Forest Glen, Chicago

Forest Glen
—  Community area  —
Community Area 12 - Forest Glen
Location within the city of Chicago
Coordinates: 41°59′N 87°45′W
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Cook
City	Chicago
Neighborhoods	list Edgebrook Forest Glen Old Edgebrook Wildwood Sauganash Pulaski Park Jefferson Park
Area
• Total	3.2 sq mi (8.31 km2)
Population (2000)
• Total	18,155
• Density	5,658.4/sq mi (2,184.7/km2)
	population up 2.89% from 1990
Demographics
• White	81.4%
• Black	0.39%
• Hispanic	7.65%
• Asian	8.73%
• Other	1.79%
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP Codes	parts of 60630, 60646
Median income	$68,269
Source: U.S. Census, Record Information Services

Forest Glen is one of the 77 community areas of Chicago, Illinois, located in the city's Northwest Side.

Neighborhoods

Edgebrook

Edgebrook borders the neighborhood of Sauganash. Edgebrook was once part of the Sauganash land tract and was annexed by the city of Chicago in 1889. To the north of Edgebrook lie Wildwood and then North Edgebrook. Frequently the three communities together are referred to as Edgebrook.

Edgebrook is roughly bordered by I-94 (the Edens Expressway) and the city limits to the east, the forest preserve and Niles to the West, The North Branch of the Chicago River to the South, and the Chicago city limits to the north.

Edgebrook is home to the Billy Caldwell Golf Course and the Edgebrook Golf Course, both operated by the Cook County Forest Preserves, and Edgebrook Elementary School, which has consistently ranked highly among the many Chicago Public Schools in terms of standardized test performance. Edgebrook School's mascot is the Eagle.

The #84-Peterson and #85A-North Central CTA bus routes are largely relied upon for transit south and east into the city, and the routes originate in Edgebrook. There is also a station in Edgebrook that serves the Metra Milwaukee District-North Line.

Additionally, the Edgebrook Branch of the Chicago Public Library system is located in the heart of the Edgebrook neighborhood.

Old Edgebrook

Main article: Old Edgebrook District

Sauganash

Sauganash was once part of the Sauganash land tract (Caldwell's Reserve) and was annexed by the city of Chicago in 1889. This neighborhood is named after Sauganash, a local Potawotomi leader in the 19th century. The "Old Treaty Elm" was located here, which was the site of the signing of the Treaty of Prairie du Chien in 1829. Sauganash, also known as Billy Caldwell, negotiated with the United States on behalf of the United Nations of the Chippewa, Ottawa and Potawotomi. In return for his services, the US gave him 1600 acres on the Chicago River.

Today the neighborhood is home to three churches: Sauganash Community Church, a non-denominational Protestant church; Bride of Christ Church; and Queen of All Saints, a Roman Catholic Basilica. The Sauganash residential neighborhood has many distinctive homes. It also had large tracts of prairie land until the mid 1950s. Commerce Clearing House, a publisher of topical law reports, is located near Sauganash, and Walgreen Drug Stores' corporate headquarters used to be located near Sauganash.

The Sauganash neighborhood is bordered by Devon Ave. to the North, Bryn Mawr Ave. to the South, Cicero Ave. to the West, and Pulaski Ave. to the East. Devon Avenue marks the northern boundary of the city limit of Chicago at this point. The suburb of Lincolnwood begins north of Devon Ave. The Edens Expressway (Interstate 94) runs north and south one block west of Cicero Ave., just outside of Sauganash (in the neighborhood of Edgebrook).

The North Branch of the Chicago River marks the southwest boundary of Sauganash. An unused railroad spur runs through the middle of Sauganash. Recently, the City of Chicago converted the railroad spur into a bicycle trail.

Forest Glen

A community of about 550 residences on the Northwest side of the city of Chicago is often referred to as "Chicago's Finest Community". It is one of the oldest neighborhoods in Chicago. The first European-American to settle there was Captain William Hazelton of the 1st Cavalry Division; he built the Glen's first barn at what is now Lawler and Foster.

The Forest Glen neighborhood is bordered by the Chicago River to the North, Lawrence Ave to the South, Cicero Ave to the East and Metra Milwaukee District North line to the West.

Wildwood

Main article: Wildwood, Chicago

The community is triangular in shape and is bordered by Lehigh Avenue, Caldwell Avenue (Route 14), Tonty Avenue, and Lightfoot Avenue. The Edgebrook Metra Station faces Wildwood at the intersection of Devon, Lehigh, and Caldwell.

Transportation

The waiting platform at the Forest Glen station.

Metra provides commuter rail service to Union Station from two stops in Forest Glen on its Milwaukee District North Line. Forest Glen station lies between Forest Glen and Elston Avenues, while Edgebrook station lies just to the north of the intersection of Caldwell, Devon, and Central Avenues. People who live in the southern part of Forest Glen can also choose to use the CTA Jefferson Park Blue Line train south to down town or north to O'Hare.

The Edens Expressway (I-94) has a number of interchanges in Forest Glen: in Edgebrook at Caldwell Avenue; at Touhy Avenue just outside Edgebrook/Forest Glen's boundaries in Lincolnwood; just outside of Forest Glen north to the North Shore suburbs and Milwaukee via the Foster Avenue on-ramp; and again just outside of Forest Glen south to down town via the Elston Avenue on-ramp, just one city block south of Foster Avenue.

Education

The local state-run primary schools include Edgebrook Elementary School, Wildwood School, Beaubien Elementary and Sauganash Elementary School. The local Catholic schools are at Queen of All Saints Basilica in Sauganash, St. Cornelius on Foster Avenue, and St. Mary of the Woods Catholic Church in Wildwood. Catholic children living in Edgebrook choose between St. Mary's and Queen of All Saints. Catholic children in Forest Glen choose between Queen of All Saints and St. Cornelius.

The local state-run secondary school is William Howard Taft High School in Norwood Park, Chicago, although most residents of the neighborhood elect to attend either private schools or one of the City of Chicago-run selective schools. Private schools typically attended are Saint Ignatius College Prep, Loyola Academy, Notre Dame College Prep, or Regina Dominican High School. College preparatory, non-private schools include CICS Northtown Academy, a charter school that opened in 2003. Selective enrollment schools typically attended include Northside College Prep and Whitney Young Magnet High School.

External links

• Official City of Chicago Forest Glen Community Map
• The Northwest Chicago Historical Society's History of Forest Glen
• Old Edgebrook District
• Edgebrook Community Association
• Forest Glen Community Club
• Sauganash Community Association
• Queen of All Saints Basilica; see also Wikipedia entry
• ForgottenChicago.com's article on Old Edgebrook