South Holland is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 22,147 at the 2000 census.
South Holland also serves as the seat of Thornton Township.
South Holland was first settled in 1846 by immigrants from South Holland, the
Netherlands. When the town incorporated in 1894, its
population was about 1,000. Originally a general farming community, it later specialized in
vegetable growing, especially onion sets. Moreover by the 1940s South Holland was known as the
Onion Set Capital of the World. The town was built on low ground near the Calumet
River and was originally called de Laage Prairie (Low Prairie) to differentiate it from another Dutch settlement
further north on higher ground and called de Hooge Prairie (now the Roseland
neighborhood of Chicago). The town is known as "SoHo" for short.
South Holland was also the setting of the 1925 Pulitzer Prize winning novel
So Big! by Edna Ferber. The Widow Paarlberg inspired
one of the main characters and her family farm is preserved in a city park.
The village is bordered by Harvey and Phoenix to the west, Dolton to the north, Thornton to the south, and Calumet City to the
east.
South Holland is an anomaly in Chicago Southland because of its laws. All
businesses (except travel related establishments such as hotels, restaurants, and gas stations) are closed on Sunday. This can be
seen easily when driving on one of the village's main thoroughfares--162nd Street or South Park Avenue. South Holland is a "dry"
municipality; that is, no alcohol is sold anywhere within the village limits. Additionally, the sale or rental of pornographic
material is prohibited in South Holland. The village's franchise agreements with cable
television providers restrict on-demand and other adult-oriented programming [1]. Zoning restrictions do not allow the development of apartment buildings or
condominiums. These laws are a remnant of the village's religious roots as a settlement of conservative Dutch Reformed immigrants. Even today, South Holland's motto is "A Community of Churches".
South Holland is home to the main campus of South Suburban College.
Geography
South Holland is located at 41°35′51″N, 87°35′57″W (41.597472,
-87.599097)1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total
area of 18.9 km² (7.3 mi²). 18.9 km² (7.3 mi²) of
it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (0.27%) is water.
Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 22,147 people, 7,663 households, and 6,007 families residing
in the village. The population density was 1,174.6/km² (3,042.1/mi²). There were
7,825 housing units at an average density of 415.0/km² (1,074.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the village was 50.81%
African American, 45.04% White, 0.17% Native American, 0.86% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.93% from other races, and 1.18% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.77% of the population.
There were 7,663 households out of which 33.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.8% were married couples living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.6% were
non-families. 19.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or
older. The average household size was 2.82 and the average family size was 3.24.
In the village the population was spread out with 25.6% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 24.3%
from 45 to 64, and 17.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 89.2
males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.6 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $60,246, and the median income for a family was $67,451. Males had a
median income of $46,582 versus $35,557 for females. The per capita income for the
village was $24,977. About 2.8% of families and 4.6% of the population were below the poverty
line, including 4.9% of those under age 18 and 4.2% of those age 65 or over.
Government
South Holland is in Illinois' 2nd congressional district.
Notable People
Education
South Holland is served by several school districts [1]:
- School District 150 South Holland [2]
- Greenwood School (K-3)
- McKinley Elementary School (4-5)
- McKinley Junior High School (6-8)
- South Holland School District 151 [3]
- Taft School (PreK-1)
- Eisenhower School (2-3)
- Madison School (4-5)
- Coolidge Junior High School (6-8)
The private K-8 schools, Calvin Christian School and Calvary Christian Academy, are also located in South Holland.
Thornton Township High School District 205 [4] serves all of South Holland.
Thornwood High School is located in South Holland. Thornridge High School and Thornton Township High
School are also within District 205.
External links
Coordinates:
41.597472° N 87.599097°
W
Notes
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