Saturday, 13 July 2013

Demographics

2000 census age pyramid for DuPage County Historical populations Census Pop. %± 1840 3,535 — 1850 9,290 162.8% 1860 14,701 58.2% 1870 16,685 13.5% 1880 19,161 14.8% 1890 22,551 17.7% 1900 28,196 25.0% 1910 33,432 18.6% 1920 42,120 26.0% 1930 91,998 118.4% 1940 103,480 12.5% 1950 154,599 49.4% 1960 313,459 102.8% 1970 491,882 56.9% 1980 658,835 33.9% 1990 781,666 18.6% 2000 904,161 15.7% 2010 916,924 1.4% Est. 2012 927,987 1.2% U.S. Decennial Census 2011 estimate

As of the 2010 Census, the population of the county was 916,924, White Americans made up 77.9% of Dupage County's population; non-Hispanic whites represented 70.5% of the population. Black Americans made up 4.6% of the population. Native Americans made up 0.3% of Dupage County's population. Asian Americans made up 10.1% of the population (4.5% Indian, 1.6% Filipino, 1.4% Chinese, 0.7% Pakistani, 0.5% Korean, 0.4% Vietnamese, and 0.1% Japanese). Pacific Islander Americans made up just 0.0% of the population. Individuals from other races made up 4.9% of the population; people from two or more races made up 2.2% of the county's population. Hispanics and Latinos (of any race) made up 13.3% of Dupage County's population.

As of the 2000 United States Census, there were 904,161 people, 325,601 households and 234,432 families residing in the county. The population density was 2,710 inhabitants per square mile (1,050 /km2). There were 335,621 housing units, at an average density of 1,006 inhabitants per square mile (388 /km2). The racial makeup of the county was 84.05% White, 3.05% Black or African American, 0.17% Native American, 7.88% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 3.12% from other races and 1.71% from two or more races. 9.00% of the population is Hispanic or Latino of any race. 17.3% were of German, 11.8% Irish, 11.0% Italian, 9.8% Poles and 5.1% English ancestry according to the Census. 79.3% spoke English, 7.7% Spanish, 1.5% Polish and 1.2% Tagalog as their first language.

There were 325,601 households, out of which 37.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.90% were married couples living together, 7.90% had a female householder with no husband present and 28.00% were non-families. 22.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.27.

In the county, the population was spread out with 26.70% under the age of 18, 8.20% from 18 to 24, 32.40% from 25 to 44, 22.80% from 45 to 64 and 9.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.20 males. For every 100 females, age 18 and over, there were 94.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $77,441 and the median income for a family was $93,086. Males had a median income of $60,909 versus $41,346 for females. The mean or average income for a family in DuPage County is $121,009, according to the 2005 census. The per capita income for the county was $38,458. About 2.40% of families and 3.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.90% of those under age 18 and 4.30% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

DuPage County is the primary location of the Illinois Technology and Research Corridor. It is home to many large corporations, including:

Ace Hardware (Oak Brook) Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (Itasca) (Fortune 1000) BP (formerly British Petroleum) (Warrenville) DeVry Inc. (Oakbrook Terrace) (NYSE) Dover Corporation (Downers Grove) (Fortune 500) Eby-Brown (Naperville) Hub Group (Downers Grove) (Fortune 1000) McDonald's Corporation (Oak Brook) (Fortune 500) Molex (Lisle) (Fortune 1000) Nalco Holding Company (Naperville) (Fortune 1000) Namco Cybertainment (Bensenville) Navistar International (Warrenville) (Fortune Global 500) Nicor (Naperville) (Fortune 1000) OfficeMax (Naperville) (Fortune 500) Sara Lee Corporation (Downers Grove) (Fortune 500) SIRVA (Westmont) (Fortune 1000) Tellabs (Naperville) (Fortune 1000) Ty Warner (Beanie Babies) (Westmont)

Shopping malls in DuPage County include Oakbrook Center, which is the largest open air mall in the nation, Westfield Fox Valley, Yorktown Center, Town Square Wheaton, and Stratford Square Mall. In addition, many of DuPage County's towns have prosperous and quaint downtown areas, especially in Naperville, Glen Ellyn, Wheaton, Downers Grove and Hinsdale, which are mixed with boutiques, upscale chain stores and restaurants.

National Laboratories Aerial view of the Tevatron particle accelerator at the Fermilab site.

Fermilab, which has the world's second-highest-energy particle accelerator in the world, is in Batavia, where it straddles the border between Kane and DuPage counties. Argonne National Laboratory, one of the United States government's oldest and largest science and engineering research laboratories, is in unincorporated, southeast DuPage County. Both laboratories conduct tours of their facilities.

Arts and culture

Architecture

The 31-story Oakbrook Terrace Tower in Oakbrook Terrace, designed by Helmut Jahn, is the tallest building in Illinois outside of Chicago. The Elmhurst Art Museum is housed in a Mies Van Der Rohe building. There is a Frank Lloyd Wright house in Elmhurst. Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, a conservative Hindu sect, has built BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Chicago, a large, intricately carved, marble temple in Bartlett. There are many Sears Catalog Homes in Downers Grove and Villa Park. The Byzantine-style clubhouse of the Medinah Country Club is also an architectural highlight of the county. Lombard is home to over thirty Lustron prefabricated steel homes.

Museums

DuPage museums include Lisle's Morton Arboretum and Lisle Station Park, Naper Settlement and the DuPage Children's Museum in Naperville, Wheaton College's Billy Graham Center and the Cantigny Estate and First Division Museum, on the former estate of Chicago Tribune magnate Robert R. McCormick, and the DuPage County Historical Museum in Wheaton, Elmhurst's Lizzadro Lapidary Museum and Elmhurst Art Museum, Oak Brook's Mayslake Peabody Estate and Graue Mill, the Elmhurst Art Museum, housed in a Mies Van Der Rohe building and Glen Ellyn's Stacy's Tavern.

Music and theater

DuPage also plays host to a rich, local music scene. Some of the better-known bands to come out of the area include: The Hush Sound; Lucky Boys Confusion; Spitalfield; Fall of Eden; Boylion and The Plain White T's.

Oakbrook Terrace's Drury Lane Theatre is an important live theatre in DuPage County. The Tivoli Theatre, one of the first theaters in the United States to be equipped with sound, is still in use in Downers Grove. In addition to showing movies, the Tivoli is home to several local performing arts groups.

Parks, trails, and golf courses

Main article: Forest Preserve District of DuPage County A woodland ecosystem in the Morton Arboretum.

37.5 sq mi (97.1 km2) of DuPage County consists of forest preserves. DuPage parks include: Lisle's Morton Arboretum; Westmont's Ty Warner Park; Lombard's Lilacia Park and Naperville's Centennial Beach.

In the 1980s, DuPage County also had another major attraction, Ebenezer Floppen Slopper's Wonderful Water slides, which today, stands abandoned and neglected.

The Illinois Prairie Path, a 116-mile (187 km) rail-to-trail multi-use path, runs through the center of DuPage County. It intersects with the Great Western Trail at several points, as well as the Fox River trail at a few points.

DuPage golf courses include: Wheaton's Chicago Golf Club and Cantigny Golf Courses; the Medinah Country Club; Glen Ellyn's Village Links and Glen Oak Country Club; Addison's Oak Meadows; Oak Brook's Oak Brook Golf Club, Butler National Golf Club, and Butterfield Country Club; Wood Dale's Maple Meadows; Westmont's Green Meadows; Wheaton's Arrowhead Golf Club; Lisle's River Bend (9 Holes); West Chicago's St. Andrews Golf & Country Club and Winfield's Klein Creek Golf Club.

Government

Presidential elections results Year Republican Democrat 2012 48.7% 193,333 49.7% 197,411 2008 43.9% 183,626 54.7% 228,698 2004 54.4% 218,902 44.8% 180,097 2000 55.2% 201,037 41.9% 152,550 1996 50.7% 164,630 40.0% 129,709 1992 48.1% 178,271 30.9% 114,564 1988 69.4% 217,907 30.0% 94,285 1984 75.7% 227,141 23.8% 71,430 1980 64.0% 182,308 24.2% 68,991 1976 68.8% 175,055 28.3% 72,137 1972 75.0% 172,341 24.8% 57,043 1968 66.6% 124,893 25.9% 48,492 1964 59.9% 98,871 40.1% 66,229 1960 69.5% 101,014 30.4% 44,263

DuPage County has long been a stronghold of the Republican Party. However, the county supported Democrat Barack Obama, a resident of Chicago, in 2008 and 2012 (albeit narrowly in 2012). Obama was the first Democratic presidential nominee to win the county since Franklin Pierce in 1852; hence, the last time before Obama that any Republican did not win the county was before the Republican Party existed.

Townships by population

DuPage County has nine townships (listed in order of population, largest to smallest):

Downers Grove Township - 148,110 York Township - 124,553 Milton Township - 118,616 Lisle Township - 117,604 Bloomingdale Township - 111,709 Addison Township - 88,900 Naperville Township - 85,736 Wayne Township - 63,776 Winfield Township - 45,155

Municipalities

Cities Aurora - lies partly in Kane, Kendall and Will counties Batavia - lies partly in Kane County Chicago - lies mostly in Cook County Darien Elmhurst - lies partly in Cook County Naperville - lies partly in Will County Oakbrook Terrace St. Charles - lies partly in Kane County Warrenville West Chicago Wheaton Wood Dale Villages Addison Bartlett - lies partly in Cook County Bensenville - a small part lies in Cook County Bloomingdale Bolingbrook - lies partly in Will County Burr Ridge - lies partly in Cook County Carol Stream Clarendon Hills Downers Grove Elk Grove Village - lies mostly in Cook County Glendale Heights Glen Ellyn Hanover Park - lies partly in Cook County Hinsdale - a small part lies in Cook County Itasca Lemont - lies partly in Cook and Will counties Lisle Lombard Oak Brook - lies partly in Cook County Roselle - lies partly in Cook County Schaumburg - lies mostly in Cook County Swift - unincorporated area; Bloomingdale Township Villa Park Wayne - lies partly in Kane County Westmont Willowbrook Winfield Woodridge - a small part lies in Cook and Will counties

Education

Colleges and universities Blanchard Hall at Wheaton College is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The College of DuPage, in Glen Ellyn, is one of the largest community colleges in the United States. Wheaton College is one of the most well-known and respected evangelical Christian colleges in the country. Benedictine University, Elmhurst College and North Central College also have long and respected histories in their communities.

Other prominent colleges and universities include: Midwestern University in Downers Grove; National University of Health Sciences and Northern Baptist Theological Seminary in Lombard; the Addison, Naperville and Oak Brook campuses of DeVry University; the Aurora campus of Robert Morris University; the Lisle campus of National–Louis University; the Naperville campuses of DePaul University and Northern Illinois University; the Wheaton campus of Illinois Institute of Technology; and the DuPage campus of Westwood College in Woodridge. Hamburger University, McDonald's global training facility, is located at its corporate headquarters in Oak Brook, on an 80-acre (32 ha) campus.

Secondary schools

Dupage County is home to many academically and athletically successful public high schools, such as:

Addison Trail High School Bartlett High School Downers Grove North High School Downers Grove South High School Fenton High School (Illinois) Glenbard East High School Glenbard North High School Glenbard South High School Glenbard West High School Hinsdale Central High School Hinsdale South High School Lake Park High School Lisle High School Metea Valley High School Naperville North High School Naperville Central High School Waubonsie Valley High School West Chicago Community High School Westmont High School Wheaton North High School Wheaton Warrenville South High School Willowbrook High School York Community High School

Additionally, DuPage County is home to several private high schools, including:

Amasa High School Benet Academy College Preparatory School of America Driscoll Catholic High School (closed 2009) Immaculate Conception High School (Elmhurst, Illinois) Islamic Foundation School Montini Catholic High School (Lombard, Illinois) St. Francis High School (Wheaton, Illinois) Timothy Christian School Wheaton Academy School districts Main article: List of school districts in DuPage County, Illinois

The DuPage County Regional Office of Education provides regulatory and compliance oversight, quality services and support, and a variety of other services and information to the public schools within the forty-two school districts of the county that provide education to over 161,000 students in 245 schools.