Elgin Information: Tickets, Venues, Events and More

‘Elgin’ is situated 64 kilometer northwest of Chicago on the banks of Fox River. A major portion of this city is located within Kane County in Illinois besides a few areas in Cook County.

The Black Hawk Indian War of 1832 led an expulsion of Native Americans from here. They staged for the foundation of Elgin. Thousands of soldiers led by the troupes of Gen. Winfield Scott marched through Fox River valley here. James T. Gifford and his brother Hezekiah Gifford were looking for a site on the stagecoach route from Chicago to Galena. They established this city in April 1835 and named it after the Scottish hymn, The Song of Elgin.

The Galena & Chicago Union Railroad reached to Elgin in 1849, which later ran along both the banks of Fox River. It linked this developing town with Chicago and many other urban centers. Elgin was once famous for its butter and dairy goods production. Gail Borden established its first condensed milk factory in 1866. When Elgin Watch Company incepted here, the dairy industry became less important. Today this city is famous for being the largest producer of watches in the USA.

Elgin has the long lasting tradition of education and invention. It is home to an oldest coeducational, non-sectarian college preparatory school named Elgin Academy. Elgin High School has produced crème de la crème alumnus accounting to five navy admirals, a Nobel Prize winner, a Pulitzer Prize winner, a Tony Award winner, two Academy Award-winning producers, Olympic athletes and et al.

This city is a fastest growing city in Illinois. Its growth accompanies with increased concerns about traffic, urban sprawl and capacity to provide services to its residents. It is the fifth most popular tourist attraction in Illinois. As per the census reports, it has a total area of 25.4 square miles, of which, 25.0 square miles is land and 0.4 square miles is water. According to 2000 census, Elgin has 94,487 inhabitants that make it the eighth largest city in Illinois and the 241st largest city in the USA.