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The Commemorative Quarter for Illinois





Welcome to West Chicago ...

The city of West Chicago is located in DuPage County<1>.


The location of West Chicago has been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (ie- the GNIS).<2>


The pronunciation of West Chicago: shi-KAW-goh<3>

While we don't have a date for the founding of West Chicago, you might consider that their post office opened  in 1896.

A typical abbreviation for West Chicago: W. Chicago

From the  Census Estimates for 2019, West Chicago has a population of 26,818 people<4> (see below for details).

West Chicago is 740 feet [226 m] above sea level.<5>.

Time Zone: West Chicago lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time

Area codes for West Chicago: (630) and (331)<6>

The ZIP codes for West Chicago: 60185-60186<7>

Websites for West Chicago ...

Official Website:   www.westchicago.org/

Chamber of Commerce:   www.wegochamber.org/

Junior League:   www.jlkd.org/

Population Details ...

Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, West Chicago had an population of 26,818 people. This is a decrease of 0.99% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 14.27% since the 2000 Census).

At the time of the 2010 Census, West Chicago had a population of 27,086 people. This makes West Chicago the county's 12th most populous community.

The population of West Chicago represents 0.21% of the population of Illinois (which has 12,830,632 people), making it the state's 80th most populous community.

With a 2010 count of 27,086 people, the population of West Chicago increased 15.41% from the 2000 Census (with a count of 23,469 people).

More information can be found on the Census Page for West Chicago.

Communities near West Chicago ...

We have created a list of 10 communities that are near West Chicago.

  • Aurora
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Naperville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Elgin
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Bolingbrook
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bolingbrook have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolingbrook
    • Bolingbrook is located in Will County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 74,025 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bolingbrook <8>
  • Arlington Heights
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
  • Schaumburg
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Schaumburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schaumburg
    • Schaumburg is located in Cook County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 72,049 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Schaumburg <8>
  • Palatine
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Palatine have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palatine
    • Palatine is located in Cook County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 66,830 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Palatine <8>
  • Wheaton
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Hoffman Estates
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hoffman Estates have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoffman Estates
    • Hoffman Estates is located in Cook County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 50,495 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hoffman Estates <8>
  • Downers Grove
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)

To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.

We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around West Chicago. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for West Chicago.

Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of West Chicago. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around West Chicago.

We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around West Chicago. See our Newspapers Page for West Chicago.

TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for West Chicago ...

Looking for more information about West Chicago? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.

While we are unaware of a Tourism page that is specific to West Chicago, there are neighboring communities that do have Tourism pages. A map of those communities can be found with our TripAdvisor Page for West Chicago.

Adding West Chicago to Our Gazetteer ...

We originally found mention of West Chicago in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.

From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for West Chicago was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<9>

From that list, the West Chicago post office opened in 1896.

We also found West Chicago on a map titled Shell Oil Road Map for Illinois (1956).

For more details, see References and Mentions for West Chicago.

The official website for West Chicago: www.westchicago.org/

The official website for DuPage County: www.dupageco.org/

The official website for State of Illinois: https://illinois.gov

Footnotes ...

<1>If you're interested in how the shape of Illinois' counties, including DuPage, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
<2>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<3>The pronunciation we've provided is our attempt to give a phonetic pronunciation for West Chicago. While it might not be exactly right, hopefully it will be close. If we have it wrong or there's a better way to pronounce the name, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
<4>Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for West Chicago.
<5>The elevation is an estimate for the area around West Chicago - it will be higher in some places and lower in others.
<6>Area code (331) is an overlay for area code (630).
<7>ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as West Chicago). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether West Chicago or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS).

Our list of ZIP Codes for West Chicago includes: 60185 & 60186.
<8>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<9>A copy of their list with background information can be found at:

      https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024