Crest Hill, Illinois

Crest Hill is a city in Will County, Illinois, United States. The population was 20,459 at the 2020 census.

History

The neighborhood of Stern Park Gardens, later incorporated into Crest Hill, renamed itself Lidice in 1942, following the Lidice massacre. Former presidential candidate Wendell Willkie and Czechoslovak president-in-exile Edvard Beneš spoke at the dedication, commemorating the tragedy.

Geography

Crest Hill decided to incorporate itself to avoid being annexed by the City of Joliet and became officially incorporated as the City of Crest Hill January 22, 1960.

According to the 2010 census, Crest Hill has a total area of , of which (or 98.52%) is land and (or 1.48%) is water.

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"

|+Crest Hill city, Illinois – Racial and ethnic composition

!Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)

!Pop 2000

!Pop 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |Pop 2020

!% 2000

!% 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |% 2020

|White alone (NH)

|9,246

|11,800

|style='background: #ffffe6; |9,911

|69.37%

|56.63%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |48.44%

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|2,591

|4,494

|style='background: #ffffe6; |4,460

|19.44%

|21.57%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |21.80%

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|19

|30

|style='background: #ffffe6; |20

|0.14%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.10%

|Asian alone (NH)

|150

|496

|style='background: #ffffe6; |513

|1.13%

|2.38%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.51%

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|10

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1

|0.08%

|0.02%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.00%

|Other race alone (NH)

|11

|18

|style='background: #ffffe6; |49

|0.08%

|0.09%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.24%

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|128

|263

|style='background: #ffffe6; |633

|0.96%

|1.26%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3.09%

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|1,174

|3,732

|style='background: #ffffe6; |4,872

|8.81%

|17.91%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |23.81%

|Total

|13,329

|20,837

|style='background: #ffffe6; |20,459

|100.00%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Crest Hill had a population of 20,459. The median age was 40.0 years. 17.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 17.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 119.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 123.7 males age 18 and over.

There were 7,442 households in Crest Hill, of which 27.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 40.7% were married-couple households, 19.5% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 32.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 32.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

! Race !! Number !! Percent

| White || 10,796 || 52.8%

| Black or African American || 4,532 || 22.2%

| American Indian and Alaska Native || 135 || 0.7%

| Asian || 529 || 2.6%

| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 1 || 0.0%

| Some other race || 2,290 || 11.2%

| Two or more races || 2,176 || 10.6%

| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 4,872 || 23.8%

2010 census

A significant portion of the population resides at Stateville Correctional Center (see below). The 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data states that 3,160 residents of Crest Hill (15.2% of the population) are institutionalized.

2000 census

At the 2000 census, there were 13,329 people, 4,478 households and 2,758 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 4,808 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 69.4% (White Non-Hispanic) 19.6% (African American), 8.8% (Hispanic), 3.2% (Other), 1.4% (Two or more races), .5% (American Indian). Total can be more than 100% because Hispanics could be counted in other races.

There were 4,478 households, of which 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.1% were married couples living together, 12.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.4% were non-families. 30.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 3.00.

18.9% of the population were under the age of 18, 13.6% from 18 to 24, 41.2% from 25 to 44, 17.1% from 45 to 64, and 9.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 147.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 157.8 males.

The median household income was $45,313 and the median family income was $54,709. Males had a median income of $41,715 compared with $27,667 for females. The per capita income for the city was $22,317. About 2.6% of families and 4.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.8% of those under age 18 and 5.8% of those age 65 or over.

Government and infrastructure

The Stateville Correctional Center of the Illinois Department of Corrections, opened in what was then an unincorporated area of Will County in 1925, is located in Crest Hill. John Wayne Gacy was executed by lethal injection at Stateville Correctional Center in 1994.

Education

Elementary school districts include:

Chaney-Monge School District 88
Richland School District 88A

Private schools include:

Joliet Montessori School

Most of Crest Hill is zoned to Lockport Township High School.

Transportation

Pace provides bus service on Routes 505, 507 and 832 connecting Crest Hill to downtown Joliet and other destinations.

Crest Hill is served by the Elgin Joliet & Eastern Railway Main Line currently operated by the Canadian National.

Notable person

Ron Coomer, Major League Baseball player and broadcaster, born in Crest Hill