Winfield is an incorporated village located in Milton and Winfield Townships, DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The DuPage River headwaters are located directly to the north, and the river runs through the village. The population was 9,835 at the 2020 census, and was estimated to be 10,046 in 2022.
History
Winfield originally tried to become an incorporated village in 1884 under the town name 'Frederick Park'. However, the motion was denied as the town did not have 300 residents as was required for incorporation. When the village was finally incorporated in 1921, the town had a population of 310 people.
The earliest settlers, Erastus and Jude P. Gary, came to Winfield in 1832. Winfield was originally known as Gary's Mill after these early settlers, and later, Fredericksburg, owing to a significant German-speaking population. Before 1850, most Winfield residents were migrants from New England; however, by 1860, half of the residents were from Germany and Alsace-Lorraine. Winfield retained a community of German-speaking farmers until the 1920s.
Winfield was home to one of the oldest taverns in the Chicago suburbs, John's Restaurant and Tavern (formerly John's Buffet), founded in 1921 by immigrant John T Karwoski. It closed its doors in December 2017. John Karwoski was instrumental in the political and economic development of Winfield, and it was his guidance and leadership that took a fledgling prairie town clinging to existence after the railroad boom went bust, and turned it into a viable and livable village. Mr Karwoski became the first Chief of the all-volunteer Winfield Volunteer Fire Company in 1935. 45 years later, his son John Karwoski II was made Chief of the expanded Winfield Fire Protection District in 1980.
Winfield was served by The Winfield Glimpses newspaper from October 1947 to October 1976. The Glimpses changed its name to the Winfield Examiner in November 1976 and ran until February 1992.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , of which is land and , is water.