McHenry, Illinois

Coordinates: 42°20′21″N 88°16′54″W / 42.33917°N 88.28167°W / 42.33917; -88.28167

McHenry
City
Nickname: The Heart Of The Fox
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	McHenry
Coordinates	42°20′21″N 88°16′54″W / 42.33917°N 88.28167°W / 42.33917; -88.28167
Area	12.1 sq mi (31 km2)
- land	12.1 sq mi (31 km2)
Density	1,850.2 / sq mi (714 / km2)
Mayor	Susan E. Low
Timezone	CST (UTC-6)
- summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Postal code	60050 and 60051
Area code	815
Location of McHenry within Illinois
Wikimedia Commons: McHenry, Illinois
Website: http://www.ci.mchenry.il.us/

McHenry is a city in McHenry County, Illinois, United States. In 2005, its population was estimated to be 24,631. McHenry was at one time the county seat of McHenry County. McHenry was named for Major William McHenry, an old Indian fighter.

McHenry is surrounded by natural lakes and streams, grassy moraine hills, gravel banks, and shallow nutrient-rich peat bogs; remnants of receding glaciers from the last ice age. Moraine Hills State Park and Volo Bog State Natural Area preserve some of these unique natural features.^{[citation needed]}

Geography

McHenry is located 50 miles northwest of Chicago in northern Illinois on the Fox River. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 12.1 square miles (31 km²), of which, 11.6 square miles (30 km²) of it is land and 0.5 square miles (1.3 km²) of it (4.05%) is water.

Major streets

• Richmond Road/Elm Street/Front Street
• Elm Street
• Ringwood Road
• Ridge Road
• Curran Road
• Bull Valley Road
• McCullom Lake Road
• Crystal Lake Road
• Green Street
• Charles J Miller Road
• Chapel Hill Road
• River Road
• Draper Road
• Martin Road
• Riverside Drive
• Pearl Street
• Lincoln Road

The Fox River

McHenry lies within the watershed of the Fox River, and its downtown area is situated on that river.^{[citation needed]}

Demographics

The population density was 1,850.2 per square mile (714.4/km²). There were 8,127 housing units at an average density of 699.4 per square mile (270.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 94.18% White, 0.35% African American, 0.21% Native American, 0.89% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 3.31% from other races, and 1.02% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.10% of the population.

There were 7,872 households of which 38.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.2% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.4% were non-families. 24.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.25.

Age distribution was 28.5% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 32.7% from 25 to 44, 19.9% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 94.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.2 males.

The median household income was $55,759, and the median family income was $66,040. Males had a median income of $46,552 versus $29,808 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,272. About 3.8% of families and 4.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.1% of those under age 18 and 2.6% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Major industrial users including Medela, Follett Library Resources, Fabrik Industries and Plaspros have located in the City's business parks. Centegra's Northern Illinois Medical Center (NIMC) campus calls McHenry home and provides emergency, in and out-patient health care services to the City and surrounding areas. Steady residential growth has resulted in significant commercial development. The north Richmond Road corridor has become a destination for shoppers in the northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin areas with numerous "big box" retailers and smaller chains. The City has also been very diligent and active in preserving, promoting and revitalizing its three downtown districts: Main Street, Green Street and Riverside Drive.^[1]

Transportation

McHenry is currently the terminus of a branch line on Metra's Union Pacific/Northwest Line, with daily passenger service to Ogilvie Transportation Center (Northwestern Station) in downtown Chicago.^[2] The line that now terminates at McHenry once continued to Williams Bay, Wisconsin, but that service was discontinued in stages in the 1960s and 1970s.^{[citation needed]}

Notable people

• Gary Adams (d. 2000), founded TaylorMade Golf in McHenry in 1979.^[3][4]
• Jason Faunt (b. 1974), actor, grew up in McHenry.
• Jace Sayler (b.1979), football player with Michigan State University and the New England Patriots (Super Bowl champion), attended McHenry High School (East Campus).
• Matt Skiba (b. 1976), guitarist/singer-songwriter of the punk rock band, Alkaline Trio, lived in McHenry during his childhood and attended McHenry High School (East Campus).
• Mariann Mayberry (b. 1965), actress and ensemble member of Steppenwolf Theatre Company, lived in McHenry during her childhood and is a graduate of McHenry High School (West Campus).

References

1. ^ http://www.ci.mchenry.il.us/departments/development/economic.html
2. ^ http://metrarail.com/content/metra/en/home/maps_schedules/metra_system_map/up-nw/map.html
3. ^ Dodson, James (May/June 1998). "Ace of Clubs". Departures Magazine. American Express Publishing Corporation. http://www.departures.com/articles/ace-of-clubs. Retrieved 31 August 2009. 
4. ^ Wyss, Cyndi (15 May 2009). "Wyss: Economic uptick good, but bears price". Northwest Herald. http://www.nwherald.com/columnists/columns/2009/05/14/r_i0vttsoeswqv8yjnfjpvoa/index.xml. Retrieved 31 August 2009. 

External links

• Official website
• McHenry Public Library District
• McHenry, Illinois at the Open Directory Project