Montgomery, Illinois
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Montgomery is a village within the Chicago Metropolitan Area of Kane and Kendall counties, Illinois. The village is a suburb/exurb of Chicago located roughly Template:Convert southwest of the city.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The population was 20,262 at the 2020 census.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
History
The first European settler arriving in the area was Jacob Carpenter, who came to the Chicago area from Logan County, Ohio, in November 1832. In the fall of 1835, Daniel S. Gray, from Montgomery County, New York, visited the area where his brother Nicholas Gray had located in the previous spring, on a farm now within the limits of Kendall County. He made immediate preparations to settle there, and in the fall of 1836, after his family moved from New York state, he built the first wooden house in the area. It was located in the southern part of what is now Montgomery, near the west bank of the Fox River.
Daniel Gray is considered the founder of Montgomery, and bought land grants from the federal government, and had ownership of large tracts of land.
The settlement was called "Graystown" for several years, but eventually Gray convinced other settlers to call the small village "Montgomery" after the New York county where he and several other settlers had origins.
Daniel Gray founded many companies in Montgomery, including a tavern, store, warehouse, foundry, combine and fabrication shop, and one of the best stone grain mills in the county (Gray–Watkins Mill). Gray was making preparations for more business operations, including the establishment of a stationary engine factory, when he died in October 1855. Upon his death, he still owned the majority of the lots in the village. His heirs continued to sell these lots and the village continued to grow.
On February 17, 1858, the village of Montgomery was incorporated.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Ralph Gray, son of Daniel Gray, was elected as the first village president. The population of Montgomery remained fairly consistent at about 300 people during the rest of the 1800s.
For much of the twentieth century, the village grew slowly and steadily. Lyon Metal was founded in Montgomery in 1904, and participated in the war effort of World War II. The Aurora Caterpillar manufacturing plant located along the southern border of Montgomery has been producing wheel-loaders since 1959.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Western Electric had its Montgomery Works plant along River Street, which became Lucent Technologies and was closed in 1995.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 1962, this factory employed 1,500 people and made telephone parts.<ref>Illinois Manufacturers Directory, 1962, Manufacturers' News, Inc. Chicago, IL. copyright 1962, p. 604-604</ref>
Geography
Montgomery is located in southern Kane County and northern Kendall County. It is bordered to the north and east by Aurora, to the south by Oswego and Boulder Hill, and to the southwest by Yorkville. The village sits on both sides of the Fox River. U.S. Route 30 passes through the village, leading southeast Template:Convert to Plainfield and northwest Template:Convert to Sugar Grove. Illinois Route 31 runs through the village on the west side of the Fox River, leading northeast Template:Convert to the center of Aurora and southwest Template:Convert to the center of Oswego. Illinois Route 25 runs along the east side of the Fox River, also leading to Aurora and Oswego.
According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Montgomery has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert (or 97.41%) is land and Template:Convert (or 2.59%) is water.<ref name="gaz2021">Template:Cite web</ref>
Demographics
Template:US Census populationAs of the 2020 census<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> there were 20,262 people, 6,045 households, and 4,397 families residing in the village. The population density was Template:Convert. There were 6,600 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the village was 55.08% White, 9.77% African American, 0.94% Native American, 3.24% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 14.63% from other races, and 16.30% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 33.90% of the population.
There were 6,045 households, out of which 50.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.17% were married couples living together, 13.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.26% were non-families. 19.87% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.45% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.78 and the average family size was 3.23.
The village's age distribution consisted of 32.9% under the age of 18, 11.2% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44, 21.2% from 45 to 64, and 5.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.1 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $99,208, and the median income for a family was $105,277. Males had a median income of $58,096 versus $37,277 for females. The per capita income for the village was $31,097. About 2.9% of families and 4.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.1% of those under age 18 and 5.1% of those age 65 or over.
| Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 2000<ref name=2000CensusP004>Template:Cite web</ref> | Pop 2010<ref name=2010CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref> | Template:Partial<ref name=2020CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref> | % 2000 | % 2010 | Template:Partial |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 4,452 | 11,119 | 9,929 | 81.37% | 60.30% | 49.00% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 162 | 1,464 | 1,901 | 2.96% | 7.94% | 9.38% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 19 | 10 | 11 | 0.35% | 0.05% | 0.05% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 44 | 585 | 640 | 0.80% | 3.17% | 3.16% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0.04% | 0.02% | 0.02% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 2 | 13 | 77 | 0.04% | 0.07% | 0.38% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | 49 | 320 | 832 | 0.90% | 1.74% | 4.11% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 741 | 4,923 | 6,868 | 13.54% | 26.70% | 33.90% |
| Total | 5,471 | 18,438 | 20,262 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Arts and culture
The annual Montgomery Fest is held the second weekend in August each year. The fest typically includes a parade, activities for families, and a large fireworks display.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Education
Montgomery is served by five different school districts: West Aurora, East Aurora, Oswego, Yorkville,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and Kaneland.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Notable people
- Philip Keck, New York lawyer, judge, and politician; lived in Montgomery, on a farm, with an uncle.<ref>The Red Book-The Legislative Manual of the State of New York. Edgar L. Murlin, editor, James B. Lyon, Publisher, Albany, New York: 1895, Biographical Sketch of Philip Keck, pp. 182-183.</ref>
- Carole Mathews, actress; appeared on the NBC-TV western series The Californians (1958–1959); Miss Chicago (1938).<ref>Template:Cite webTemplate:User-generated inline</ref>
- Sean Rash, professional ten-pin bowler originally from Colorado, now residing in Montgomery.
See also
Notes
References
External links
Template:Kendall County, Illinois Template:Kane County, Illinois Template:Fox Valley Template:Geographic location Template:Authority control