Get in
Only about 10 miles west of downtown, Oak Park is easily accessible by the CTA Blue Line, Green Line or Metra Train.
See
Frank Lloyd Wright
Oak Park has the world's largest concentration of Wright's Prairie School works, including his workplace home.
Other sites
Oak Park, Illinois is a suburb just west of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Oak Park has easy access to downtown Chicago (the Chicago Loop) thanks to public transportation such as the Chicago 'L' and CTA buses. As of the 2000 census, the area had a total population of 52,524. A census estimate for 2003 showed that the population had dipped to 50,824.
History
In 1837, Joseph Kettlestrings purchased 172 acres of land just west of Chicago. By 1850, the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad was constructed as far as Elgin, Illinois, and passed through Oak Park. The population of Oak Park boomed during the 1870s, with Chicago residents resettling in the suburb following the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. The Village of Oak Park was formally established in 1902, following a referendum.
Oak Park has a history of alcohol prohibition. From the time of its incorporation, no alcohol was allowed to be sold within its village limits. This law was relaxed in 1973, when restaurants and hotels were allowed to serve alcohol. The law was further loosened in 2002, when select grocery stores were given permission to sell packaged liquor.
Philander Barclay was an Oak Park historian, bicycle repairman, and one of the area's earliest amateur photographers. He lived in Oak Park during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, certainly one of the village's most exciting eras. The quiet young man was an unlikely contemporary of Frank Lloyd Wright, Ernest Hemingway, Doris Humphrey, Edgar Rice Burroughs, businessman Richard Sears and many others. His parents ran a local drug store and beginning early in life, Philander rode his bicycle throughout the area taking photographs of places and people. By the time of his death in 1940, he had amassed an amazing and priceless collection of more than 1,000 photos, which are now curated by the Oak Park and River Forest Historical Society. A selection is available for viewing online.
Throughout recent years, rising taxes have forced hundreds of Oak Parkers to move out, but such losses have also been countered by arrivals of higher income families from around the country and the rehabilitation of many Village properties. Currently, expensive homes, peaceful parks, and an excellent school system characterize Oak Park. However, such benefits will come to contrast with both rising taxes and business vacancy rates. On the...
