Crystal Lake (Illinois)
| Crystal Lake | |||
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 Downtown Crystal Lake |
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| Location in Illinois | |||
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| Basic data | |||
| Foundation : | September 23, 1914 | ||
| State : | United States | ||
| State : | Illinois | ||
| County : | McHenry County | ||
| Coordinates : | 42 ° 14 ′ N , 88 ° 20 ′ W | ||
| Time zone : | Central ( UTC − 6 / −5 ) | ||
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Inhabitants : - Metropolitan Area : |
40,388 (as of 2013) 9,572,572 (as of 2010) |
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| Population density : | 917.9 inhabitants per km 2 | ||
| Area : | 44.0 km 2 (approx. 17 mi 2 ) of which 44.0 km 2 (approx. 17 mi 2 ) are land |
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| Height : | 279 m | ||
| Postcodes : | 60012, 60014, 60039 | ||
| Area code : | +1 815, 779 | ||
| FIPS : | 17-17887 | ||
| GNIS ID : | 406868 | ||
| Website : | www.crystallake.org | ||
| Mayor : | Aaron T. Shepley | ||
Crystal Lake is a city in McHenry County in the northeast of the US -amerikanischen State of Illinois and part of the Chicago metropolitan area . In 2013 the place had 40,388 inhabitants.
geography
location
Crystal Lake is located at 42 ° 13'35 "north latitude and 88 ° 20'8" west longitude and at an altitude of 279 m.
Crystal Lake is located approximately 80 km northwest of Chicago and is the largest city in McHenry County. The city is named after the Crystal Lake (crystal lake , area approx. 0.9 km 2 ) located near the city center . According to the United States Census Bureau , the area of the city extends to 43.5 km 2 , of which 1.5 km 2 is water.
City structure
As the largest city in McHenry County, Crystal Lake has, not least because of its three high schools , several preferred residential areas, so-called neighborhoods, some of which are also closed residential complexes . Because many residents work outside of the city, mainly in Chicago, the social life of families is largely determined by where the children go to school and what neighborhood they live in. The following residential areas are located around Crystal Lake, which differ largely in terms of their wealth and their assignment to school districts:
By Prairie Ridge, so named after the school of the same name there; Downtown Crystal Lake; Coventry, south of downtown, once preferred residential area for pilots at nearby O'Hare Airport ; Four Colonies in the Southwest; Village; Spring hills; Spring lake; arguably the most exclusive gated community Lake in the Hills and West End; North Shore and Vista.
climate
The climate in the city is similar to that of neighboring Chicago. The city experiences hot summers and cold winters. The temperatures in winter are slightly more extreme than in Chicago. The hottest month is July with an average of 30 ° C. The temperatures in summer often exceed 35 ° C, in some years up to 39 ° C. The coldest month is January with an average of -5 ° C. Usually down to - 12 ° C at night. There have been extremely cold nights with record values of - 29 ° C, but only very rarely and not every winter. The wettest months are July and August with thunderstorms and heavy rainfall , but drought can also last for weeks . The two driest months are January and February, when almost all of the precipitation falls as snow . In a normal winter, up to one meter of snow falls. Snow storms rarely occur , which can then bring up to three meters of snow per day with them.
history
founding
The city of Crystal Lake goes back to two formerly separate places, which were created in the 19th century. Those places were Nunda and Crystal Lake. The name of the lake goes back to the year 1835, when Ziba S. Beardsley first came to the shore of the lake and exclaimed that the water was clear as crystal. Ziba Beardsley moved further south and thus missed the chance to go down in the city's history as the founder.
In February 1836 the first white settlers , Beman and Polly Crandell, arrived with their six children. They came to the lake by horse and cart from New York State. At first they lived in covered wagons until a log cabin was completed near the intersection between what is now Virginia Street and Van Buren Street. Four other Crandell children were born here. The Najah Beardsley family was the second to settle in Crystal Lake. His grandson, William Beardsley, was the first white child to be born on the Crystal Lake prairie (May 7, 1837). The place was first known as Crystal Ville, but in 1840 the name was changed to Crystal Lake.
Now known as Downtown Crystal Lake, it was first called Dearborn and later Nunda. Dearborn Village started its existence in the mid-1850s when a railroad depot was built on the newly formed Chicago and North Western Railway line. The depot had been completely prefabricated and transported from Chicago on flat cars . Although the depot was closer to Dearborn, it was officially listed as Crystal Lake Station . At that time, downtown Crystal Lakes was on Virginia Street, about a mile southwest of the railroad station. The railroad connected the people and industries of both places with Chicago and the rest of the country. Due to its close proximity to the railroad, Dearborn's population grew rapidly along with the economy. On October 7, 1868, the name Dearborn was changed to Nunda , to Nunda , Livingston County, New York State , from where very many settlers came to Dearborn. The village of Nunda was surveyed in 1888 by the local surveyor , John Brink, and henceforth extended to the area north of Route 176 , Crystal Lake Avenue to the south, Main Street to the east, and Walkup Avenue to the west.
The places Crystal Lake and Nunda had grown together equally quickly in 1874. In 1908, Nunda was renamed North Crystal Lake. Several attempts were made to unite the two places under administrative law. After much contradiction North Crystal Lake was finally in 1914 incorporated and Crystal Lake in its present management structure for the city formed.
The Dole family
In 1860, when the town had only existed for 25 years, Charles S. Dole bought over 400 hectares of land with the best lake views. It was his dream to erect a prestigious building that adequately reflected his position as a successful businessman. He was a respected member of the Chicago Stock Exchange ( Chicago Board of Trade ). Dole realized his dream and had a three-story villa with attached gardens and stables built. European craftsmen were brought in to lay parquet floors , rework archways and process the walnut trees from the property into high-quality interior fittings. As the grand finale, he brought in Italian craftsmen to build chimneys in the finest marble . According to their own statements, the construction costs exceeded $ 100,000, an enormous amount of money at the time.
The property was known as Lakeland Farm. Mr. Dole lived there with his wife, mother-in-law, two daughters and a son. Dole kept the property for over 30 years and lived there quite generously. For example, when his daughter married in 1883, he had a siding on the Chicago and Northwestern Railway laid almost in front of his house. A 200 m long covered and carpeted transition from the front door to the train enabled his high-profile Chicago guests to get to his villa for the ceremony with dry feet.
Mr. Dole's interests changed over the years. He built a racecourse on his property and bought the best horses money could get. Soon he had accumulated a number of horses that all of Illinois envied him. It is said that Mr. Dole loved to pace up and down his tower just to see his horses run. When his interest in horses waned, he got rid of the beautiful and valuable animals by selling them carefully. The Doles lived in the villa until the late 1890s when the property was later sold.
Until the turn of the century, the property was owned by various ice cream factories. Ice was mined directly in Crystal Lake, temporarily stored in well-insulated warehouses and transported to nearby Chicago. With the later advent of electric refrigerators, the ice cream business declined. After being on sale for several years, the Dole mansion was sold to the Lake Development Company in 1922. Today it belongs to the Lakeside Foundation along with the Lakeside Center, which is connected to the Dole Villa.
Eliza Ringling
Ringling Road is an east-west running street that turns from Country Club Road to Lake Avenue. There are fewer than a dozen houses on Ringling Road, but the houses range from small stone-walled houses to imposing mansions. It is no coincidence that the road that runs along the northern border of Dole Villa is called Ringling Road. It was named after Eliza "Lou" Ringling, who founded the lake development company with a group of investors in 1922 and bought the property for a sum of almost half a million dollars, which was spectacular for the area at the time. Under Mrs. Ringley's leadership, the Dole Villa was completely renovated and converted into the Crystal Lake Country Club .
Recent history
On April 11, 1965, a strong tornado raged over the city and damaged or destroyed large parts of the city. Six people died and another 75 were injured. The destruction then reached a level of 1.5 million dollars. 80 houses and a shopping center were completely destroyed.
Over the past twenty years, the history of Crystal Lake has been largely shaped by the quiet growth of the suburbs and their population of around 38,000 according to the latest census. Crystal Lake South High School opened in 1978 to accommodate growth. Previously there was only Crystal Lake Community High School since 1924, now Crystal Lake Central High School. The third and youngest high school is Prairie Ridge High School north of downtown.
The city is currently facing some challenges, such as the rapid increase in the Hispanic population from Mexico and Central America , the completely overloaded city library, persistent overcrowding of schools due to rapid growth of the suburbs, an unfavorable road system that often leads to traffic problems. However, all in all, the quality of life for the citizens is very high. Some urban development successes have already been achieved, for example a reliable parking system has been developed for the city center. Downtown shops are enjoying an ongoing downtown revitalization. A new town hall and community center has been built in recent years.
Demographic data
In the 2010 census, the population was 40,743. These were distributed to 14,421 households in 10,551 families. The population was divided into 90.2% White , 1.0% African American , 0.4% Native American , 2.5% Asian , 0.01% Pacific Islander, and 4.1% Other. 1.8% said they came from at least two of these groups. 11.7% of the population were Hispanics belonging to any of the above groups.
Children under the age of 18 lived in 39.2% of the 14,421 households, married couples lived in 58.9%, 10.1% were single mothers and 26.8% were non-families. In 22.1% of the cases it was a question of single households and in 20.3% of the cases people over 65 years lived alone. The average household size was 2.81 inhabitants and the average family size was 3.31.
28.1% of the population were under 18 years of age, 18.8% between 18 and 24, 26.2% between 25 and 44, 27.7% between 45 and 64 and 10% 65 and older. The average age was 37 years. Statistically, there were 97.6 men for every 100 women.
The median income per household was $ 78,311 and the median family income was $ 91,870. The median income for men was $ 61,982 and that for women was $ 44,288. The per capita income was $ 31,172. Around 5.2% of families and 6.2% of the total population had their income below the poverty line .
Politics / administration
The Mayor of Crystal Lake is a volunteer , elected four-year term and an annual allowance . The head of administration is a permanently employed city manager who, together with his city administration, implements the resolutions of the mayor and six elected councilors . The city has its own police department. Three fire stations are spread across Crystal Lake.
Twin cities
Since 1996 Holzgerlingen , Germany
Culture, sports and sights
As a city, Crystal Lake has its own cultural scene. However, it shares many cultural opportunities with Chicago and the other larger communities in the area. The city is home to the Crystal Lake Community Band, an orchestra well known beyond the city limits. In the city center is the recently renovated Raue Center for the Arts with 700 seats. There are plays listed and throughout the year concerts organized.
The city is home to the Northwest Herald, the only daily newspaper in McHenry County. The newspaper mainly covers local issues, but it also covers national issues and world news.
Various radio stations are located in Crystal Lake, including several stations with programs in Spanish for the Hispanic immigrants.
Churches have a huge impact in the city and host many annual events.
The park administration (Crystal Lake Park District) has a large presence in the city, an organization that not only ensures order, cleanliness and safety in over 30 parks in the city with its own Park District Police, but also more than 500 different leisure programs offers everything from ballet for preschoolers to gardening for seniors.
The lake and the historic city center are worth highlighting. The lake of the same name has a beach that is open whenever the weather permits. Driving with motor boats is restricted and is currently fiercely disputed between the coastal border Crystal Lakes and the south bank town of Lakewood, in which approximately 30% of the lake is located.
The annual highlight is the cardboard boat regatta on the lake towards the end of June . A regulation stipulates that the boats must be made of cardboard and only consist of natural materials. You can start in different classes and age groups, with or without sails. The cup goes to the fastest crew. There is also a whole range of other trophies: For the most beautiful boat, for example, the craziest team or the most spectacular sinking. Entry and entry fees for this radio and television broadcast event, which is regularly attended by over 20,000 people, go to social and charitable institutions.
Crystal Lake offers a variety of sports activities and events. The city is the official venue for the "World Series" of the "Continental Amateur Baseball Association" (CABA).
The city center, which had suffered a bit from the large shopping centers on the outskirts of the city in the past and was in danger of deteriorating, has enjoyed a growing revival in recent years and today, with its many small shops and specialty shops, invites you to go shopping.
sons and daughters of the town
- Jason Adasiewicz (* 1977), jazz vibraphonist and composer
Web links
- more city information around Crystal Lake (English)
- Town twinning committee Holzgerlingen
- http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/17/1717887.html
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Archive link ( Memento of the original from April 17, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
