Midlothian, Illinois

Coordinates: 41°37′35″N 87°43′17″W / 41.62639°N 87.72139°W / 41.62639; -87.72139
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Midlothian, Illinois
Village
A view of the US flag and 147th Street, in Downtown Midlothian.
A view of the US flag and 147th Street, in Downtown Midlothian.
Flag of Midlothian, Illinois
Official seal of Midlothian, Illinois
Official logo of Midlothian, Illinois
Nickname: 
The community that pride built[1]
Location of Midlothian in Cook County, Illinois.
Location of Midlothian in Cook County, Illinois.
Location of Illinois in the United States
Location of Illinois in the United States
Coordinates: 41°37′35″N 87°43′17″W / 41.62639°N 87.72139°W / 41.62639; -87.72139
Country United States
StateIllinois
CountyCook
TownshipBremen
IncorporatedMarch 17, 1927
Government
 • TypeMayor/Board of Trustees
 • President or MayorGary L'Heureux (Unite Midlothian)
 • ClerkAllen Moskal
Area
 • Total2.82 sq mi (7.30 km2)
 • Land2.82 sq mi (7.30 km2)
 • Water0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)  0%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total14,325
 • Density5,081.59/sq mi (1,961.84/km2)
DemonymMidlothianite
Standard of living (2007-11)
 • Per capita income$22,945
 • Median home value$100,000
ZIP code(s)
60445
Area code708
Geocode48892
FIPS code17-48892
Websitevillageofmidlothian.net

Midlothian (/mɪdˈlθiən/) is a village in Bremen Township, Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is a southwestern suburb of Chicago. As of the 2020 census[3] the population was 14,325.

History[edit]

Statue of Saint Christopher outside St. Christopher Church

Like many southwest suburbs of Chicago in the 1800s and early 1900s, the area now known as the Village of Midlothian consisted of a few area farmers being surrounded by large and small endeavors alike as the industrial age began its exponential expansion process in the Bremen Township in Cook County, Illinois community. By 1854, the sprawling landscape comprising the township of Bremen had a trail of railroad track carrying both passengers and commodities between Chicago and Joliet on the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad. It had been a somewhat brutal battle for the Illinois Central Railroad over the decades, with Stephen A. Douglas and Abraham Lincoln working hard to establish the presence of the Illinois Central Railroad on a State level until Douglas moved to the federal level. By 1850, Douglas was busy working on federally mandated development of transportation plans into law at a federal level for the benefit of the Illinois Central Railroad.[4]

Explosions were not uncommon in gunpowder factories and storage facilities and 12 years later in 1906, an explosion leveled the DuPont facility. Although there is currently no clear evidence as to the precise location of the facility, apparently the shock-waves from the explosion traveled a decent enough distance in which the windows of the Midlothian Country Club were shattered, according to a report on November 8, 1906, in the Charlotte News. It also appears the Associated Press distributed the geographical location of the facility to be situated in Tinley Park, however a 1900 Homesteader's Map shows the DuPont property to be closer to what would become Oak Forest in 1947 rather than Tinley Park. Eventually the northern portion of the DuPont Farm and Ammunition Storage property was eventually annexed by the Village of Midlothian, while the rest of the DuPont property was acquired by Cook County, Illinois and developed into what is now the Midlothian Meadows Forest Preserve (part of the Cook County Forest Preserve system)

Despite land speculation and sporadic development growing from the direction of what would become the Village of Robbins in 1917, dirt roads continued to act as an uncontrollable barrier to a variety of economic activities, such as delivering goods and services. While rain of any slight measure was a nuisance, it didn't take much to render the roadways virtually unusable by the wagons being pulled by horses. The extremely and extraordinarily wealthy members of the Midlothian Country Club found such a method of transportation enough of an inconvenience, a group of individuals decided to petition the State of Illinois for a charter to form the Midlothian - Blue Island Railroad and to lay tracks from Blue Island straight to the front lawn of the country club.

The initial charter approved a separate track to begin in Blue Island, Illinois and ending on the Midlothian Country Club grounds. However, the Midlothian - Blue Island Railroad negotiated with the Chicago-Rock Island Railroad to build either the longest spur track or the Shortest Railroad in the World, as it became known as. Rather than laying new rails all the way from Blue Island, they would use Rexford Crossing as a turn around point and then lay track a short distance away to the country club. As part of the arrangement, a station was erected in place of what constituted Rexford Crossing and the station was renamed to "Midlothian." Although it is unclear who exactly paid for the construction, ownership of the building was eventually acquired by the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific while the stockholders of the Midlothian - Blue Island Railroad retained ownership of the rails and all of the rights and responsibilities associated with such ownership. All rail cars and engines were purchased by the Midlothian - Blue Island Railroad and not the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific. Although the club would not be annexed to Midlothian for a few decades, the Midlothian train station was located within the vicinity of the original boundaries for the village and eventually considered a part of the downtown area of Midlothian, which meant some of the tracks were to be governed by the municipal codes of the village. Bremen Township and Cook County may have had property-related laws the company was supposed to adhere to, but even more telling is the absence of the company in a number of Railway and Warehouse Commission annual reports. By 1927, the Village of Midlothian was incorporated and at the end of the summer season in 1928, the Midlothian - Blue Island Railroad tracks were removed, thereby ending any potential track maintenance issues or conflicts with the village.

By the turn of the century, the Village of Midlothian was still primarily a farming and forested area, despite activities conducted by the Midlothian Country Club creating a short layover for passenger traffic to and from the Midlothian train station. This stalling of development was partially driven by the housing speculation crash after the 1893 World's Columbian's Fair, especially the property that would eventually become the Village of Robbins in 1917. In addition, a large swath of the southwest suburbs of Chicago can quickly become quite soggy from a variety of sources. Contemplating the odds of a flood or other natural disaster is a common contemplation when considering home ownership. The rolling hills surrounding Midlothian and the creeks running through its fabric have always presented a natural path downward for water to travel without much width to the creeks to contain a heavy and steady rainfall. Therefore, until paved roads shifted from being a luxury to that of a necessity, families with names such as Woerheide, Largent, William Schwartz, Frank Coole, Benjamin Coole and William J. Shedd all had to contend with commerce-related issues all centering on roads that could be rendered virtually useless in a matter of minutes and potentially last for days. Even the construction of the train station has not seemed to attract significant passenger traffic over the decades, with little commerce being conducted in Midlothian other than farming, harvesting limestone and gunpowder manufacturing. The first stationmaster was a woman and by 1912, R.K. Cummings was appointed first regular agent of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad. In that same year, Cummings and two monthly ticket holders lived in the vicinity.[5]

The Midlothian Fire Department was organized in 1924, possibly in preparation for the first attempt at incorporating the village. However, for unknown reasons, the proposition was defeated and it wasn't until three years later in 1927 the residents would vote their approval of establishing the Village of Midlothian. The Village of Midlothian was formally incorporated March 17, 1927. Although there are no clear records on why the name was chosen, there is common conclusion they adopted the name of the train station with perhaps hopes of garnering a sense of similar prestige for the village as was being generated by the golf club at the time, if not also marketing abilities. The following month, John H. Hamilton was elected as the village's first president and by the end of summer 1928, all of the rails belonging to the Midlothian - Blue Island Railroad were removed, leaving Midlothian with one train line. By 1929, Midlothian had its first newspaper, The Messenger owned by the Andrews brothers. Kevin McCann was the first Editor In chief of the publication located above the old Largent store on 147th and Kildare, who later went on to serve as aide-de-camp to General Dwight Eisenhower during World War II as well as working with the General on his two books.[6]

In the 1930s and '40s, homes continued to be built for people moving to and settling down in Midlothian. The Kreis Brothers opened the Ford Garage (where the village's fire engine was kept) and Chuck Cavallini began selling ice cream from his corner "Sweet Shop". In 1949, a Village Hall was constructed at the intersection of 148th and Pulaski, where village employees and officials still work out of as of 2014. As part of the architecture, divisions of the Village such as the police and fire departments are attached to the main building. Across the parking lot along Waverly Avenue is the public works offices and garage while the VFW Hall is across from the entrance to the police department on Pulaski.

Geography[edit]

For genealogical purposes, historical government records frequently reference Midlothian property as Township 36 north, Range 13, East of 3rd Principal Meridian. Midlothian is home to the Cook County Forest Preserve of Midlothian Meadows, and home to Belly Button Hill, a sledding hill at 150th & Kilbourn. It is also home to Natalie Creek and the Midlothian Creek. Midlothian is part of the South Suburbs of Chicago and is in the Bremen Township.

According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Midlothian has a total area of 2.82 square miles (7.30 km2), all land.[7]

Climate[edit]

Like most of Cook County, Midlothian can be expected to be very warm in the summer, but very cold in the winter.

Climate data for Midlothian, Illinois
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) 30
(−1)
35
(2)
46
(8)
59
(15)
70
(21)
80
(27)
84
(29)
82
(28)
75
(24)
63
(17)
48
(9)
35
(2)
59
(15)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) 14
(−10)
18
(−8)
28
(−2)
39
(4)
49
(9)
59
(15)
64
(18)
62
(17)
55
(13)
42
(6)
32
(0)
21
(−6)
40
(5)
[citation needed]

Demographics[edit]

As of the 2020 census[3] there were 14,325 people, 5,828 households, and 3,786 families residing in the village. The population density was 5,081.59 inhabitants per square mile (1,962.01/km2). There were 5,522 housing units at an average density of 1,958.85 per square mile (756.32/km2). The racial makeup of the village was 55.60% White, 13.49% African American, 1.15% Native American, 1.40% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 14.25% from other races, and 14.07% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 32.15% of the population.

There were 5,828 households, out of which 27.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.96% were married couples living together, 7.67% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.04% were non-families. 32.45% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.68% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.11 and the average family size was 2.46.

The village's age distribution consisted of 22.3% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 27% from 25 to 44, 28.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 105.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.7 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $61,067, and the median income for a family was $80,348. Males had a median income of $45,741 versus $34,098 for females. The per capita income for the village was $29,855. About 10.0% of families and 9.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.2% of those under age 18 and 15.4% of those age 65 or over.

Historical population
CensusPop.Note
19301,775
19402,43036.9%
19503,21632.3%
19606,605105.4%
197014,422118.3%
198014,274−1.0%
199014,3720.7%
200014,315−0.4%
201014,8193.5%
202014,325−3.3%
U.S. Decennial Census[8]

2020 census[edit]

Midlothian, Illinois – Racial and Ethnic Composition
(NH = Non-Hispanic)
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 may be of any race.
Race / Ethnicity Pop 2010[9] Pop 2020[10] % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 9,682 7,107 65.34% 49.61%
Black or African American alone (NH) 1,635 1,880 11.03% 13.12%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 15 11 0.10% 0.08%
Asian alone (NH) 206 196 1.39% 1.37%
Pacific Islander alone (NH) 4 3 0.03% 0.02%
Some Other Race alone (NH) 18 41 0.12% 0.29%
Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH) 216 482 1.46% 3.36%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 3,043 4,605 20.53% 32.15%
Total 14,819 14,325 100.00% 100.00%

Arts and culture[edit]

Midlothian is known in the area for hosting the annual Fiesta at the St. Augustine Catholic Church at 147th & Keeler.

Parks and recreation[edit]

  • Kostner Park
  • Roesner Park[11]
  • Bremen Heights Park
  • Waverly Park
  • Memorial Park
  • Scout Park[12]

Government[edit]

The Government of Midlothian is run by the Village President, the Village Clerk, the Village Attorney, and 6 Village Trustees. Village Board Meetings are often held on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month, and Committee Meetings are held on the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month at 7:00 PM.[13]

Midlothian Elected Officials[14][15]
Name Elected position Party affiliation
Gary L'Heureux Mayor and Village President Midlothian First Party
Allen Moskal Village Clerk Midlothian First Party
Kathy Johnson Trustee Midlothian First Party
Jack Hille Trustee Midlothian First Party
Kathleen Johnson Trustee Midlothian First Party
Sandra L. Crowley Trustee Independent
Anthony "Tony" Burbatt Trustee Independent
Donald Killelea Trustee Independent

Midlothian is governed by the Midlothian First Party, with the village board being split between Midlothian First and independents.

List of village presidents[edit]

Name Term start Term end Political Party
John H. Hamilton 1927 1929 Independent
Richard J. White 1929 1946 (resigned) Independent (1926), People's Party (1935), United Party (1941)[16]
John S. Knight 1946 (appointed) 1947 Independent
Arthur Ladwig 1948 1952 Greater Midlothian Party[16]
Henry Milen 1953 1961 Independent
Harry Raday 1961 1985 Independent
Thomas "Tom" J. Murawski 1985 2009 Independent
Terrence "Terry" Stephens 2009 2013 Independent
Sharon L. Rybak 2013 2017 Independent
Gary L'Heureux 2017 present Unite Midlothian

Infrastructure[edit]

Transportation[edit]

Midlothian is mainly known for the Midlothian station and being near the Tri-state Tollway (I-294) and I-57. The Midlothian station provides Metra commuter rail service along the Rock Island District. Trains travel north to LaSalle Street Station in Chicago, and south to Joliet Transportation Center. Pace provides bus service on multiple routes connecting Midlothian to destinations across the Southland.[17]

Notable people[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ http://local.townsquarepublications.com/illinois/midlothian/chamber01.html, Archived 2020-02-01 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  3. ^ a b "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  4. ^ John Bell Sanborn (1897). Railroad land grants, 1850-1857. University of Wisconsin. Retrieved June 7, 2014.
  5. ^ "R. K. cumming Flagged 'Em To Stop In 1912". Southwest Messenger Press, Inc. March 17, 1977. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  6. ^ "History of Midlothian". Village of Midlothian, Illinois. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
  7. ^ Bureau, US Census. "Gazetteer Files". Census.gov. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
  8. ^ "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades". US Census Bureau.
  9. ^ "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Midlothian, Illinois". United States Census Bureau.
  10. ^ "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Midlothian, Illinois". United States Census Bureau.
  11. ^ Midlothian Park District Website Retrieved 23 September 2020
  12. ^ Midlothian Park District Website Retrieved 6 July 2020
  13. ^ Village of Midlothian Website Retrieved on 6 July 2020
  14. ^ "Election Results - Cook County Clerk's Office". results423.cookcountyclerkil.gov. Retrieved July 18, 2023.
  15. ^ results421.cookcountyclerkil.gov https://results421.cookcountyclerkil.gov/summary.aspx?eid=40621. Retrieved July 18, 2023. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  16. ^ a b [1], Photos from the Midlothian Historical Society in Midlothian, Illinois.
  17. ^ "RTA System Map" (PDF). Retrieved February 1, 2024.

External links[edit]