Barrington is a village in

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 (profession), an individual who prepares food for consumption in the food industry * C ...

and

Lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...

counties in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

. The population was 10,722 at the 2020 census. A northwest suburb of

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, the area features

wetlands A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...

, forest preserves, parks, and horse trails in a country-suburban setting. Barrington is part of the

Chicago metropolitan area The Chicago metropolitan area, also referred to as Chicagoland, is the largest metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. state of Illinois, and the Midwest, containing the City of Chicago along with its surrounding suburbs and satellite cities. ...

History

Early history

The original settlers of the Barrington area were the indigenous peoples of the Native American Prairie

Potawatomi The Potawatomi (), also spelled Pottawatomi and Pottawatomie (among many variations), are a Native American tribe of the Great Plains, upper Mississippi River, and western Great Lakes region. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, ...

Mascoutin The Mascouten (also ''Mascoutin'', ''Mathkoutench'', ''Muscoden,'' or ''Musketoon'') were a tribe of Algonquian-speaking Native Americans located in the Midwest. They are believed to have dwelt on both sides of the Mississippi River, adjacent to ...

tribes, which later divided into the Potawatomi,

Ojibwe The Ojibwe (; Ojibwe writing systems#Ojibwe syllabics, syll.: ᐅᒋᐺ; plural: ''Ojibweg'' ᐅᒋᐺᒃ) are an Anishinaabe people whose homeland (''Ojibwewaki'' ᐅᒋᐺᐘᑭ) covers much of the Great Lakes region and the Great Plains, n ...

, and

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

tribes. Many local roads still in use today, including Algonquin Road, Rand Road, Higgins Road, and St. Charles Road, were originally Native American trails. For many years, Barrington was considered part of the

Northwest Territory The Northwest Territory, also known as the Old Northwest and formally known as the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, was formed from part of the unorganized western territory of the United States after the American Revolution. Established ...

, then the

Illinois Territory The Territory of Illinois was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 1, 1809, until December 3, 1818, when the southern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Illinois. Its ...

19th century

By treaty dated September 26, 1833, ending the

Black Hawk War The Black Hawk War was a conflict between the United States and Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans led by Black Hawk (Sauk leader), Black Hawk, a Sauk people, Sauk leader. The war erupted after Black Hawk and a group of ...

, the Ojibwe, Ottawa and Potawatomi tribes ceded to the United States all lands from the west shore 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 depth () after Lake Superior and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the ...

west to the area that the Winnebago tribe ceded in 1832, north to the area that the

Menominee The Menominee ( ; meaning ''"Menominee People"'', also spelled Menomini, derived from the Ojibwe language word for "Wild Rice People"; known as ''Mamaceqtaw'', "the people", in the Menominee language) are a federally recognized tribe of Na ...

s had previously ceded to the United States, and south to the area previously ceded by an 1829 treaty at

Prairie du Chien Prairie du Chien may refer to: Places *Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin Prairie du Chien ( ) is a city in Crawford County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. The population was 5,506 at the 2020 census. Often called Wisconsin's second- ...

, a total of approximately . Through this treaty, the Sauk,

Meskwaki The Meskwaki (sometimes spelled Mesquaki), also known by the European exonyms Fox Indians or the Fox, are a Native American people. They have been closely linked to the Sauk people of the same language family. In the Meskwaki language, th ...

, Winnebago, Ojibwe, Ottawa and Pottawatomi tribes ceded all title to the area east of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

. Between 1833 and 1835, the U.S. government paid approximately $100,000 in annuities and grants to the Potawatomi, Ottawa, and Ojibwe tribes, presumably as payment for the land. Following this treaty, pioneers traveled from

Troy, New York Troy is a city in and the county seat of Rensselaer County, New York, United States. It is located on the western edge of the county, on the eastern bank of the Hudson River just northeast of the capital city of Albany, New York, Albany. At the ...

, via

Fort Dearborn Fort Dearborn was a United States fort, first built in 1803 beside the Chicago River, in what is now Chicago, Illinois. It was constructed by U.S. troops under Captain John Whistler and named in honor of Henry Dearborn, then United States Secre ...

(now the city of Chicago) to live in Cuba Township in Lake County. The first

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

pioneers known to have settled in Barrington township were Jesse F. Miller and William Van Orsdal of

Steuben County, New York Steuben County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 93,584. Its county seat is Bath. Its name is in honor of Baron von Steuben, a Prussian general who fought on the American si ...

, who arrived in 1834, before the three-year period which had been given the Native Americans to vacate the region, and before local land surveys. Other Yankee settlers from Vermont and New York settled in what is now the northwest corner of

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 percent of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. ...

. The combined settlement of these pioneers, located at the intersection of

Illinois Route 68 Illinois Route 68 (IL 68) is a east–west State highway (US), state highway in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Illinois. It travels east from Illinois Route 72, IL 72 (Higgins Road) in the Dundee area to the Concurren ...

and Sutton Road, was originally called Miller Grove due to the number of families with that surname but later renamed Barrington Center because it "centered" both ways from the present Sutton Road and from Algonquin and Higgins roads. Although residents and historians agree that the name Barrington was taken from Great Barrington in

Berkshire County, Massachusetts Berkshire County (pronounced ) is the Western Massachusetts, westernmost County (United States), county in the U.S. state, U.S. state of Massachusetts. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 129,026. Its la ...

, and that many settlers immigrated to the area from Berkshire County, there is currently no evidence that settlers emigrated from Great Barrington itself. In addition, several original settlers, including Miller, Van Orsdal, and John W. Seymour, emigrated from

, which also features a town named Barrington founded in 1822. However, it is currently unknown whether any settlers emigrated from Barrington, New York, itself or whether the New York settlement influenced the naming of Barrington, Illinois. Barrington IL Train Station

Much of the history of Barrington since its settlement parallels the development of railroad lines from the port facilities in Chicago. In 1854, the

Chicago and North Western Transportation Company 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 ...

, now known as the

Union Pacific Northwest Line The Union Pacific Northwest Line (UP-NW) is a commuter rail line provided by Metra and operated by the Union Pacific Railroad in Chicago, Illinois and its surrounding suburbs. While Metra does not refer to any of its lines by colors, the timetable ...

, led by

William Butler Ogden William Butler Ogden (June 15, 1805 – August 3, 1877) was an American politician and railroad executive who served as the first Mayor of Chicago. He was referred to as "the Astor of Chicago." He was, at one time, the city's richest citizen ...

, extended the train line to the northwest corner of

and built a station named Deer Grove. In 1854, Robert Campbell, a civil engineer who worked for the railroad, purchased a farm northwest of the Deer Grove station and platted a community on the property. Deer Grove residents protested, and at Campbell's request, the railroad later moved the Deer Grove station near its current location, which Campbell named Barrington after Barrington Center. In 1855, the village's first

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

facility began operations on Franklin Street. By 1863, population growth during the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

era increased the number of Barrington residents to 300. In order to provide a tax mechanism to finance improvements, Barrington submitted its request for incorporation in 1863. Delays due to the Civil War resulted in the appropriate incorporation deeds not returning to Barrington for nearly two years. The Illinois legislature granted Barrington's charter on February 16, 1865. The Village held its first Board meeting on March 20, 1865, and appointed resident Homer Wilmarth as Mayor for one year. In 1866, resident Milius B. McIntosh became the first elected Village President. In 1889, the

Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway The Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway was a Class II railroad, making a roughly circular path between Waukegan, Illinois and Gary, Indiana. The railroad served as a link between Class I railroads traveling to and from Chicago, although it operat ...

(the "EJ&E") was built through Barrington, crossing what is now the Union Pacific/Northwest Line northwest of town. In the late 19th century, a series of fires damaged numerous downtown buildings. In 1890, fire swept along the north side of East Main Street east of what is now the Union Pacific/Northwest Line, destroying several buildings. In 1893, another fire destroyed most of the block that is now Park Avenue, and in 1898 a fire destroyed several buildings along the north side of Main Street from Hough Street to the Northwest Line railroad tracks. As a result of these fires, residents replaced the burned frame structures with more substantial brick and stone buildings, many of which remain in use today (albeit with substantially altered facades).

20th century

At the beginning of the 20th century, the village streets were unpaved, although the downtown area had wooden slat sidewalks, with some on elevated platforms. The downtown area also featured hitching posts for tethering horses as well as public outhouses. Meanwhile, fenced residential backyards in the village often contained livestock and barnyard animals. In 1907, the village began replacing its wooden sidewalks with cement pavement. In 1929, the Jewel Tea Company built a new office, warehouse, and

coffee Coffee is a beverage brewed from roasted, ground coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content, but decaffeinated coffee is also commercially a ...

roasting facility northeast of the village center, creating hundreds of local jobs despite the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

. The last major fire in downtown Barrington occurred on December 19, 1989. The fire completely destroyed Lipofsky's Department Store, then one of the oldest continually operating businesses in the village.

The Battle of Barrington

On November 27, 1934, a running gun battle between

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

agents and Public Enemy # 1

Baby Face Nelson Lester Joseph Gillis (December 6, 1908 – November 27, 1934), also known as George Nelson and Baby Face Nelson, was an American bank robber who became a criminal partner of John Dillinger when he helped Dillinger escape from prison in Crown P ...

took place in Barrington, resulting in the deaths of

Special Agent In the United States, a special agent is an official title used to refer to certain investigators or detectives of federal, military, tribal, or state agencies who primarily serve in criminal investigatory positions. Additionally, some special ...

Herman "Ed" Hollis and Inspector Samuel P. Cowley. Nelson, though shot nine times, escaped the gunfight in Hollis's car with his wife, Helen Gillis. Nelson succumbed from his wounds at approximately 8 p.m. that evening and was unceremoniously dumped near a cemetery in Niles Center (now Skokie), Illinois. Infamous for allegedly killing more federal agents than any other individual, Nelson was later buried at Saint Joseph Cemetery in

River Grove, Illinois River Grove is a village in Leyden Township, Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 10,612 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. History Just as nearby Elmwood Park and Oak Park are named after thei ...

. A plaque near the entrance to Langendorf Park, part of the Barrington Park District, commemorates the agents killed in the gunfight.

21st century

In April 2009, in a

non-binding referendum A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a direct vote by the electorate (rather than their representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either binding (resulting in the adoption of a new policy) or advis ...

, residents voted in favor of permitting Barrington Township officials to begin looking into seceding from

in part due to Cook County's increased sales tax, now the highest in the country. (''See''

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

section below.) Today, Barrington and its nearby villages are considered to be some of the wealthiest in the country.

Opposition to Canadian National Railway Purchase of EJ&E Railway

Since 2008, Barrington has made national news for its opposition to the purchase of the EJ&E by

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company () is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN is Canada's largest railway, in terms of both revenue a ...

, known as "CN", a purchase that may drastically increase the number of freight trains passing through the village daily. The EJ&E intersects at grade with eight major roads in the Barrington area, including Northwest Highway,

Illinois State Route 59 Illinois Route 59 is a north–south state highway in northeastern Illinois. It runs south from Illinois Route 173 in Antioch, Illinois, Antioch to Interstate 55 in Illinois, I-55 in Shorewood, Illinois, Shorewood, spanning the north–s ...

and

Lake Cook Road Lake Cook Road (alternatively referred to as County Line Road or Main Street in some areas) is a major east–west highway in Cook, Lake, McHenry, and Kane Counties in Illinois. For much of its length, it marks the border between Cook and ...

in downtown Barrington, as well as the

Metra Metra is the primary 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 243 train station, stati ...

Union Pacific line. By 2012, CN is expected to run at least 20 trains on the line per day. In summer 2008,

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

, then a

U.S. senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

for Illinois, voiced opposition to the purchase, vowing to work with affected communities to make sure their views were considered. On October 15, 2010, the CN railroad crossing at

U.S. Route 14 U.S. Route 14 or U.S. Highway 14 (US 14), an east–west route, is one of the original United States Numbered Highways of 1926. It is about long. It is roughly parallel to Interstate 90 (I-90). The highway's eastern termin ...

, as well as rail crossings at Lake Zurich Road and Cuba Road, were blocked for over one and half hours during the early afternoon rush hour due to a stopped 133-car CN southeast bound freight train. At times during the incident, the Hough Street crossing was also blocked. The stopped train also caused back-ups on the Metra commuter rail service of their "Union Pacific Northwest Line", which operates over Union Pacific's Harvard and McHenry subdivisions. That same day, U.S. Rep.

Melissa Bean Melissa Bean (née Luburich; born January 22, 1962) is an Americans, American politician who served as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for from 2005 to 2011. Bean is a member of the Democratic Party (United States ...

(D-8th) and

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

Dick Durbin Richard Joseph Durbin (born November 21, 1944) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States senator from the state of Illinois, a seat he has held since 1997. A member of the Dem ...

(D-Ill.) released a statement that Barrington will receive a $2.8 million grant to fund the planning, design and engineering of a

grade separation In civil engineering (more specifically highway engineering), grade separation is a method of aligning a junction of two or more surface transport axes at different heights ( grades) so that they will not disrupt the traffic flow on other tr ...

at the

and CN railroad crossing. Construction of any grade separation at that intersection is estimated to cost approximately $69 million; the source(s) of any such funding are currently unknown, and there are currently no plans to design or construct grade separations at any of the other seven Barrington area CN railroad crossings.

Geography

According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Barrington has a total area of , of which (or 96.12%) is land and (or 3.88%) is water. Barrington is northwest of

Climate

Barrington has a hot-summer

continental climate Continental climates often have a significant annual variation in temperature (warm to hot summers and cold winters). They tend to occur in central and eastern parts of the three northern-tier continents (North America, Europe, and Asia), typi ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

Dfa), with summers generally wetter than the winters: The highest recorded temperature was on July 10, 1974; the lowest recorded temperature was on January 31, 2019. Historical

tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with the surface of Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, although the ...

activity for the Barrington area is slightly below Illinois state average. On April 11, 1965, an F4 tornado approximately away from downtown Barrington killed 6 people and injured 75; on April 21, 1967, another F4 tornado approximately away from the village center killed one person, injured approximately 100 people and caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage.

Demographics

As of the 2020 census there were 10,722 people, 3,988 households, and 2,902 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 4,394 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village (including Hispanics in the racial counts) was 84.29%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 6.02% Asian, 1.15%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.29% Native American, 2.11% from other races, and 6.15% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 6.07% of the population. There were 3,988 households, out of which 38.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.41% were married couples living together, 11.36% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.23% were non-families. 25.68% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.47% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.09 and the average family size was 2.56. The village's age distribution consisted of 26.9% under the age of 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 23.7% from 25 to 44, 24.4% from 45 to 64, and 20.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.8 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.9 males. The median income for a household in the village was $112,794, and the median income for a family was $157,083. Males had a median income of $104,050 versus $61,388 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the village was $64,507. About 2.0% 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 0.2% of those under age 18 and 13.0% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Barrington receives much of its

sales tax A sales tax is a tax paid to a governing body for the sales of certain goods and services. Usually laws allow the seller to collect funds for the tax from the consumer at the point of purchase. When a tax on goods or services is paid to a govern ...

revenue from its half-dozen

car dealership A car dealership, or car dealer, is a business that sells new or used cars, at the retail level, based on a dealership contract with an automaker or its sales subsidiary. Car dealerships also often sell spare parts and automotive maintena ...

s. State sales tax figures indicate that Barrington's auto sales, gasoline sales and state-taxable auto repairs accounted for $2.1 million in sales taxes for the village in 2008, or approximately 56 percent of its sales-tax income. The

Gatorade Gatorade is an American brand of sports-themed beverage and food products, built around its signature line of sports drinks. The drink is owned and manufactured by PepsiCo and is distributed in over 80 countries. The beverage was develope ...

Sports Science Institute, often featured in the company's

commercials A television advertisement (also called a commercial, spot, break, advert, or ad) is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization. It conveys a message promoting, and aiming to market, a product, service or idea. ...

, was formerly located in Barrington just west of downtown, across the street from Barrington High School before closing in June 2022. Barrington was also formerly home to GE Healthcare IT prior to relocating to

in 2016. Other notable businesses include defense contractor ISR Systems, part of the

Goodrich Corporation The Goodrich Corporation, formerly the B.F. Goodrich Company, was an American manufacturing company based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Founded in Akron, Ohio in 1870 as Goodrich, Tew & Co. by Benjamin Goodrich, Dr. Benjamin Franklin Go ...

(formerly known as Recon Optical), and commercial real estate developer GK Development. For many years, the village was home to the Jewel Tea Company; its former

headquarters Headquarters (often referred to as HQ) notes the location where most or all of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. The term is used in a wide variety of situations, including private sector corporations, non-profits, mil ...

was razed in the early 21st century for

redevelopment Redevelopment is any new construction on a site that has pre-existing uses. It represents a process of land development uses to revitalize the physical, economic and social fabric of urban space. Description Variations on redevelopment include ...

as Citizens Park. In addition to its

downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in American and Canadian English to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political, and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ( ...

area, the village is home to several shopping centers, including the Ice House Mall and The Foundry, located northwest of town.

Top employers

According to Barrington's 2018 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:

Arts and culture

Annual celebrations and events in Barrington include the

Memorial Day Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day) is a federal holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. It is observed on the last Monday of May. It i ...

parade, a

Fourth of July Independence Day, known colloquially as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States which commemorates the ratification of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing th ...

parade and evening fireworks display, and a

Homecoming Homecoming is the tradition of welcoming back alumni or other former members of an organization to celebrate the organization's existence. It is a tradition in many high schools, colleges, and churches in the United States and Canada. United St ...

parade associated with Barrington High School. In addition, the village hosts the "Great Taste Fest of Barrington", a

food festival A food festival is a festival, that features food, often produce, as its central theme. These festivals have been a means of uniting communities through celebrations of harvests and giving thanks for a plentiful growing season. History Food fe ...

exhibiting fare from local restaurants. During the fourth weekend of every September, Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital hosts "Art in the Barn", a juried fine arts show that features the exhibition and sale of fine art. Started in 1974 with only 30 artists, the event now attracts over 6,500 visitors and features live entertainment and pony rides for children in addition to the art exhibits. A fundraising event, Art in the Barn has generated more than $2.5 million for Good Shepherd Hospital. During May Barrington also hosts "KidFest Kite Fly" event which is free, fun, family event that gets the entire family outside and moving. Barrington also hosts a variety of charity functions, including Barrington CROP Hunger Walk;

Relay for Life Relay For Life is a community-based walkathon and the largest fundraising event of the American Cancer Society (ACS). Teams of people, varying in size, alternate between walking laps and interacting with other aspects of the fundraiser. Each year ...

by the

American Cancer Society The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide non-profit organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. The ACS publishes the journals ''Cancer'', '' CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians'' and '' Cancer Cytopathology''. History The society w ...

held at Barrington High School; and the Duck Race and Pool Party, a rubber duck race held to benefit JourneyCare (formerly Hospice and Palliative Care of Northeastern Illinois).

Library

The Barrington Area Library, located northeast of the village's center on Northwest Highway, contains over 226,000 book volumes and 27,000

audiovisual Audiovisual (AV) is electronic media possessing both a sound and a visual component, such as slide-tape presentations, films, television programs, corporate conferencing, church services, and live theater productions. Audiovisual service provide ...

items. Originally established in 1915, the library moved to its current site in the mid-1970s. Through various additions, most recently in 1993, the building was expanded to its current size of approximately . The library currently features exhibits by local artists, including an outdoor sculpture garden.

Architecture

The Village of Barrington

Historic District A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...

was established in 2001 to protect and preserve historical areas of the Village and individual structures and sites within this area which have historic, architectural or cultural significance. Barrington's Historic Preservation Overlay District is noted for its

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literatur ...

Victorian Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

, Queen Anne, and other popular late-19th century forms of architecture. Among Barrington's notable buildings is the

Octagon House Octagon houses are eight-sided houses that were popular in the United States and Canada mostly in the 1850s. They are characterized by an octagonal (eight-sided) Floor plan, plan and often feature a flat roof and a veranda that circles the hous ...

, also known as the Hawley House. Claimed to be built around 1860, although the oldest home in Barrington Village is on North Avenue dating to 1872, the Octagon House is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

; although initially a residence, it now serves as a commercial property. The downtown area is home to the historic Catlow Theater, which features interiors by noted

Prairie School Prairie School is a late 19th and early 20th-century architectural style, most common in the Midwestern United States. The style is usually marked by horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs with broad overhanging eaves, windows grouped i ...

sculptor and designer

Alfonso Iannelli Alfonso Iannelli (February 17, 1888 – March 23, 1965) was an Italian-American sculptor, artist, and industrial designer. Based in Chicago for most of his life, Iannelli was born in Andretta, Italy on February 17, 1888. He came to America in ...

. In May 1927, the Catlow Theater opened for business with ''

Slide, Kelly, Slide ''Slide, Kelly, Slide'' is a 1927 American comedy film, released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, directed by Edward Sedgwick, and starring William Haines, Sally O'Neil, and Harry Carey. Cast * William Haines as Jim Kelly (fictionalized version of ...

'' as its first feature film. The Catlow is also listed on the

and continues to operate as one of the few remaining single-screen theaters in the area. The Catlow was one of the first theaters to offer in-theater dining, provided by the adjoining Showtime Eatery. Patrons may bring food from Showtime Eatery (formerly Boloney's) into the 526-seat auditorium. Another historic building in the village, th
Ice House Mall
is located just northwest of the town's center. Originally built in 1904 for the Bowman Dairy, the brick structure, with its turn of the 20th century styling, served as an actual ice house for 68 years. Renovations and additions beginning in the 1970s have transformed the original building into a collection of local specialty shops. The

Michael Bay Michael Benjamin Bay (born February 17, 1965) is an American film director and producer. He is best known for making big-budget high-concept action films with fast cutting, stylistic cinematography and visuals, and extensive use of special eff ...

2010 re-make of ''

A Nightmare on Elm Street ''A Nightmare on Elm Street'' is a 1984 American Supernatural horror film, supernatural slasher film written and directed by Wes Craven and produced by Robert Shaye. It is the first installment in the A Nightmare on Elm Street (franchise), ''A ...

'' was partially filmed in Barrington's Jewel Park subdivision (Built by the Jewel Tea Company for their executives) using a home actually on Elm Street, using the village's residential architecture as a backdrop.

Parks and recreation

The Barrington area features numerous parks and nature preserves. The

Arbor Day Foundation The Arbor Day Foundation is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit membership organization dedicated to planting trees. The Arbor Day Foundation has more than one million members and has planted more than 500 million trees in neighborhoods, communitie ...

has recognized Barrington as a

Tree City USA The Arbor Day Foundation is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit membership organization dedicated to planting trees. The Arbor Day Foundation has more than one million members and has planted more than 500 million trees in neighborhoods, communitie ...

every year since 1986, in part due to the village's Tree Preservation and Management Ordinance governing the proper care for trees within the area. The Barrington Park District administers several Barrington area parks including Citizens Park, Langendorf Park (formerly North Park), Miller Park (formerly East Park), and Ron Beese Park( formerly South Park). Langendorf Park features tennis courts, playgrounds, outdoor and indoor basketball courts, baseball fields, meeting/activity rooms, and "Aqualusion", a

water park A water park (also waterpark, water world, or aquapark) is an amusement park that features water play areas such as swimming pools, water slides, splash pads, water playgrounds, and lazy rivers, as well as areas for floating, bathing, swimming ...

that includes a zero-depth

pool Pool may refer to: Bodies of water * Swimming pool, usually an artificial structure containing a large body of water intended for swimming * Reflecting pool, a shallow pool designed to reflect a structure and its surroundings * Tide pool, a roc ...

, lap pool, and diving area, and a splashpad. Northeast of town is Cuba Marsh Forest Preserve, a

preserve featuring of crushed-gravel trail offering views of the adjacent marsh. The preserve is named for Cuba Road, which provides the park's northern boundary. It is administered by Lake County Forest Preserves. In 2011, Barrington received a $65,000 grant from the Northwest Municipal Conference for preliminary engineering of a bike path along Northwest Highway. However, a timetable for the project has not yet been set. There are two golf courses within village limits including the Makray Memorial Golf Club. (formerly known as the Thunderbird Golf Course) Located southeast of the village center on Northwest Highway, the 18-hole course totals and includes four sets of tees per hole. The other golf course is a five-hole public course operated by the Barrington Park District at the far western end of Langendorf Park.

Government

The Village of Barrington is a

home rule Home rule is the 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 governan ...

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

which functions under the council-manager form of

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

with a village President and a six-member

board of trustees A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

, all of whom are elected at large to staggered four-year terms. The current Village President is Karen Darch. There are six current members of the Board of Trustees in addition to a village treasurer. The village clerk, also an elected position, is responsible for taking and transcribing minutes of all Village Board and Committee of the Whole meetings along with other municipal clerk duties. The current village clerk is Adam Frazier, and the deputy village clerk is Melanie Marcordes. A village manager currently Jeff Lawler assist the President with local operations and projects.

Relationship with Cook County

In April 2009, in a non-binding

referendum A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate (rather than their Representative democracy, representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either bin ...

, village residents voted in favor of permitting Barrington township officials to begin looking into seceding from

.
"Cook County secession: Townships vote selves out of Cook County," Chicago Tribune April 8, 2009. Retrieved 09-04-09. The referendum, entitled "Barrington Twp – Disconnect from Cook County," asked, "Should Barrington Township consider disconnection from Cook County, Illinois, and forming a new county if a viable option exists for doing so?" The referendum came in response to Cook County's increased sales tax, now the highest in the country, and increased tensions between the county and towns neighboring Lake County. Hanover Township, Cook County, Illinois, Hanover and

Palatine A palatine or palatinus (Latin; : ''palatini''; cf. derivative spellings below) is a high-level official attached to imperial or royal courts in Europe since Roman Empire, Roman times.

townships, as well as the Village of

Tinley Park Tinley Park is a village in Cook and Will counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. The population was 55,971 at the 2020 census. It is a suburb in the Chicago metropolitan area. History 19th century Modern settlement of the area now known as Ti ...

, (already partially located in

Will County Will County is a county in the northeastern part of the state of Illinois. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 696,355, an increase of 2.8% from 677,560 in 2010, making it Illinois's fourth-most populous county. The county sea ...

,) also passed similar measures.

Education

Barrington serves as the geographic center for the Barrington Community Unit School District 220. Schools located in Barrington include: * Barrington High School * Barrington Middle School - Prairie Campus * Barrington Middle School - Station Campus * Arnett C. Lines Elementary School * Countryside Elementary School * Grove Avenue Elementary School * Hough Street Elementary School (2015 Blue Ribbon school) * Roslyn Road Elementary School St. Anne Catholic Community is a K-8 Catholic school.

Media

The ''Barrington Courier-Review'' is a local newspaper. Barrington is included in the

Chicago market The Chicago metropolitan area, also referred to as Chicagoland, is the largest metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. state of Illinois, and the Midwest, containing the City of Chicago along with its surrounding suburbs and satellite citie ...

and receives its media from Chicago network affiliates. The ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

'' and ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspaper ...

'' also cover area news. The village's Community Relations board broadcasts all Village Board meetings, as well as community announcements, on a local

government-access television In the United States, government-access television (GATV) is a type of specialty television channel created by government entities (generally local governments) and broadcast over cable TV systems or, in some cases, over-the-air broadcast t ...

(GATV)

cable TV Cable television is a system of delivering television broadcast programming, programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This ...

station.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Transit

provides commuter rail service on the

connecting Barrington station southeast to

Ogilvie Transportation Center The Richard B. Ogilvie Transportation Center (), on the site of the former Chicago and North Western Terminal, is a commuter rail train station, terminal in downtown Chicago, Illinois. For the last century, this site has served as the primary t ...

in Chicago and northwest to Harvard or McHenry.

Highways

US Route 14 (Northwest Highway) * Illinois 59

Illinois Route 59 Illinois Route 59 is a north–south state highway in northeastern Illinois. It runs south from Illinois Route 173 in Antioch to I-55 in Shorewood, spanning the north–south width of Chicago's western suburbs. This is a distance of . ...

(Hough Street) * Illinois 68

(Dundee Road)

Medical and emergency

In 1927, residents established a "Barrington General Hospital" in a local house. The hospital closed in 1935. Various resident petitions and fundraising during the 1960s and 1970s renewed interest in a local hospital, and Good Shepherd Hospital opened in 1979 north of Barrington. In 2009, the Barrington Police Department had 23 full-time police officers; and in 2007, the Barrington Fire Department had 38 full-time firefighters. The Village has an emergency operations plan as well as a community notification system called Connect-CTY.

Notable people

References

External links

Village of BarringtonBarrington Area Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control Villages in Cook County, Illinois Chicago metropolitan area Villages in Lake County, Illinois Populated places established in 1834 1865 establishments in Illinois Villages in Illinois