Mundelein, Illinois | |
---|---|
Village | |
Coordinates: 42°16′N 88°0′W / 42.267°N 88.000°WCoordinates: 42°16′N 88°0′W / 42.267°N 88.000°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Illinois |
County | Lake |
Township | Fremont |
Incorporated | 1865 |
Government | |
• Type | Village |
• Mayor | Steve Lentz |
Area | |
• Total | 9.96 sq mi (25.8 km2) |
• Land | 9.56 sq mi (24.8 km2) |
• Water | 0.40 sq mi (1.0 km2) 4.02% |
Population | |
• Total | 31,064 |
• Density | 3,100/sq mi (1,200/km2) |
Standard of living | |
• Per capita income | $26,280 (median: $71,500) |
ZIP code(s) | 60060 |
Area code(s) | 847 and 224 |
Website | www |
Mundelein is a village in Lake County, Illinois, United States and a northern suburb of Chicago. As of the 2010 census, the village population was 31,064. It is approximately thirty-five miles northwest of Chicago.
The community now known as Mundelein has been inhabited since at least 1650, when the Potawatomi people were known to have been trading with French fur traders. The first European inhabitants reached the area in the early 19th century. Peter Shaddle (for whom a street is named) was the first known settler, building a log cabin in the area now owned by St. Mary of the Lake Seminary in 1835.
The next settlers were tradesmen escaping from England's industrial depression, who became farmers in the Mundelein area. In honor of their former professions, they named the city "Mechanics Grove", and built schools, churches, and businesses. The community grew and (while still unincorporated) changed its name to "Holcomb", in honor of John Holcomb, a person who was active in the area's development. As Holcomb, the community added a railway station and a post office. The Holcomb area incorporated in February 1909 under a new name, "Rockefeller", a reference to businessman John D. Rockefeller.
The name Rockefeller was short lived, however. In July 1909, the community became "Area". This name change was requested by a local educational entrepreneur named Arthur Sheldon, who bought 600 acres (2.4 km2) near town and built a school on it. The school taught sales techniques, including the philosophy of "AREA", which stood for "Ability, Reliability, Endurance, and Action." At one time, it boasted 10,000 students, many of them women (which was unusual for 1909).
In 1915, Archbishop George Mundelein (later Cardinal) of Chicago purchased the property from Sheldon after the Area campus closed to re-establish the Archdiocese's University of Saint Mary of the Lake, also known as the Mundelein Seminary, which continues to exist today.