Edgewater, Illinois

In 1885, developer John Lewis Cochran purchased land in the northeastern corner of Lake View Township and gave the area its name: Edgewater. He built the first residential subdivision there, complete with paved streets, electric lighting, and a functioning sewer system, then negotiated a train stop at Bryn Mawr Avenue to seal the deal. Edgewater’s 300 residents actually voted against annexation into Chicago in 1889, but were annexed anyway.

The luxurious Edgewater Beach Hotel opened in 1916 and drew celebrities including Marilyn Monroe and Frank Sinatra for decades. After a long push by residents, Edgewater became Chicago’s 77th and final official community area in 1980, recognized as distinct from neighboring Uptown. Today it is one of the city’s most diverse neighborhoods, with more than 40 percent of residents foreign-born at the turn of the 21st century.

City Montage