Darien is a city in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 22,011. A southwestern suburb of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

, Darien was named after the town of

Darien, Connecticut Darien ( ) is a coastal town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. With a population of 21,499 and a land area of just under 13 square miles, it is the smallest town on Connecticut's Gold Coast. It has the youngest population of any ...

. Darien is just north of

I-55 Interstate 55 (I-55) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route, connecting the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes. The h ...

and Historic U.S. Route 66 (now Frontage Road). The entire south edge of the town borders Waterfall Glen.

History

The first people to settle in Darien came from New England via the

Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing ...

and Great Lakes. Among the first to arrive was the Andres Neiman, the Rapones, and the Capra family. They settled along an old stagecoach line in 1835. Andres served as Justice of the Peace, Town Clerk, and Assessor Mr. Capra was the Dog Catcher, and County Commissioner. He also established the Capra Inn, near what is currently the intersection of Lemont Road and I-55; the inn served the 15 stagecoaches that traveled the stagecoach line, and included a tavern and a post office. Andres named the area "Cass". Andres and Father Beggs along with Louis Capra Sr. built the First Cass Church, which was a log cabin. The church was also used as a school house. Elisha and Eliza Smart settled in Cass in 1838 with their ten children. Elisha joined the Gold Rush and went to

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, returning seven years later a very rich man. He bought more land and donated it for the construction of a new Cass Church in 1870. His brother, William Smart, donated land for the creation of Cass Cemetery. John and Hannah Oldfield came to Cass in 1850. Mr. Oldfield raised cattle and increased his land holdings to . In 1881, a man named Franklin Blanchard opened a cheese factory. The factory was eventually moved or closed; a McDonald's restaurant now occupies the factory's original location. Martin B. Madden arrived with his parents in the Cass area in 1869 from England. In 1878 he married the youngest daughter of Elisha and Eliza Smart at her parents' house in Cass. In 1903, Mr. Madden built a home to look like the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

in Washington D.C. he called it Castle Eden. Today Castle Eden is part of the Aylesford Retreat Center of the

Carmelite , image = , caption = Coat of arms of the Carmelites , abbreviation = OCarm , formation = Late 12th century , founder = Early hermits of Mount Carmel , founding_location = Mount Ca ...

Fathers. A group of German

Lutherans Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...

from Europe came to the area near 67th and Clarendon Hills Road in 1859. They built the first St. John Lutheran Church and laid out the cemetery behind the church. Today the cemetery is still located at 67th and Clarendon Hills Road. In 1899, a new church was built on the northeast corner of Cass and 75th Street. The Church was located where the Taco Bell and Buona Beef Restaurant now stand. In 1969, the second church was torn down and the present St. John's Lutheran Church was built by Louis Capra Jr., west of Cass Ave and north of 75th Street. A school was built on the northwest corner of Cass and 75th street in 1860. It was the first Lace School. It burned down in 1924, and was replaced with the present building. It is now a museum which is open on the first Sunday of each month from 2:00pm to 4:00pm. By 1890, the Village of Lace was established. The important location at that time was the triangle bordered by Cass Avenue, Plainfield Road and 75th Street. It was called "The Point". The Point included the Town Hall, General Store, the Capra Blacksmith Shop and the office of Dr. Roe. A Post Office had been established by the Rapones at The Point in 1884. The future city of Darien was originally part of the Lace and Cass communities. As nearby

Downers Grove Downers Grove is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. It was founded in 1832 by Pierce Downer, whose surname serves as the eponym for the village. It is a south-west suburb of Chicago. The village is located between I-88 and I ...

began to expand in the 1960's, it's city street grid began to extend into unincorporated areas past it's southern borders. Residents of the Marion Hills, Brookhaven, Farmingdale and Hinsbrook subdivisions wanted to incorporate as a single city; this finally happened in 1969. When the incorporation committee reached an impasse on an acceptable name for the new city, acting mayor Sam Kelly suggested the name "Darien". He had visited

, and found it to be a very pleasant and attractive community. Today, Darien is known as "A Nice Place to Live", in honor of the city's founding year 1969. Darien in Illinois is pronounced with the accent on the first syllable; Darien in Connecticut is pronounced with the accent on the last syllable. Around 11pm on June 20, 2021, a large, violent EF3 tornado tore through several neighborhoods of Woodridge, and then into Darien. The tornado first formed in southern Naperville, causing 6 injuries, and 2 in critical condition. After the tornado crossed IL 53, it entered Woodridge, on top of 83rd St. The tornado at this point was nearing peak width, at or near 1/4 to 1/2 mile wide. The tornado then crossed I-355, and reached peak strength not too long later. The tornado reached a peak size of 0.25 - 0.5 miles wide with a debris ball around 2 miles wide. The tornado at this point was starting to enter Darien, causing even more damage there. The tornado crossed I-55 near the IL 83 interchange not too long later. At around 11:35pm, the tornado roped out in the southwest Chicago suburb of Willow Springs. It is unknown if the tornado continued east, not picking up any more damage, but damage surveyors are certain that the tornado roped out around here.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, Darien has a total area of , of which (or 98.05%) is land and (or 1.95%) is water. Darien's City Hall used to be totally underground until 1994, when it was lifted up. Now only 75% is underground. Darien's City Hall is surrounded on three sides by the village of

. The entire south edge of Darien backs up to

Waterfall Glen Forest Preserve Waterfall Glen is a forest preserve in Downers Grove Township, DuPage County, Illinois, between the towns of Darien and Lemont, covering . It contains several waterfalls on Sawmill Creek as it empties into the Des Plaines River. Rocky Glen Fall ...

, which is home to one of the only old-growth, pine wood forests in the area. It also offers a 773-acre "Bluff savanna", with hiking trails, horseback trails and boat access to the nearby

Des Plaines River The Des Plaines River () is a river that flows southward for U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed May 13, 2011 through southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois''American H ...

. The Rocky Glen Waterfall, located within the preserve, is a popular swimming destination in the summer. Darien is bordered by the cities of

, Westmont, Woodridge, Lemont, and Willowbrook, and it has easy access to the three major thoroughfares crossing Chicago's southwest suburbs:

Interstate 55 Interstate 55 (I-55) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route, connecting the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes. The h ...

, Interstate 355, and

Interstate 294 Interstate 294 (I-294) is a tolled auxiliary Interstate Highway in northeastern Illinois. It forms the southern portion of the Tri-State Tollway in Illinois. I-294 runs from South Holland at I-80/ I-94 and Illinois Route 394 (IL 394) t ...

Demographics

2020 census

''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.''

2000 Census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...

of 2000, there were 22,860 people, 8,735 households, and 6,455 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 8,929 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 90.10%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...

, 0.97%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.11% Native American, 9.53% Asian, 0.03%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 0.97% from other races, and 1.29% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race were 0.64% of the population. There were 8,735 households, out of which 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.1% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...

living together, 7.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.1% were non-families. 22.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.09. In the city, the population was spread out, with 23.1% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 30.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.1 males. According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the city was $78,122, and the median income for a family was $95,332.Darien at factfinder.census.gov
/ref> Males had a median income of $70,580 versus $46,352 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $39,795. About 1.6% of families and 2.2% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 2.1% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Hinsdale Township High School District 86 operates Hinsdale South High School in Darien. Part of Darien also attends

Downers Grove South High School Downers Grove South High School, or DGS, and locally referred to as "South", is a public four-year high school located at the corner of Dunham Road and 63rd Street in Downers Grove, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United S ...

. Eisenhower Junior High School and Cass Junior High School operate in Darien along with Lace Elementary School, Mark-DeLay Elementary School, Concord Elementary School, and Elizabeth Ide Elementary School. Local Private Schools include Our Lady of Peace and Kingswood Academy (prior to eighth grade).

Notable people

* Rudy Fratto (born 1943), alleged high-ranking member of the

Chicago Outfit The Chicago Outfit (also known as the Outfit, the Chicago Mafia, the Chicago Mob, the Chicago crime family, the South Side Gang or The Organization) is an Italian-American organized crime syndicate or crime family based in Chicago, Illinois, ...

* Doug Lussenhop (born 1973), musician, video editor, and comedian associated with comedy duo

Tim & Eric Tim & Eric are an American comedy duo consisting of Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim. They are the creators and stars of the Adult Swim television series '' Tom Goes to the Mayor'', '' Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!'', ''Check It Out! w ...

* Manu Raju, journalist * Barbara Alyn Woods (born 1962), actress from '' One Tree Hill'' and ''

Honey, I Shrunk the Kids ''Honey, I Shrunk the Kids'' is a 1989 American comic science fiction film. It is the first installment of a film franchise and served as the directorial debut of Joe Johnston. The film stars Rick Moranis, Matt Frewer, Marcia Strassman, and Kr ...

Notes

External links

City of Darien
{{authority control Chicago metropolitan area Cities in Illinois Populated places established in 1835 Cities in DuPage County, Illinois 1835 establishments in Illinois