Misplaced Pages

Yorkville, Illinois
City
The Kendall County Courthouse is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
Nickname(s): The Ville, Y-Town
Motto: "The City with a River in Its Heart”
Location of Yorkville in Kendall County, Illinois
Location of Illinois in the United States
Coordinates: 41°36′59″N 88°25′14″W / 41.61639°N 88.42056°W / 41.61639; -88.42056
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Kendall
Townships	Bristol, Kendall, Fox
Founded	1833
Incorporated	1836
Government
• Type	Mayor–council
• Mayor	John Purcell
Area
• Total	20.09 sq mi (52.04 km)
• Land	20.00 sq mi (51.79 km)
• Water	0.10 sq mi (0.25 km)
Elevation	745 ft (227 m)
Population
• Total	22,594
• Density	1,076.81/sq mi (415.77/km)
Time zone	UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code	60560
Area codes	630 / 331
FIPS code	17-84038
GNIS feature ID	2397394
Wikimedia Commons	Yorkville, Illinois
Website	www.yorkville.il.us

Yorkville (officially the United City of Yorkville) is a city within the Chicago Metropolitan Area and is the county seat of Kendall County, Illinois, United States. It is a southwest suburb/exurb of Chicago, Illinois. The population was 23,835 as of the 2022 census.

History

This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (April 2010) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

In 1836, the city of Yorkville was settled by early pioneers. Originally, the city's main thoroughfare of Bridge Street was designed for horse-drawn carriages and pedestrians. As time passed, Hydraulic Street, which runs parallel to the Fox River, boasted a trolley that ran from Ottawa to Aurora. This part is now operated by the Illinois Railway.

At the time, Yorkville's central business district was on the south side of the Fox River and the public square was north of the river, a layout unique to the region. The public gathering place was near the river's edge. The Kendall County Courthouse was next to the downtown commercial district. Many of the city's remaining historic single-family homes are within walking distance of Bridge Street, the courthouse and Union Hall. Earl Adams was the first to settle what would become Yorkville when he built his cabin on Courthouse Hill on the south side of town in 1833. One year later, Lyman and Burr Bristol set up residency in neighboring Bristol, north of the river.

When the county of Kendall was formed in 1841, Yorkville was chosen as the county seat. After a 13-year period in which Oswego claimed that honor, voters chose to relocate the county government in 1859 to Yorkville, a more central location. The new courthouse was completed in 1864. Replaced in 1997 with a courthouse on the city's north side, the 1864 building is used by the Kendall County Forest Preserve and other organizations. Yorkville was no exception to the railroad boom. Development began and businesses sprang up in 1870 along the tracks and included Squire Dingee's pickle factory, the Yorkville Ice Cream Company and the Rehbehn Brothers button factory. A few of those buildings still remain.

The present city of Yorkville was originally two towns, Bristol to the north and the Yorkville south of the Fox River, with separate governments for more than 100 years. In 1957, Bristol and Yorkville merged, becoming the United City of Yorkville. Ellsworth Windett became the combined city's first mayor. As a part of the consolidation, the residents of both towns agreed to a uniform school district. It was in that same year high school classes began in the downtown area at the northeast corner of Van Emmon and Bridge Streets. In 1888, a two-story brick school building on West Center Street was constructed. After the construction of Circle Center School in 1968, the two-story building was closed and the space was rented by the Yorkville School District to neighboring Waubonsee Community College. Due to rising enrollment in the early 1970s, the school was reopened and renamed as Parkview Christian Academy.

Geography

Yorkville is in northern Kendall County and is bordered to the northeast by Montgomery, to the east by Oswego, and to the west by Plano. Its boundaries are located approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) southwest of Aurora, 13 miles (21 km) southwest of Naperville, and 47 miles (76 km) southwest of Chicago.

According to the 2020 census, Yorkville has an area of 20 square miles (51.80 km). The Fox River flows through downtown Yorkville. The city is in Bristol, Kendall, and Fox townships.

Demographics

As of the census of 2020, there were 22,594 people and 7,035 households residing in the city. The average household size was 2.88. The population density is 1,076.8 inhabitants per square mile (415.8/km). The racial makeup of the city is 68.2% White, 11.5% African American, 3.5% Asian, and 4.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race are 17.3% of the population.

In the city, 48.8% of the city's population are female, 27.3% are under the age of 18, and 8.1% are age 65 and older. The median age is 32.7 years.

The median income for a household in the city is $105,129. The per capita income for the city is $39,765. About 2.88% of the population is at or below the poverty line.

Economy

The William Wrigley Company has a large manufacturing facility in Yorkville. Wrigley planned to start making Skittles in Yorkville. It planned to invest about $50 million to expand its Yorkville factory by 145,000 square feet.

Parks and recreation

Raging Waves waterpark, the self-proclaimed largest waterpark in Illinois, is in Yorkville. It opened in 2008 and owns about 45 acres (18 ha) of property.

The Marge Cline Whitewater Park (on the Fox River) opened in 2010. It is the only whitewater park of its kind in Illinois, similar to East Race in South Bend, Indiana. It offers opportunities for freestyle kayaking, slalom kayaking and river tubing. It is named after Marge Cline, former president of American Whitewater (1982-1988), National Board of Directors of American Canoe Association, President of Midwest Division of ACA, and member of the Chicago Whitewater association.

Education

The area is served by Yorkville Community Unit School District 115. Schools include Yorkville Middle School and Yorkville High School. Additionally, a small portion of Yorkville attends Oswego Community Unit School District 308.

• Autumn Creek Elementary
• Bristol Bay Elementary
• Bristol Grade School
• Circle Center Grade School
• Grande Reserve Elementary
• Yorkville Grade School
• Yorkville Intermediate School
• Yorkville Middle School
• Yorkville Freshman Academy
• Yorkville High School

Notable people

• Jon Blackman, college and NFL football player
• Dennis Hastert, former Speaker of the House
• Mike Radja, ice hockey player, born in Yorkville
• Andy Richter, actor and comedian
• The Giving Tree Band, American indie folk rock group

In popular culture

In August 2011, the movie Man of Steel was filmed at a house built specifically for the set in Yorkville. It appeared in the movie as the Kent family farm. In the fall of 2014, that house was rebuilt for use on the set of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. In 2017, the same house was used in Justice League for one small scene, then later demolished.

References

1. "The Official Site of the United City of Yorkville Illinois". The Official Site of the United City of Yorkville Illinois. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
2. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Yorkville, Illinois
3. "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
4. "Chicago MSA Metropolitan Area Demographic Trends | Population Estimates & Projections". proximityone.com. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
5. "History of Yorkville | Yorkville, IL - Official Website". www.yorkville.il.us. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
6. Johnson, Dirk (August 20, 2011). "Briefly the New Frontier, Exurbs See a Bust After Boom". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 31, 2023.
7. "Living in Yorkville". Niche. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
8. "Yorkville: A river runs through its future". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
9. "Parkview Christian Academy requires face masks after lawsuit ruling over school's reopening plan". ABC7 Chicago. August 20, 2020. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
10. "2022 Census". Census.gov.
11. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
12. "Distance between 2843 Silver Springs Ct, Yorkville, IL, 60560, USA and Prairie St, Aurora, IL, 60506, USA (US)". distancecalculator.globefeed.com. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
13. "Distance between 2843 Silver Springs Ct, Yorkville, IL, 60560, USA and 4476 Monroe Ct, Naperville, IL, 60564, USA (US)". distancecalculator.globefeed.com. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
14. "Distance between 2843 Silver Springs Ct, Yorkville, IL, 60560, USA and 6201 S Harlem Ave, Chicago, IL, 60638, USA (US)". distancecalculator.globefeed.com. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
15. ^ "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Yorkville city, Illinois". www.census.gov. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
16. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
17. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
18. "Yorkville, Illinois Population 2023". worldpopulationreview.com. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
19. "Wrigley.com :: Worldwide Locations". Archived from the original on January 28, 2018. Retrieved May 24, 2010.
20. "Chicago Tribune: Chicago news, sports, weather, entertainment". Archived from the original on May 29, 2014.
21. "Raging Waves". Raging Waves.
22. Raging Waves Press Kit
23. "Water Resources". www2.illinois.gov. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
24. "Marge Cline Whitewater Course". Yorkville, IL. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
25. "Chicago Whitewater Association - MargeClineMemorial". cwa.wildapricot.org. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
26. "School District Information". The official site of the United City of Yorkville. Archived from the original on May 15, 2013. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
27. "Yorkville | Taylor Street Realty". Retrieved August 8, 2024.
28. "ABC News Chicago - Band Helps Save Planet One Beat At A Time - Hosea Sanders (2008-10-03)".

External links

• Official website

v t e Municipalities and communities of Kendall County, Illinois, United States
County seat: Yorkville
Cities	Aurora‡ Joliet‡ Plano Sandwich‡ Yorkville
Villages	Lisbon Millbrook Millington‡ Minooka‡ Montgomery‡ Newark Oswego‡ Plainfield‡ Plattville
Townships	Big Grove Bristol Fox Kendall Lisbon Little Rock Na-Au-Say Oswego Seward
CDP	Boulder Hill
Other unincorporated communities	Ament Corners Bristol Helmar Little Rock
Footnotes	‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties
Illinois portal United States portal

• Yorkville, Illinois
• Cities in Illinois
• Cities in Kendall County, Illinois
• County seats in Illinois
• Populated places established in 1836
• 1836 establishments in Illinois