Wilmette, Illinois
Wilmette is a village in
New Trier Township,
Cook County,
Illinois. It is located approximately 17 miles (27 km) north of
Chicago. As of the
2000 census, the village population was 27,651.
The northernmost station of the
Chicago Transit Authority's
rapid transit system,
the 'L', is on the
Purple Line at
Linden Avenue in Wilmette.
Bill Murray,
Charlton Heston,
Christie Hefner,
Pete Wentz,
Jack Ryan,
Jack Hart, and
Ann-Margret grew up in Wilmette.
The village is named in honor of Antoine Ouilmette, a French-Canadian fur trader, who lived here with his part-
Potawatomi wife, Archange (a daughter of
Sauganash). He persuaded the local Native Americans to sign the
Treaty of Prairie du Chien in
1829 so the
U.S. government awarded him 1,280 acres (5.2 km²) of land in the area that is now Wilmette and a small part of what is now
Evanston. They later sold the land, in
1848, to farmers and developers which eventually evolved into modern-day Wilmette.
The current village trustees are Lali Watt, Alan Swanson, John Levin, Joanne Aggens, Jim Griffith, and Mari Terman. The village president is Chris Canning.
In 2004, Wilmette was one of the first localities in
Chicagoland to enact a
ban on smoking in all public spaces, including bars and restaurants. Also that year, Wilmette gained notoriety when the village government prosecuted local resident Hale De Mar, age 59, for violating the town's
handgun ban (enacted in 1989). De Mar shot a burglar inside his house.[
1]
The handgun ban was enacted in direct response to an incident in 1988 when
Laurie Dann opened fire on a classroom full of children in neighboring Winnetka.
Wilmette is located on the western shore of
Lake Michigan and is a near northern suburb of Chicago, immediately north of
Evanston at (42.077178, -87.723736).
According to the
United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 14.0
km² (5.4
mi²). 13.9 km² (5.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.19% is water.
As of the
census of 2000, there were 27,651 people, 10,039 households, and 7,730 families residing in the village. The
population density was 1,984.4/km² (5,135.8/mi²). There were 10,319 housing units at an average density of 740.6/km² (1,916.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the village was 89.66%
White, 0.56%
Black, 0.04%
Native American, 8.16%
Asian, 0.01%
Pacific Islander, 0.42% from
other races, and 1.15% from two or more races.
Hispanic or
Latino of any race were 2.08% of the population.
There were 10,039 households out of which 40.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.9% were
married couples living together, 6.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.0% were non-families. 21.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.19.
In the village the population was spread out with 29.7% under the age of 18, 3.6% from 18 to 24, 21.7% from 25 to 44, 27.8% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 91.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.9 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $106,773, and the median income for a family was $122,515. Males had a median income of $97,143 versus $50,007 for females. The
per capita income for the village was $55,611. About 1.3% of families and 2.3% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 1.6% of those under age 18 and 4.7% of those age 65 or over.
*
1920 - 7,814
*
1940 - 17,226
*
1950 - 18,162
*
1970 - 32,134
*
1980 - 28,229
*
1990 - 26,530
*
2000 - 27,651
(contains external links)
Wilmette has several elementary schools (grades K–4) all of which are part of
Wilmette District #39:
Central,
Harper,
McKenzie, and
Romona.In addition, Wilmette District #39 is also home to
Highcrest Middle School (grades 5–6) and
Wilmette Junior High School (grades 7–8). The junior high has a total of approximately 400 students in each grade. The academic standards are quite high, and many courses are offered. Its athletic teams (
basketball,
hockey, and
soccer) are the Wolves.
Marie Murphy, while located in Wilmette, is part of
Avoca School District #37. There are also several parochial elementary schools in the area, namely
St. Francis Xavier and
St. Joseph. Ronald Knox Montessori School is also located in Wilmette.
Wilmette residents are served by
New Trier Township High School District. High school freshmen attend classes at the
Northfield campus while sophomores, juniors, and seniors attend classes at the
Winnetka campus. Some students may travel between campuses to take specialized courses that are only offered at one location.
Wilmette is also home to Catholic high schools
Loyola Academy and
Regina Dominican High School.
Wilmette is home to the oldest of the seven existing
Bahá'í Houses of Worship around the world. The seat of the US Bahá'í National Spiritual Assembly is located there. Other attractions include
Gillson Park with beach access,
Centennial Park, with a public swimming pool, tennis and ice-skating facilities, and a marina. Situated on the far west side of Wilmette is the
Wilmette Golf Course. The clubhouse burned down in the summer of 2004, but has since been rebuilt. The course is an 18 hole, par 70 course traversing 6,378 yards. Recently a skate park has been added.
Wilmette has two houses built by
Frank Lloyd Wright: the Frank J. Baker House (and carriage house) and the Lewis Burleigh House.
Trinity Methodist Church in Wilmette was used as a filming location for
Home Alone.
*
Bahá'í house of worship live webcam*
Village of Wilmette municipal government*
Wilmette Public Library*
Wilmette Public School District 39 *
Avoca School District 37 *
Wilmette Park District*
Wilmette Historical Museum*
U.S. Coast Guard Wilmette*Local Blogs
**
Backyard Conservative**
Wilmette**
Skate Wilmette
