WCG-052418

the history of kenilworth
In the beginning ...
Twenty years
after Winnetka
and Wilmette
were incorporated,
Kenilworth was a tangle
of woods, bordered by
dirt roads, crisscrossed
by wagon tracks, used
as pasture for the cattle
of neighboring residents
and a field laboratory for
botany students from
Northwestern University.
In November 1889, Joseph
Sears purchased more
than 200 acres east of the
railroad between North
Road (now Winnetka
Avenue) and the Mahoney
Farm. After a visit to
Kenilworth in beautiful Warwickshire, England, Sears named the land Kenilworth and formed the
Kenilworth Company to develop it according to the plans of several distinguished architects. Two
years later a dozen homes had been built, six of which are still standing. Kenilworth Avenue had
been laid out straight from the new railroad station to the lake for an unobstructed view. Streets
parallel with it were planned to run on a northeasterly, southwesterly angle so the sun would reach
every room in the house sometime during the day.
The water and gas works, post office, telegraph and telephone services were in operation.
Two and one-half miles of macadam streets, the first on the North Shore, had been paved and
lighted by gas lamps with three miles of concrete sidewalks, gas mains and sewers. During the
Colombian Exposition of 1893, Kenilworth, considered a model community, attracted visitors from
all over the world.
The population reached the 300 required for incorporation on February 4, 1896. By the turn
of the century, the North Shore Railroad was permitted to lay tracks through the Village. There
were beaches at the foot of Kenilworth Avenue and a nine-hole golf course at the southeast
edge of the Village. Streets, originally named for American authors, were renamed by using
names from Sir Walter Scott’s Kenilworth. The first years of this
century saw the organization of the park district, installation of an
underground electrical system and the building of a public school
and several churches. In the 1920s, mail service started as well as
tax-supported fire and police service was developed. A group of 48
citizens formed the Kenilworth Realty Association and subscribed
for nearly $300,000 in bonds to purchase the North Shore Golf Club
and other property west of the tracks extending the boundaries of
Kenilworth west to Ridge Road. The Mahoney farm was subdivided
and Mahoney Park was given to the Village by the heirs of Daniel
Mahoney. The Village had grown to 0.6 of a square mile. The last
land was purchased by the Village in 1964 from the Chicago and
Northwestern Railroad and landscaped for a park at the railway
station.
The Kenilworth
Assembly Hall
410 Kenilworth Ave.
(847) 251-1691
events@kenilworthparkdistrict.org
kenilworthassemblyhall.org
The Kenilworth Assembly Hall,
designed by internationally
known Prairie School
architect George W. Maher,
is the historic building that
has served as Kenilworth’s
community house since
its construction in 1906.
The building is listed in the
National Register of Historic
Places and is the prominent
centerpiece of Kenilworth,
serving its civic and cultural
community.
The Kenilworth Assembly
Hall offers many club events
for members and is also
available for wedding, private
and community rentals.
Membership is not required for
club rentals. Tables, chairs and
tableware are included.
Kenilworth
Historical Society
415 Kenilworth Ave.
(847) 251-2565
www.kenilworthhistory.org
HOURS: Monday and Thursday:
9 am-4:30 pm
Wilmette-Lucke Plumbing
Plumbing & Heating Contractor
Tel: 847-251-2020
Fax: 847-251-2015
www.luckeplumbing.com
736 12 Street Wilmette, IL 60091
the history of kenilworth
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