Bull Valley is a village in McHenry County,

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, United States. The population was 1,128 at the 2020 census. Surrounded by larger,

exurb An exurb (or alternately: exurban area) is an area outside the typically denser inner suburbs, suburban area, at the edge of a metropolitan area, which has some economic and commuting connection to the metro area, low housing-density, and rela ...

towns of Crystal Lake,

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, and McHenry, the village prides itself in its rural, low-density character. The village is in the outer most ring of the Chicago suburbs.

History

In 1942, a group of neighbors organized the Countryside Improvement Association. It gradually became involved in questions of land use, and in 1955, in an unprecedented action, owners of about 3,000 acres, half of the Bull Valley area at the time, voluntarily put their land into 3-acre zoning, the highest residential classification then offered by the county. This single decision would establish the future character of the community. In 1960, money was raised from residents by subscription, to pay for a land use study and professional planning advice. The Eastern McHenry County Plan Association (EMCPA) was then formed to address the common problems of four townships. That Association's recommendation in a report of July 25, 1961, was that a large part of the Bull Valley area be zoned for a residential/estate use of a minimum of 5-acre tracts. Unlike the traditional concept of a community where the most intense use is at the center of the area and becomes more open as the distance from the center increases, the EMCPA area has at its center, a very attractive rolling, wooded area currently developed in low density, open estate type residential and farm development (and) included in this center portion are two very broad, scenic valleys which should be retained for non-intensive development.” When McHenry County established a Planning Commission in 1963, the EMCPA dissolved and turned its studies over to the County Planning Commission. As the county began to consider land use policy, Bull Valley residents continued to oppose development that threatened the farms, forested hills, and wetlands. Through their association, they bore the costs of legal representation at numerous zoning hearings, until it became obvious that private efforts could not win the fight to save the rural character of the land. In 1977, the Countryside Improvement Association was reorganized as the Bull Valley Association, which initiated and campaigned for a referendum on incorporation. The referendum passed at an election held on July 23, 1977, giving residents for the first time, the authority to implement their long-standing purposes. Because state law required that a new municipality could have no fewer than 200 voters in an area of two square miles, the Village had to reach out for scattered households, hence its peculiar shape and boundaries. In the early years of the village, there was nearly no government infrastructure. Later, a small tax was assessed to provide for simple road repairs. By the 1980s, the village had hired a police officer part-time who shared time with the neighboring village of Prairie Grove.

The village today

Today the Village government occupies Stickney House, one of the oldest brick buildings in the area. This house was originally built without any corners due to the belief of the Stickneys that evil spirits could live in corners. While the village has grown, and even includes some subdivisions now, it remains rural, with areas of woods, farms, and low-density housing between larger,

towns of Crystal Lake,

, and McHenry.

Geography

Bull Valley is located at (42.316132, -88.366815). According to the 2010 census, Bull Valley has a total area of , of which (or 99.87%) is land and (or 0.13%) is water.

Major streets

* Illinois Route 120 * Greenwood Road * Thompson Road * Fleming Road * Ridge Road * Valley Hill Road * Bull Valley Road * Country Club Road * Crystal Springs Road * Crystal Lake Road * Cold Springs Road * Queen Anne Road * Draper Road * Cherry Valley Road * Mason Hill Road

Demographics

2020 census

2000 census

At the 2000

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

, there were 726 people, 268 households and 217 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 281 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 96.69%

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 ...

, 0.55%

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 ...

, 1.10% Asian, 0.14%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, 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 th ...

, 0.69% from other races, and 0.83% 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 2.20% of the population. There were 268 households, of which 28.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 76.9% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 3.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.0% were non-families. 15.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.71 and the average family size was 3.04. Age distribution was 25.1% under the age of 18, 4.5% from 18 to 24, 19.3% from 25 to 44, 35.7% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 females, there were 85.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.2 males. The

median household income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two 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 und ...

was $102,693, and the median family income was $109,147. Males had a median income of $73,750 versus $37,188 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 $54,022. About 1.4% of families and 2.3% 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 3.1% of those under age 18 and 6.6% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

* Chester Gould, cartoonist, creator of the Dick Tracy comic strip * John H. Johnson, founder of the

Johnson Publishing Company Johnson Publishing Company, Inc. (JPC) was an American publishing company founded in November 1942 by African-American businessman John H. Johnson. It was headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. JPC was privately held and run by Johnson until his de ...

References

External links

Official website
{{authority control Villages in McHenry County, Illinois Chicago metropolitan area Populated places established in the 1970s Villages in Illinois