About HARWOOD HEIGHTS, IL
The Village of Harwood Heights is conveniently located in the near northwest suburbs of Chicago. Moments away from I-90 (Kennedy Expressway), it is only a twenty-minute trip to downtown Chicago and a quick 10 minutes to O'Hare International Airport. Public transportation, provided by the CTA, maintains routes along the main streets within the Village making getting around the Chicago area quick and easy. The Village also operates its own Village Helper Bus that transports our citizens to where they want to go within the town and select areas outside our borders free of charge.
Within our Village and in the surrounding area, you will find the amenities that people look for in a community. Excellent schools, houses of worship, shopping, entertainment, and recreation facilities are all here for your use and enjoyment. We hope that when you are in our area you will stop and take part of what we have to offer.
Today, if you were to stand on the corner of Harlem and Lawrence and take in all the sights and sounds of a modern day Village you would have a hard time envisioning what the area looked like when our country was founded in 1776. The immediate area was an open wilderness covered with prairie grass and wild flowers. Two ridges could be seen, one of which would play a major role in the development of Harwood Heights.
During this period the only people inhabiting this area were the Potawatomi Indians. These Native Americans lived their peaceful existence in an area along a river they called checagou which loosely translated means "where the strong-smelling onions grow." This name was very appropriate seeing that patches of wild onions grew in the swampy areas on the banks of what would be later known as the Chicago River and its North and South Branch. To the east lay Lake Michigan which they called mishigonong or "place of great water." To the west over the main ridge lay another river called Aux Plaines where the Potawatomi men spearfished. We recognize it as the Des Plaines River.
Today the Village's 8297 residents have at their disposal 20 restaurants, 5 shopping centers, 3 parks, 1 grade school, 1 high school and 3 churches to serve their needs. There are also thriving business areas, industrial areas and just about everything needed to make a community complete and a desirable place to live and work.
What does the future hold? No one really knows for sure. We can only say that each and every one of the Village employees will strive to do their best to continue to make the Village of Harwood Heights one of the best communities to live and work.
Learn more about this city.
City of Harwood Heights, IL official site
City of Harwood Heights, IL Chamber of Commerce
City of Harwood Heights, IL newspaper
County of Harwood Heights, IL official site
State of Illinois official site