rel ...

Ty Warner H. Ty Warner (born September 3, 1944) is an American billionaire toy manufacturer, businessman, and former actor. He is the CEO, sole owner and founder of Ty Inc. which manufactures and distributes stuffed toys, including Beanie Babies and other l ...

, toy manufacturer, businessman, actor; founder of Ty Inc., which manufactures and distributes

Beanie Babies Beanie Babies are a line of stuffed toys created by American businessman H. Ty Warner, who founded Ty Inc. in 1986. The toys are stuffed with plastic pellets ("beans") rather than conventional soft stuffing. They come in many different forms, ...

* Leona Woods, physicist and youngest member of the Manhattan Project team *

Art Young Arthur Henry Young (January 14, 1866 – December 29, 1943) was an American cartoonist and writer. He is best known for his socialist cartoons, especially those drawn for the left-wing political magazine '' The Masses'' between 1911 and 1917. ...

, radical cartoonist and author

References

External links

Village of La Grange official websiteLa Grange Public LibraryLa Grange Area Historical SocietyLocal newspaper article about 'stars' who've attended the La Grange Pet ParadePet Parade Website
{{authority control Villages in Illinois Populated places established in 1830 Villages in Cook County, Illinois Chicago metropolitan area 1830 establishments in Illinois