A city of northeast Illinois on Lake Michigan north of Chicago. Mainly residential, it is the seat of Northwestern University (chartered 1851). Population: 75,500.
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Ev·ans·ton (ĕv'ən-stən) ![]() |
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| Wikipedia: Evanston, Illinois |
| Evanston, Illinois | ||||||||||||||||
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| Fountain Square | ||||||||||||||||
| County: | Cook | |||||||||||||||
| Township: | Evanston | |||||||||||||||
| Mayor: | Elizabeth Tisdahl | |||||||||||||||
| ZIP code(s): | 60201, 60202, 60203, 60204, 60208, 60209 | |||||||||||||||
| Area code(s): | 847/224 | |||||||||||||||
| Population (2000): | 74,239 | |||||||||||||||
| Density: | 9,584.1/mi² (3,698.6/km²) | |||||||||||||||
| Area: | 7.8 mi² (20.0 km²) | |||||||||||||||
| Per capita income: | $33,645 (median: $56,140) |
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| Home value: | $701,243 (2008) (median: $669,455 (2008)) |
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| Website: | cityofevanston.org | |||||||||||||||
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Evanston, Illinois is a suburban municipality in Cook County, Illinois directly north of the City of Chicago, east of Skokie, and south of Wilmette, with an estimated population of 74,360 as of 2003.[2] It is one of the North Shore communities that adjoin Lake Michigan. Evanston is concurrently a city and township, according to state and municipal charters. It is the home of Northwestern University.
What is now Evanston was once part of a larger area called "Grosse Pointe Territory" in the 1830s. The first non-native Americans settled in 1836, in an area that by 1850 was called Ridgeville.[3] In 1851, a group of Methodists founded Northwestern University and chose the area as its new home. In 1854, the founders of Northwestern submitted to the county judge their plans for a city to be named Evanston after John Evans, one of their leaders. In 1857, the request was granted.[4]
Evanston was formally incorporated as a town on December 29, 1863, but declined in 1869 to become a city despite the Illinois legislature passing a bill for that purpose. Evanston expanded after the Civil War with the annexation of the village of North Evanston. Finally, in early 1892, following the annexation of the Village of South Evanston, voters elected to organize as a city.[5]
The 1892 boundaries are largely those that exist today. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, No Man's Land was the name of a disputed unincorporated area on the shore of Lake Michigan between the suburbs of Evanston and Wilmette. The dispute was eventually resolved in Wilmette's favor and the area incorporated into that city.[6] Actor Charlton Heston was born in No Man's Land and elaborated on the locale in his autobiography In the Arena.[7] However, Heston suggests that his birthplace in No Man's Land ended up as part of Evanston.
During the 1960s Northwestern University changed the city's shoreline by adding a 74-acre (300,000 m²) lake-fill.
In 1939, Evanston hosted the first NCAA basketball championship final at Northwestern University's Patten Gymnasium.[2]
In August, 1954, Evanston hosted the second assembly of the World Council of Churches, still the only WCC assembly to have been held in the United States. President Dwight Eisenhower welcomed the delegates and Dag Hammarskjöld, secretary-general of the United Nations, delivered an important address entitled "An instrument of faith."[8]
Today, the city is home to Northwestern University and other educational institutions as well as headquarters of Alpha Phi International women's fraternity, Rotary International, the National Lekotek Center, the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity, the Sigma Chi Fraternity and the Woman's Christian Temperance Union.
Evanston is also the birthplace of Tinkertoys and local theory claims that an Evanston pharmacist invented the ice cream sundae, a theory disputed by Ithaca, New York and Two Rivers, Wisconsin, who also claim the heritage.[9]
Evanston was "dry"--that is, the city prohibited the sale or commercial service of liquor—from 1858 until 1972, when the City Council voted to allow restaurants and hotels to serve liquor on their premises. In 1984, the Council voted to allow retail liquor outlets within the city limits.[10]
Evanston is located at 42°2′47″N 87°41′41″W / 42.04639°N 87.69472°W (42.046380, -87.694608)[11] and is at an elevation of 600 ft.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.8 square miles (20.1 km²), of which, 7.8 square miles (20.0 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (0.26%) is water.
In August 2004 there was some confusion as to the size of Evanston. Evanston is often locally listed as being 8.4 sq mi, but this number appears to be incorrect. The 7.8 sq mi listed by the United States Census Bureau is more accurate.
As of the census[12] of 2000, there were 74,239 people, 29,651 households, and 15,952 families residing in the city. The population density was 9,584.1 people per square mile (3,698.6/km²). There were 30,817 housing units at an average density of 3,978.4/sq mi (1,535.3/km²). The 2000 census showed that Evanston is ethnically mixed with the following breakdown in population: 62.56% White, 22.50% Black or African-American, 6.11% Hispanic or Latino, 6.09% Asian, and 2.85% from other races.
There were 29,651 households out of which 25.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.4% were married couples living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 46.2% were non-families. 36.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 3.03.
In the city the population was spread out with 20.2% under the age of 18, 16.4% from 18 to 24, 32.0% from 25 to 44, 20.6% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 89.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.4 males.
Evanston is economically diverse. According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the city was $69,303, and the median income for a family was $102,258.[13] Males had a median income of $51,726 versus $39,767 for females. The per capita income for the city was $33,645. About 5.1% of families and 11.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.3% of those under age 18 and 7.1% of those age 65 or over.
Evanston has a council-manager system of government and is divided into nine wards, each of which is represented by an Alderman, or member of the Evanston City Council. Its current mayor is Elizabeth Tisdahl, replacing longtime mayor Lorraine H. Morton.
In the April, 2009, municipal elections, Ald. Elizabeth Tisdahl won a landslide victory in the race for mayor over three opponents in a low-turnout election.[14]
Evanston has a history of supporting candidates affiliated with the Democratic party in elections on all levels of government. In the 2004 presidential election, Democratic candidate John Kerry won 82% of Evanston's vote. His Republican opponent, George W. Bush, only won 17% of the vote in Evanston.
In 2008, Barack Obama won approximately 87% of the vote in Evanston Township.[15]
Most of Evanston (and part of the village of Skokie) is within the boundaries of Evanston Township High School District 202. The district has a single high school, Evanston Township High School (ETHS) with an enrollment of just over 3000, covering grades 9 through 12. The school's mascot is the Wildkit (a diminutive of Northwestern's Wildcats) and the school's colors are orange and blue. Its biggest rival is New Trier High School in Winnetka. Its superintendent is Dr. Eric Witherspoon.
Evanston-Skokie Community Consolidated School District 65, covering all of Evanston and part of Skokie, provides primary education from pre-kindergarten through grade 8. The district has ten elementary schools (through fifth grade), three middle schools (grades 6 through 8), two magnet schools (K through 8) and three special schools or centers. Total district enrollment in 2004 was 6,622 students.
The region of Skokie served by Evanston schools is referred to colloquially as Skevanston.
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In 2007, Willard Elementary School ranked 8th in the state overall on the Illinois Standard Achievement Test (ISAT).
In addition to the public schools, Evanston offers a variety of other educational choices. Roycemore School is an independent coeducational college preparatory day school providing a liberal arts education to students from junior kindergarten through grade 12. Since the closing of St. George High School in 1969, there is no Catholic high school in Evanston, but many Evanston residents attend co-educational Loyola Academy in Wilmette, all-boys Notre Dame High School for Boys in Niles, all-girls St. Scholastica Academy in Chicago or Regina Dominican High School in Wilmette, and other area Catholic high schools.
There are also a variety of non-public primary schools in or near Evanston:
Evanston's growth occurred largely because of its accessibility from Chicago by rail. The Northwestern founders did not finalize their commitment to siting the university there until they were assured the Chicago & Milwaukee railroad line would run there. C&M trains began stopping in Evanston in 1855.[24] Evanston later experienced rapid growth as one of the first streetcar suburbs. The North Shore Line which gave the area its nickname started at Church Street in Evanston and continued up to Waukegan.
Transit continues to make Evanston attractive today. The CTA's Purple Line, part of the Chicago 'L' system, runs through Evanston. From its terminal at Howard in Chicago, the line heads north to the South Blvd, Main, Dempster, Davis, Foster, Noyes, and Central stations, before terminating at Linden in Wilmette. Metra's Union Pacific/North Line also serves Evanston, with stations at Main Street, Davis Street and Central Street, the first two being adjacent to Purple Line stations. The CTA's Yellow Line also runs through the city, though it only stops at Howard. Evanston also contains several I-GO cars.
Evanston is also served by six CTA bus routes as well as four Pace bus routes.
Once the home of one of the first Marshall Field's[25][26] and Sears stores in suburbia, Evanston remains an important shopping destination for the north suburbs and North Side of Chicago, with numerous commercial centers throughout the city. The principal ones are as follows:
Two hospitals are located within Evanston's city limits:
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A perennial debate in Evanston is the issue of Northwestern University's status as a tax-exempt institution. In the founding charter of Northwestern University, signed in 1851, the state granted the school an exemption from paying property taxes, and unlike other well-off private universities with statutory exemptions,[40] it provides its own police services, but not firefighter/paramedic services. It pays water, sewer, communications, real property transfer taxes, substantial building permit fees, but not property taxes. Northwestern does not make Payments in Lieu of Taxes for the real estate it removes from property tax rolls.
Northwestern's critics allege that it consumes far more from the city than it contributes. However, its backers fire back that the benefits of having an elite research institution are worth it. This controversy was revived in 2003 when the university purchased an eight-story office building downtown, removing it from the tax rolls. An advisory referendum put on the April elections ballot, dubbed by supporters as a "Fair Share Initiative," received a majority, but was not passed into ordinance by the City Council.
Beginning in the late 1990s, there has been considerable controversy over an explosion in high-rise development, especially in the downtown district. Detractors contend that the development has taken away what they call a "unique Evanston identity."[citation needed] They cite a growing number of local businesses that have gone out of business to be replaced with chain stores as its worst offense. In contrast proponents claim that the high-rises have brought much-needed life to what was a dying suburban downtown, and much-needed revenues to chronically underfunded city coffers[citation needed].
Recently (as of 2006) there was concern with Evanston's low-income population being able to find affordable housing. Evanston's west side, a formerly strong middle-class African American community, has been undergoing a redevelopment process, which has led to a steadily decreasing minority population in Evanston. The city's former mayor Lorraine H. Morton has tried to persuade builders to build less expensive medium sized homes under $350,000, but none of her attempts were successful.[citation needed]
In September 2009, Northwestern purchased a fire truck for the city of Evanston at a cost of $550,000. Northwestern President Morton Schapiro stated "We are pleased to fund the purchase of this new fire engine, which was the top priority of the City in our discussions with how we might assist the City financially."[41]
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The following list includes notable people who were born or have lived in Evanston.
Evanston's variety of housing and commercial districts, combined with easy access to Chicago, make it a popular filming locale. Evanston as of December, 2008 is listed as a filming location for 65 different films, notably those of John Hughes.[44] Additionally, the city is referenced as a setting in numerous other works.
Evanston vows to be the "greenest city in America." An Evanston Strategic Plan was passed on March 27, 2006 to create the most livable city in America and to promote the highest quality of life for all residents.[48] One goal is to create and maintain functionally appropriate, sustainable, accessible high quality infrastructure and facilities. This includes continual development of an environmentally sensitive lakefront and implementation of a comprehensive long-range infrastructure plan. Another goal is to protect the city’s natural resources and to build environment, not destroy it. The city also wants to improve its transportation resources to be more safe, integrated, accessible, responsive, and energy-efficient. Currently, alternative modes of transportation include CTA/PACE buses, CTA/Metra trains, and miles of sidewalks and bicycle lanes.
The Evanston Climate Action Plan passed in November 2008, which is a unified effort to make Evanston a more sustainable place. Its main goal is to reduce carbon emissions with respect to transportation, buildings, energy sources, waste, and food production through a variety of methods. These methods include supporting mixed-use, green, high-performing, transit-oriented development, and encouraging car-sharing and Eco-Pass programs.[49]
Evanston is home to Northwestern University’s Ford Engineering Design Center and the Jewish Reconstruction Congregation, which are LEED silver and platinum certified buildings, respectively. In addition, Evanston’s green building ordinance adopts LEED certified achievements for new developments of certain building types[50]. Evanston has an environmental board and an office of sustainability.
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Wilmette, Illinois | ![]() |
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| Skokie, Illinois | Lake Michigan | |||
| West Ridge, Chicago | Rogers Park, Chicago |
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