The small village of Broadview, IL, is located 12 miles west of bustling Chicago.
It is home to approximately 8,000 people and has a long and interesting history.
Though the population has grown over the years, the village encompasses just 1.
3 miles of land.
Residents span many age groups and income levels and nearly one-third of households include children under age 18.
A combination of residential and commercial structures makes this a pleasant place to live or work.
Proviso Township Early Cook County, Illinois, history reveals a table of land called Proviso Township, located near the Des Plaines River.
It contained 36 sections, three of which eventually formed the village.
Aaron Parsell was the first township settler, building a home on section 29 of the territory in 1832.
The township was a beautiful area characterized by massive elm trees surrounding a small lake frequented by birds and ducks.
What is now the village was located near the edge of the lake, which was filled with fish.
A strip of forestland running through Proviso Township served as hunting grounds for several Native American tribes.
Early settlers and the native inhabitants had very few skirmishes and a small Pottawatomie settlement resided in the area until 1900.
As more settlers arrived where the village would later be located, the swamp and lake were partially drained so the land could be used for crops.
Formal village development began in June 1835 with the purchase of 80 acres of land by Frederick Bronson.
The Village Forms Most of the early village settlers were German, a famer with the last name Muir being one of the first.
Other farmers arrived during the following decades but by 1893, a real estate firm came in and began clearing the land for subdivision.
However, this had little impact other than a few homes, leaving the majority of the area as farmland.
By the turn of the century, the community was still small, containing a settlement of only about 20 homes.
There were no building restrictions in what was commonly called "80 Acres.
" The area was not incorporated until December 1914 when it became the Village of Broadview, named for the Illinois Central Railroad Depot.
Today, Broadview has a small town feeling, despite its more than 2,000 residential homes, nearly 100 commercial businesses, and approximately 150 industrial establishments.
Shopping centers, restaurants, and sporting venues are only minutes away.
The Roosevelt School stands on the former site of the one-room schoolhouse that once held town meetings.