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Cary is a village located in Algonquin Township,
McHenry County, Illinois McHenry County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census, it had a population of 310,229, making it the sixth-most populous county in Illinois. Its count ...
, and Cuba Township,
Lake County, Illinois Lake County is a County (United States), county located in the northeastern corner of the U.S. state of Illinois, along the shores of Lake Michigan. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it has a population of 714,342, making it th ...
, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 17,826.


Founding

In 1841,
William Dennison Cary William Dennison Cary was the founder and namesake of Cary, Illinois, and one of its early prominent citizens. He was born in about 1808 in Sandy Creek, New York. In 1830 he married Lodemia Ells, who was one year older than he. Their first child, ...
purchased for $1.25 an acre at the location of the current town and built a farm. In 1856, Cary included a train station for the Illinois & Wisconsin Railway which connected Cary to
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 ...
and Janesville. The site was approved and a post office was added with the designation "Cary Station." The community around Cary Station was incorporated in 1893 as Cary, Illinois. Early farmers saw this new railway as an opportunity. The economy relied heavily on selling produce, mainly pickles, and the farmers utilized the railway to conduct business with more industrialized cities such as St. Louis and Chicago. The success of this transportation enterprise helped transform Cary into the suburban community it is today. People traveled by rail and most commerce became dependent on the railroad. In the 1950s, highway transportation overtook rail as the primary means of moving people and goods. Northwest Highway (U.S. 14) parallels the railroad right-of-way, which has been the Union Pacific Northwest Metra line since the
Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad is a Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United States after BNSF, ...
merged with the
Chicago & North Western 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 ...
in 1995.


Geography

Cary is located at (42.2129566, -88.2483260). According to the 2010 census, Cary has a total area of , of which (or 98.62%) is land and (or 1.38%) is water. It is located on the Fox River.


Demographics

The population of Cary was 17,826 as of 2020. There were 6,424 households, out of which 2838 had children under the age of 18 living with them. The median income for a household in the village was $100,339, and the median income for a family was $111,065.


Education

Cary is mainly served by Community High School District 155 for high school students, specifically by Cary-Grove High School and Prairie Ridge High School, and School District 26 for elementary and middle school students. Some portions of Cary also are served by
Crystal Lake Community Consolidated School District 47 Crystal Lake Community Consolidated School District 47 is a school district containing elementary and middle schools. The district serves Crystal Lake, Lakewood, as well as parts of Lake in the Hills, Cary, Woodstock, Huntley, Bull Valle ...
and
Community Unit School District 300 Community Unit School District 300 is a school district headquartered in Algonquin, Illinois, United States, a suburb of Chicago. The current superintendent of schools is Susan Harkin. The district is the 6th largest school district in the St ...
. Trinity Oaks Christian Academy, a non-denominational Christian school, is located in Cary, as well as Saints Peter and Paul, a Roman Catholic school and parish.


Popular culture

The interior of the bed and breakfast room that
Bill Murray William James Murray (born September 21, 1950) is an American actor and comedian, known for his deadpan delivery in roles ranging from studio comedies to independent dramas. He has received List of awards and nominations received by Bill Murra ...
's character stays in, in the 1993 film
Groundhog Day Groundhog Day (, , , ; Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia, Lunenburg, Nova Scotia: Daks Day) is a tradition observed regionally in the United States and Canada on February 2 of every year. It derives from the Pennsylvania Dutch superstition that if ...
, was built in a warehouse in Cary. Suzanne Evenson of Cary was featured on
HGTV HGTV (an initialism for Home & Garden Television) is an American basic cable channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The network primarily broadcasts reality programming related to home improvement and real estate. HGTV Dream Home is an ...
's show House Hunters International on December 8, 2010, showcasing her family's move from Cary to
Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...
. Students from the class of 2004 were featured in the
MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
show '' High School Stories''. They concocted a senior prank which included launching a boat onto a pond on school property. In the summer of 2016,
Burger King Burger King Corporation (BK, stylized in all caps) is an American multinational chain store, chain of hamburger fast food restaurants. Headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida, the company was founded in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacks ...
opened its first-ever drive-thru-only restaurant in Cary. It was closed in 2023. A Cary resident, Chris Rudolph, was a contestant on TLC's "Spouse House," airing in July 2017.


Transportation

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 ...
, locally known as Northwest Highway, passes through Cary between its northwest and southeast borders.
Illinois Route 31 Illinois Route 31 (IL 31) is a north–south state highway in northeastern Illinois, United States. It travels from U.S. Route 34 in Illinois, U.S. Route 34 (US 34) in Oswego, Illinois, Oswego north to U.S. Route 12 in Illin ...
forms part of Cary's western border.
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 ...
's
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 ...
has a station in Cary and operates daily service 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 downtown Chicago. Lake in the Hills Airport is approximately two miles west of Cary's west border.


Notable people

*
Brandon Barnes Brandon Barnes (born October 10, 1978) is an American musician, best known as the drummer for the punk rock band Rise Against. Biography Barnes received his first drum set when he was nine years old from his grandfather, who was a jazz musi ...
, soccer player * Drew Conner, soccer player * A. J. Raebel,
Canadian football Canadian football, or simply football, is a Sports in Canada, sport in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete on a field long and wide, attempting to advance a Ball (gridiron football), pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposi ...
player * Michael Glasder, ski jumper
XXIII Olympic Winter Games The 2018 Winter Olympics (), officially the XXIII Olympic Winter Games (; ) and also known as PyeongChang 2018 (), were an international winter multi-sport event held between 9 and 25 February 2018 in Pyeongchang County, South Ko ...
(raised in Cary) * Quinn Priester, MLB player, Boston Red Sox pitcher, (attended Cary-Grove High School) * Jimmy John Liautaud, founder of Jimmy John's *
Paul Wertico Paul Wertico (born January 5, 1953, in Chicago, Illinois) is an American drummer. He gained recognition as a member of the Pat Metheny Group from 1983 until 2001, leaving the group to spend more time with his family and to pursue other musical i ...
, jazz drummer (member of the Pat Metheny Group for many years), winner of 7 Grammy Awards (raised in Cary)


References


External links

* {{authority control 1841 establishments in Illinois Chicago metropolitan area Populated places established in 1841 Villages in McHenry County, Illinois Villages in Illinois