Clarendon Hills is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 8,702 at the 2020 census. It is a south-west suburb of Chicago.

History

The area that is now Clarendon Hills was a wide, rolling prairie bordering the east side of Westmont. Most of the older villages in Downers Grove Township were built on the same street grid as the Village of Downers Grove. Instead, Clarendon Hills was built to resemble nearby Riverside, a planned, park-like suburb designed by Fredrick Law Olmsted in the late 1800s. Its long winding streets go with the natural contour of the land, rather than extending straight through from the neighboring towns. In 1923, at the time of incorporation, Clarendon Hills had a population of under 900 people. The area was incorporated to avoid annexation by the nearby community of Hinsdale.

The Clarendon Hills Historical Society is tasked with retaining the town's history and establishing a community center and a museum to display prominent artifacts about the history of the village.

In 1961, TWA Flight 529 crashed south of Clarendon Hills, killing all 73 passengers on board.

On May 11, 2022, a Metra train collided with a stalled box truck on the Prospect Avenue grade crossing west of Clarendon Hills station; one person lost her life.

Geography

Clarendon Hills is approximately 18 miles southwest of Chicago.

According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Clarendon Hills has a total area of , of which (or 99.45%) is land and (or 0.55%) is water.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Clarendon Hills had a population of 8,702. The median age was 40.8 years. 28.4% of residents were under the age of 18 and 14.7% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 92.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 88.4 males age 18 and over.

The population density was . There were 3,396 housing units at an average density of .

There were 3,170 households in Clarendon Hills, of which 40.0% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 60.4% were married-couple households, 13.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 23.3% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 24.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. Maercker School (grades 3–6), and Westview Hills Middle School (grades 6–8).

Clarendon Hills Middle School (CHMS) is one of the two 6-8th-grade schools in District 181. It is one of 5 public middle schools feeding into Hinsdale Central High School. Approximately 700 students were enrolled in CHMS for the 2009–10 school year. CHMS was recently ranked by the Chicago Tribune as the 14th best middle school in the state (based on ISAT scores). More than 96% of the students' test scores were categorized as meeting or exceeding the Illinois Learning Standards.

In 2009, the Clarendon Hills Middle School was awarded a Blue Ribbon by the United States Department of Education, recognizing it as one of the top schools in the nation. CHMS is ranked in the top 2% of middle schools in Illinois.

Prospect School had an approximate enrollment of 449 students for the 2009–10 school year.

Walker School had an approximate enrollment of 305 students for the 2009–10 school year.

Together with CHMS, all are rated 10 out of 10 by greatschools.net.

Notable people

<!-- Note:

· Only people who already have a Wikipedia article may appear here. This establishes notability.

· The article must mention how they are associated with <city name>, whether born, raised, or residing.

· The fact of their association should have a reliable source cited.

· Alphabetical by last name please

· All others will be deleted without further explanation

-->

  • Bill Evans, jazz musician
  • Emily Harris, Symbionese Liberation Army member
  • Bill Laimbeer, basketball center with 1989-1990 NBA Champion Detroit Pistons
  • Ben Murphy, actor
  • Brian Wardle, basketball head coach, Bradley University

References

  • [https://web.archive.org/web/20140817034422/http://www.d181.org/data/files/pages/2010%20CHMS%20School%20Report%20Card.pdf]
  • [https://web.archive.org/web/20140818152334/http://www.d181.org/data/files/pages/2010%20Prospect%20School%20Report%20Card.pdf]
  • [https://web.archive.org/web/20140817075156/http://www.d181.org/data/files/pages/2010%20Walker%20School%20Report%20Card.pdf]
  • [http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM3PD2_TWA_Flight_529_Clarendon_Hills_IL]