South Holland is a village and south suburb of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States, within Thornton Township. The population was 21,465 at the 2020 census. It is named after the Dutch province of South Holland.
History
The area currently occupied by South Holland, Illinois, was first settled in 1846 by immigrants from South Holland, Netherlands. When the community formally incorporated as a village in 1894, its population was about 1,000. Originally a general farming community, it later specialized in vegetable growing, especially onion sets. By the 1940s South Holland was known as the "Onion Set Capital of the World". The town was built on low ground near the Calumet River and was originally called de Laage Prairie (Low Prairie) to differentiate it from another Dutch settlement further north on higher ground and called de Hooge Prairie (now the Roseland neighborhood of Chicago).
In October 2007, Forbes.com declared South Holland to be the "Most Livable Metro-Area suburb" of the Chicago metropolitan area.
In a book called The Shortest History of Migration, the economist Ian Goldin explains the concept of chain migration or network migration by noting that 90% of Dutch migrants from South Holland to the United States settled in three American towns, one of which was South Holland, Illinois.
Geography
South Holland is located at (41.60, -87.60). It is bordered by Harvey and Phoenix to the west, Dolton to the north, Thornton to the south, and Calumet City and Lansing to the east.
According to the 2010 census, South Holland has a total area of , of which (or 99.78%) is land and (or 0.22%) is water.
South Holland's addresses and numbered streets are 3 blocks ahead of Chicago's grid. For example, 159th Street is actually called 162nd Street.
Surrounding areas
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: Dolton
: Harvey 20px 30px 20px Calumet City
: Phoenix / Harvey 30px 30px Calumet City
: East Hazel Crest 20px 30px 20px Lansing
: Thornton
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