Wauconda, Illinois

Template:Geobox Wauconda is a village in Lake County, Illinois, United States. The population was 9,448 at the 2000 census, and estimated to be 12,614 in 2006 and 13,811 in 2011.

History

Traditions say that Wauconda was named for an Indian Chief by that name, who is buried somewhere on the southern bank of Bangs Lake, where the town hall was later built. The word translated from its Indian language means “Spirit Water.”

When the first settlers arrived there were no Indians, as they had moved westward. In 1840, a remnant of the Winnebago tribe lived on the shores of the Fox River and came to Wauconda to trade. Several Indian mounds were found near here, and it is probable there was an encampment at Slocum Lake.

In 1836, Elihu Hubbard built a log cabin on the bank of the lake. In 1848, Justus Bangs, the first settler, built a home where the town hall now stands, and it was for him the lake was named. Wauconda was organized in 1849, and the first town meeting was held the first Tuesday in April, 1850.

Most of the early settlers came from New England and New York. They came by covered wagon and some came through the Erie Canal and the Great Lakes.

The first main street ran along the bank of the lake and the streets leading into it were lanes. They used to ford the inlet and outlet of the lake.

The stage route from Chicago to Janesville, Wisconsin went through Wauconda. Ambrose Bangs drove the stage from Chicago to Janesville for eight years. It took him one week to make the round trip.

The first post office was at Slocum Lake, but the settlement did not prosper so on June 27, 1849, it was moved to Wauconda. The first postmaster at Wauconda was Hazard Green.

The first Baptist church was organized in the fall of 1838 by Elder Joel Wheeler of McHenry. A church was built by the Methodists in 1856 on the Common and was occupied by both Methodists and Baptists on alternate Sundays until February of 1870, when the Baptists organized and in the summer of 1870 built a church at the cost of $5,500.00, dedicated October 30, 1870, free of debt. The Methodist church was organized Sept. 3, 1852, under the direction of Rev. C. French.

A Roman Catholic church was built in 1877, and the first trustees were: James Murray, Charles Davlin, Felix Givens, Hugh Davlin, and Owen McMahon. The first priest was Father O’Neil.

There was a saw and grist mill at the foot of Mill street near the lake. It burned in 1906. There was a brick yard on the Cook farm and another one on the Kent property on Maple avenue. A limestone kiln was located on the bank of the lake on Kimball’s property. At one time limestone was a very profitable business and there was an abundance around Wauconda. There was a foundry and blacksmith shop where Farman’s house now stands.

In 1839, the school district was organized and a schoolhouse built. It stood where the Clark Hotel later stood. It was log, 20 feet long, and was heated by a fireplace in one end. Books used were Cobb’s speller, the Bible, second and third readers and a book on arithmetic.

Population of Wauconda in 1850 was 200, and the town had three goods stores, two public houses and various mechanics.

The amount of the school fund of this township was $3,224.10. The assessed value of property for the year 1850, including both real and personal, was $61,907.00. The amount of tax computed on the same was $827.18.

(source: [Wauconda Township Historical Society])

Geography

Wauconda is located at 42°16′1″N 88°8′34″W (42.266910, -88.142657).Template:GR

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 4.3 square miles (11.1 km²), of which, 3.9 square miles (10.0 km²) of it is land and 0.4 square miles (1.1 km²) of it (9.81%) is water.

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 9,448 people, 3,611 households, and 2,404 families residing in the village. The population density was 2,445.0 people per square mile (945.1/km²). There were 3,822 housing units at an average density of 989.1/sq mi (382.3/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 90.24% White, 0.41% African American, 0.26% Native American, 1.79% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 6.35% from other races, and 0.90% from two or more races.

There were 3,611 households out of which 33.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.2% were married couples living together, 8.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.4% were non-families. 27.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.16.

In the village the population was spread out with 25.1% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 35.8% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 11.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 101.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.1 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $57,805, and the median income for a family was $69,576. Males had a median income of $47,027 versus $33,125 for females. The per capita income for the village was $26,355. About 2.1% of families and 4.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.1% of those under age 18 and 4.0% of those age 65 or over.

Wauconda Community School District 118 (CUSD118) serves students from Kindergarten through 12th grade who live in Wauconda and surrounding communities (i.e., Island Lake, Lakemoor, Volo, unincorporated sections of McHenry County).

Wauconda notables

• On January 28, 2005, over 3,000 people participated in a snowball fight for ten minutes, setting a new world record for most participants in such an event.[1]
• Brent Sherman, NASCAR/ARCA Racecar driver.
• Blues Brothers was partially filmed in the village.
• Dr Manhattan, a punk rock quartet.

Sources

• http://www.illinois.com/details/city.php?cityFips=1779267