With the Cities and Villages Act of 1872, Illinois provided a general incorporation law that allowed municipalities to come into being without special legislation. A steady stream of incorporations followed as growing settlements from Braidwood to Park Ridge to Woodstock sought a greater degree of local self-government; these were among eight new incorporations in the metropolitan area in 1873. There were few new incorporations during the Great Depression, but the pace picked up after World War II. Fourteen new municipalities incorporated in 1959 and fourteen more in 1960 as people in newly settled areas well outside Chicago began to demand urban services. While many of these places continued themselves to grow by annexation, the rate of new incorporations slowed considerably after the 1960s. Just seven new municipalities came into being during the 1990s.

Creator: State of Illinois
Source: Newberry Library (K 2896.4812)