Village History

Some of the following information is contained in an unpublished manuscript written by Lee Schinleber. A life-long resident of Northbrook, Mr. Schinleber was one of the many volunteers whose dedication and hard work established the Northbrook Historical Society.

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1818 – Illinois admitted to the Union as the 21st State
1829 – Northfield Township area ceded by the Potawatomie Indians
1829 – Cook County created from Putnam County
1833 – Town of Chicago incorporated
1836 – Northfield Township’s 36 square miles surveyed and opened for settlement
1837 – First settlement, church, and cemetery established near where Dundee & Sanders Roads intersect today
1840 – First post office established as the Sherman Post Office
1843 – First Land Patents issued for land in Northfield Township
1850 – Northfield Township organized
1850 – Northfield Township population: 1,013
1853 – Sherman Post Office name changed to the Northfield Post Office
1855 – All of section 1 and east half of Section 12 in Northfield Township annexed by New Trier Township
1860 – Northfield Township population: 1,537
1867 – Northfield Post Office name changed to the East Northfield Post Office
1870 – Northfield Township population: 1,703
1871 – The Great Chicago Fire
1872 – Single-track Chicago, Milwaukee & St Paul Railroad begins operation
1880 – Northfield Township population: 1,807
1882 – Shermer Station railroad stop renamed to the Shermerville Station
1885 – East Northfield Post Office name changed to  the Shermerville Post Office
1890 – Northfield Township population: 1,855
1892 – Chicago, Milwaukee, and St Paul Railroad adds a second track
1900 – Divine Word Missionaries starts building on what would become Waukegan Road
1900 – Northfield Township population: 2,323
1901 – Shermerville incorporated
1901 – Village Marshall appointed
1902 – The Chicago Telephone Company obtains a permit to install telephone wires in the village
1902 – Ordinance passed for cinder sidewalks
1903 – Ordinance passed to light village streets
1903 – Notice placed on Main (Shermer) Street bridge prohibiting driving over the bridge faster than a walk
1906 – A concrete sidewalk program began
1910 – Northfield Township population: 1,590. Shermerville population: 441.
1913 – Bonds issued for construction of a village water system
1920 – Northfield Township population: 3,438, Shermerville population: 554
1923 – Northbrook News began publication
1923 – The Village of Shermerville changed its name to Northbrook
1925 – First Northbrook Days held in Barrenscheen’s Grove
1926 – Ordinance passed to eliminate all outhouses within six months
1929 – Ordinance assigning house numbers within the village limits
1930 – Northfield Township population: 5,387. Northbrook population: 1,193
1932 – The Forest Preserve District purchases 112 acres on the Des Plaines River and 86 lots south of Dundee Road east of Skokie Boulevard
1933 – Work begins on the Skokie Marsh. Several thousand CCC workers camped in Northfield Township
1935 – Works Progress Administration plants elm trees on parkways throughout the village
1936 – The Culligan Zeolite Company was established in Northbrook
1939 – Permits issued to build fifteen homes in the Northbrook Highlands
1940 – Northbrook population: 1,265
1945 – Junkyards prohibited in the village
1950 – Once-a-day mail delivery began
1950 – Northbrook population: 3,348
1951 – Voting for public library bond issuance passes by 6 votes – 135 yes, 129 no
1952 – Northbrook High School closes
1953 – Glenbrook High School opens
1954 – Northbrook population: 6,013
1954 – Church Street Shopping Center opens
1955 – Northbrook population: 8,148
1957 – Construction begins on Cherry Lane underpass
1959 – Cherry Lane Shopping Center opens
1960 – Northbrook population: 11,635
1963 – Water treatment plant opens, bringing Lake Michigan water to Northbrook
1962 – Glenbrook South High School opens. Glenbrook High School renamed Glenbrook North
1963 – Sally Probst becomes first female Village Board member
1965 – Construction begins on the Chicago Botanic Gardens
1965 – The Northbrook Rotary Club chartered
1966 – Diegem, Belgium becomes Northbrook’s Sister City
1967 – Congregation Beth Shalom, Northbrook’s first Jewish congregation formed
1968 – Full-time Northbrook Fire Department begins service
1969 – Library opens at corner of Cherry and Cedar Lanes
1969 – North Suburban YMCA opens on Techny Road
1970 – Northbrook population: 25,422
1971 – New Fire Station built on Dundee Road
1971 – Linda White becomes first female Park Commissioner
1974 – The Northbrook Historical Society incorporated
1975 – The Northfield Inn, home of the Historical Society, moved from Shermer & Waukegan to Village Green
1975 – First addition to the Northbrook Library
1976 – Northbrook Court Shopping Center opens
1976 – The Islamic Cultural Center opens on Pfingsten Road
1977 – Oaklane School closes
1978 – Northbrook Park District purchases Sportsman’s Country Club
1979 – Crestwood School closes
1979 – The Sheely Center for the Performing Arts opens at Glenbrook North High School
1980 – Northbrook population: 30,778
1980 – The Northbrook Symphony Orchestra began
1980 – The Northbrook Post Office opens on Dundee Road
1980 – The Civic Foundation allows women members
1982 – Crestwood Place senior living opens
1985 – The Cherry Lane underpass fills with stormwater after a storm
1987 – Wayside Farm, the last working farm in Northbrook, was sold
1987 – The Cherry Lane underpass fills with stormwater again, after 8.41 inches of rain on August 13th & 14th
1987 – The final Round-Up Days were held
1988 – An emergency 911 phone system was approved by voters
1988 – New gazebo was dedicated in the Village Green
1988 – Techny annexed to Northbrook
1990 – Northbrook population: 32,308
1990 – New Northbrook Metra station dedicated
1990 – New Village Hall opens on Cedar Lane
1990 – Trash recycling begins
1991 – Techny Barns torn down
1994 – Edens Theatre and Strike n’ Spare Bowling Alley on Skokie Blvd demolished
1995 – Glenview Naval Air Station closes
1995 – The Triangle, Northbrook’s first park, removed when Shermer Road is reconfigured
1996 – Fire Station #10 on Huehl Road and Fire Station #12 on Shermer Road are dedicated
1997 – The Public Safety building at Landwehr and Walters converted for Police Department Headquarters
1997 – President Clinton visits Northbrook to announce Northfield Township 8th grade students tested first in the World in Science, and second in math
1998 – The Northbrook Public Library temporarily moves to a closed Jewel Food store while the library building undergoes remodeling
1999 – Northbrook Public Library re-opens after completion of a major addition
2000 – Residents approve the Park District purchase of the 60-acre Anetsberger property
2000 – Bebb’s Oak named the official tree of Northbrook, and the Scarlet Flame Zinnia named the official village flower
2000 – Northbrook Population: 33,435
2001 – The Centennial celebration of Shermerville’s incorporation
2001 – The West Fork of the North Branch of the Chicago River undergoes riverbank stabilization and beautification
2006 – The American Legion Hall is sold and closed
2008 – Tonelli’s restaurant closed
2009 – Northbrook Garage closes after 165 years servicing the transportation needs of the village
2014 – The Northbrook Historical Society celebrated its 40th anniversary. The Shermer monument at St. Peter Cemetery on Shermer Road was refurbished by the Society as an anniversary gift to the community
2015 – On Jan. 5, Chad Raymond retired from the Northbrook Public Library after 29 years as Executive Director. He oversaw the growth of the Library’s collection, a temporary move to the Jewel, and two additions. His retirement came a few months shy of the new auditorium’s completion
2015 – The Hope Union Church was donated to the Northbrook Historical by the Christian Science Society, who had occupied the church since 1958
2016 – The Historical Society began renovating the Hope Union Church building to be used as its office, archives and research library
2017 – The renovated Hope Union Heritage Center was opened on Sunday, July 16