A village about 14 miles west of Chicago, with a busy downtown on La Grange Road, a historic district of late-1800s homes and two Metra stations.
01 — At a Glance
LaGrange is a village about 14 miles west of Chicago. The 2020 census counted 16,321 residents, and the village covers about 2.5 square miles. It incorporated on June 11, 1879. Metra BNSF trains stop at two stations in town, LaGrange Road and Stone Avenue, and Amtrak also stops at LaGrange Road. The Village of La Grange Historic District has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1979.
Source: Village of La Grange: Community Profile · Wikipedia: La Grange, Illinois
02 — History
LaGrange was planned on purpose. A Chicago grocer bought farmland beside the railroad, planted trees, gave land for churches and schools, and named the place after the Tennessee town where he grew up. Here are a few chapters from the years that followed.
1830s
Land grants drew settlers west of Chicago in the 1830s. Joseph Vial, Thomas Covell and Robert Leitch were among the first to claim land here, and Leitch built his cabin at what’s now the southeast corner of Ogden Avenue and Peck.
Source: La Grange Area Historical Society · La Grange Area Historical Society: History
1870
Franklin D. Cossitt, a Connecticut native who ran a wholesale grocery business in Chicago, bought land from Leitch in 1870. He laid out streets, planted trees, and donated land for churches and schools.
Source: La Grange Area Historical Society · Wikipedia: La Grange, Illinois
1874
Samuel Vial built his house in 1874 after he retired from farming. It still stands at La Grange Road and 47th Street, and today it’s the historical society’s museum and research center.
1879
The village incorporated on June 11, 1879. The local post office had been called Kensington, but another Illinois town already had that name, so Cossitt named the village after La Grange, Tennessee, where he grew up. Kensington Avenue kept the old name.
Source: Village of La Grange: Why La Grange? · Wikipedia: La Grange, Illinois
1947
The La Grange Chamber of Commerce staged the first Pet Parade in 1947, and the annual parade still steps off downtown with pets, floats and costumed families.
Source: La Grange Pet Parade · Desplaines Valley News
1979
The homes in the older parts of the village date from the late 1800s to the early 1900s. In 1979 the Village of La Grange Historic District was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.
About 14,000 years ago, the land under LaGrange sat on the western shore of Lake Chicago, the glacial lake that came before Lake Michigan. Bluff Avenue, on the east side of the village, follows that old shoreline.
Settlers came in the 1830s on land grants. Samuel Vial received his in 1834, and Robert Leitch built his cabin near what’s now Ogden Avenue. The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad gave the area its first rail link to Chicago in 1864, and the stop was a milk stop called Hazel Glen.
Franklin D. Cossitt bought Leitch’s land in 1870 and set out to build an ideal suburban village. He laid out streets, planted trees, donated land for churches and schools, and built homes for sale. His investment in the Fifth Avenue station, now LaGrange Road, helped the town grow. The village grew from just over 500 residents to nearly 4,000 in the 1880s and 1890s, and by 1890 it was one of the largest towns between Chicago and Aurora.
Some downtown buildings date from the 1890s, when shops and businesses began to flourish around the station. For many years downtown LaGrange was one of the busiest shopping areas outside the Chicago Loop, and Village Hall still anchors it today.
Residents formed the La Grange Area Historical Society at the public library in 1972. The village’s historic district joined the National Register in 1979, and it includes more than 1,000 buildings, a few of them designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.
Source: La Grange Area Historical Society · Village of La Grange: Historic District · Village of La Grange: Historic Downtown · Wikipedia: La Grange, Illinois
03 — Shopping & Dining
Downtown LaGrange runs along La Grange Road and the side streets around the tracks, with Calendar Avenue and Burlington Avenue a block off the main drag. The West End, out by the Stone Avenue station, has its own cluster of shops along Hillgrove.
Seasonal New American
A rotating menu built around seasonal ingredients, with a rooftop dining space in the heart of downtown. It also hosts private celebrations.
14 W. Calendar Ave., La Grange, IL 60525
Visit WebsiteSeasonal & sustainable
A menu rooted in seasonality and sustainability, built with local farms. Prasino serves breakfast, lunch and dinner.
93 S. La Grange Rd., La Grange, IL 60525
Visit WebsiteContemporary Indian
Scratch-made Indian cooking with bold, layered flavors, from a family of restaurants founded by Vikram, Agnes and Chef Manmohan Singh.
9 S. La Grange Rd., La Grange, IL 60525
Visit WebsiteGreek, cooked over live fire
The name means “mother,” and the recipes come from family tradition. Charcoal and wood fires give the Greek menu its smoky depth, and there are plenty of vegetarian dishes.
88 S. La Grange Rd., La Grange, IL 60525
Visit WebsiteModern barbecue
Q-BBQ fired up its first pit right here in LaGrange in 2009, after its founders traveled the country learning from pitmasters.
70 S. La Grange Rd., La Grange, IL 60525
Visit WebsiteSushi & Japanese
The chef heads to the Chicago fish market at 5 a.m. to get first pick of the day’s fish. Watch for seasonal omakase dinners.
120 B W. Calendar Ave., La Grange, IL 60525
Visit WebsiteOlive oils & balsamic vinegars
More than 60 flavors of artisan olive oils and balsamic vinegars, available for tasting right on La Grange Road.
77 S. La Grange Rd., La Grange, IL 60525
Visit WebsiteCurated menswear since 2022
A carefully edited mix of menswear brands, with a golf shop and gifts, on Hillgrove Avenue.
703 W. Hillgrove Ave., La Grange, IL 60525
Visit WebsitePlants, florals & design
Plants, succulents, dried botanicals and containers, plus design consultations and classes.
126 W. Calendar Ave., La Grange, IL 60525
Visit Website04 — Education
LaGrange is split between two elementary districts. Roughly speaking, the north side attends La Grange School District 102 and the south side attends La Grange School District 105, and a small corner in the southwest is in LaGrange Highlands District 106. Lyons Township High School serves the whole village.
Boundaries follow the address. Confirm school assignment for each address with the district before you buy.
Search HomesPublic · K–8
Serves parts of LaGrange, La Grange Park and Brookfield, and is the largest feeder district for Lyons Township High School.
Public · K–8
Serves the south side of the village, with Seventh Avenue and Spring Avenue schools and Gurrie Middle School.
Public · Grades 9–12
LT’s North Campus is on Brainard Avenue in LaGrange, and its South Campus is in Western Springs.
Independent · Catholic
The parish was founded in 1890, and the Sisters of St. Joseph came within ten years to start its school. About 490 students attend today.
Independent · Catholic
A Catholic school on West 55th Street for more than 50 years, with a dual language immersion program in the early grades.
Community Learning
Storytimes, tech help, teen and tween programs, and a One Book, One Community read. It’s open seven days a week for most of the year.
05 — Lifestyle
Spring kicks off with the Pet Parade, Thursdays bring the farmers market, and the West End fills up for its art festival in September. Here’s where people spend their time, from the parks to the movie house to the trains into Chicago.
Thirteen acres on Ogden Avenue with a splash pad, a skate spot, a walking path, fitness stations, softball and soccer fields.
Park DetailsTwenty-three acres on East 48th Street, with four baseball fields, lighted tennis and sand volleyball courts, soccer fields and an activity building.
Park DetailsThe park district’s home base on East Avenue, with an indoor playground, a walking track, three full-size basketball courts and a dance studio.
Facility DetailsPets, floats and costumed families march through downtown in this annual parade, a LaGrange tradition since 1947.
Event DetailsAn annual juried art festival near the Stone Avenue station, with artists from across the country, live demonstrations, acoustic music and food. Admission is free.
Event DetailsThe La Grange Business Association’s weekly market fills downtown on Thursdays in season, with produce, baked goods and local vendors around Village Hall. Check the market page for the current season’s dates.
Market DetailsBaseball, softball, T-ball and a Challenger Division for kids 4 and up, with a spring season from April to June and a Championship Saturday to finish.
League WebsiteA community soccer club founded in 2008, with a Juniors program, travel teams and its most competitive FIRST XI pathway.
Club WebsiteCamps, leagues, clinics, gymnastics and martial arts, plus a travel basketball program for boys and girls in grades 3 through 8.
Program DetailsA fully restored movie theatre downtown, with heated recliners and DTS:X sound.
Theatre WebsiteClasses and workshops for adults and young artists in watercolor, acrylic, oil and drawing, plus exhibitions, on Calendar Avenue.
Art League WebsiteThe museum in the 1874 Vial House has rotating exhibits and a well-known costume collection. Its property files can help you learn the history of your own house.
Plan a VisitBNSF Line trains stop downtown at 25 W. Burlington Road, in fare zone 3. Amtrak and Pace buses connect here too.
Station DetailsThe West End stop at 701 W. Burlington Avenue, also in fare zone 3, with more than 500 parking spaces.
Station DetailsThe line runs between Chicago Union Station and Aurora, with both LaGrange stations along the way.
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