About the Barrington Area

The entire 90-square-mile Barrington area is comprised of a number of lovely small villages that are spread throughout our rolling hills and picturesque countryside. We hope you have a chance to experience them all during your stay in our area! For information about the villages, see below. For information about Barrington businesses, visit our Chamber of Commerce at www.barringtonchamber.com.

VILLAGE OF BARRINGTON

The vision of the Village of Barrington is to preserve and promote its unique small town heritage, preserve its distinct ecological and historical character, provide a moral and safe environment, maintain a high quality of life through the efficient use of community resources, and respond to future challenges through citizen participation in all civic, social, and cultural endeavors.

Until 1833 and the signing of a treaty with Chief Blackhawk, this area had for centuries been home ground to tribes of Pottawatomi and Mascouten Indians. Later that year, their migration across the Mississippi River was begun in compliance with the treaty, which thereby opened up vast tracts along the Fox River to early settlers who came in 1834. In 1854, Robert C. Campbell completed a detailed plan for a village to be called Barrington Station. The 80 acres within this boundary were the nucleus of what is today called Barrington proper.

As Chicago became more prosperous, the desire for suburban living led to major population growth both in the countryside and in the Village. Many of those who came to Barrington after World War I were Chicago businessmen in search of the same rural spaciousness that had so attracted farm families of the last century. For more information, visit www.ci.barrington.il.us.

VILLAGE OF BARRINGTON HILLS

Barrington Hills is a nesting place for its 3,930 residents and a myriad of wildlife. It has always been a special place, even since the time of the Pottawatomi and Mascouten Indians. Each community and each species has nestled here amid nature’s beauty and abundant morainic resources created by Wisconsin glaciation. Today, the Village is a historical and geological continuum of a special relationship between man and nature. The Village of Barrington Hills was incorporated in 1957 and straddles approximately 30 square miles in Kane, Lake, Cook, and McHenry counties. Barrington Hills offers predominantly single-family houses situated on five-acre lots or more. For more information, visit www.barringtonhills-il.gov.

VILLAGE OF LAKE BARRINGTON

Lake Barrington is a unique countryside community that values its natural environmental features and develops its land predominantly for residential uses. When the Village of Lake Barrington was incorporated in 1959, there were fewer than 200 residents, all living on rural farms or large country estates. In nearly five decades, the population has grown to nearly 5,000, bringing changes in the character of the Village. The physical distinction of the Village is reflected in its rolling topography and open space, its proximity to the Fox River, the number of wetlands and other natural resources, and the “forested” character of the community as a whole. To maintain this unique environment, the historical development of the Village provided for the development of primarily single-family detached homes on large parcels. These conditions resulted in a development pattern that is designed in harmony with the natural landscape, protecting natural topography, vegetation, and drainage courses.

Today, as in the past, Lake Barrington maintains limited commercial and retail development. Nonetheless, the Village realizes the importance of attracting new commercial uses to supplement the municipal financial resources and to provide capital to finance the preservation of the character of the community, the retention of open spaces, and the protection of the environment. For more information, visit www.lakebarrington.org.

VILLAGE OF NORTH BARRINGTON

The Village of North Barrington was incorporated in 1959. Its origins parallel settlement of the Barrington area as a whole, beginning in the mid-19th century. The Barrington Area Historical Society has documented the first house in the North Barrington area as being built during the period of 1857–75. The original subdivision of the Honey Lake area occurred in 1926; it was called Biltmore Country Estates Unit 1 and included the Biltmore Country Club.

The village today consists of over 1,100 homes, two country clubs, and approximately 3,000 residents on 2,950 acres. All of North Barrington is in Lake County and most in Cuba Township. The new Village Hall was constructed in 1992. The Village of North Barrington’s vision statement reads, “We will work together in North Barrington to promote a safe, attractive place for residents to live; where growth, development and environmental protection are managed to provide and preserve a unique community and family oriented lifestyle in a countryside atmosphere.” For more information, go to www.northbarrington.org.

VILLAGE OF SOUTH BARRINGTON

The Village of South Barrington was incorporated in December 1959 and lies in the southeastern portion of Barrington Township and a small portion of western Palatine Township.

The first Village President was Fred Kramer. The South Barrington police department was formed from a base of volunteers and part-time officers in 1964. In 1968, the Village’s first full-time police officer, Peter Swistowicz, was hired. Today, the Village has a Police Chief and over 20 sworn police officers (full and part-time). The South Barrington Village Hall was dedicated on January 29, 1984. At the time of the 2000 census, there were 3,760 people living in the Village. Today, South Barrington has 34 subdivisions, the Millrose Restaurant & Brewery, the AMC 30 Theater complex, the Brass Restaurant, Allstate Insurance Company, South Barrington Executive Center, South Barrington Office Center, and several other small offices located within the Village boundaries. For more information, go to www.southbarrington.org.

VILLAGE OF TOWER LAKES

The Village of Tower Lakes, incorporated in 1966, is located in the southwest corner of Lake County. The population is just over 1,350. Originally developed in the 1920s as a recreational summer-home community, the village is centered around two scenic private lakes and totals over 85 acres. Although all the homes are now year-round, the lakes and heavily wooded rolling hills continue to attract recreation-oriented and nature-loving residents. The Village occupies approximately 1.1 square miles and presently contains just over 430 single-family homes and no commercial business buildings, schools, churches or post office. The Village is within the award-winning Barrington Community Unit School District 220. Student test scores regularly rank near the top nationally, and over 90% of the graduating seniors go on to attend college. Residents commute to jobs in nearby suburbs as well as in Chicago. For more information, go to www.villageoftowerlakes.com.

VILLAGE OF DEER PARK

The Village of Deer Park was incorporated in 1957. The Village is located in both Lake and Cook Counties, east of the Village of Barrington and south of the Village of Lake Zurich, just 37 miles northwest of Chicago. In 1973 the population of the Village was 830. By 2000, the population had increased to 3,002. Lake County was established in 1839, and it consists of 460-plus square miles. The majority of the Village is in Ela Township, and a small portion in the far northwest corner is in Cuba Township. The purpose of the original Village was to maintain control over local zoning and land use for the area east of the Village of Barrington. The zoning of the Village is largely one-acre residential, but some land along the perimeter is zoned for business, office, and research. The vision of the Village is “To protect and maintain the health and safety of our residents, provide for the orderly development of the land within our boundaries, and to preserve green space for ourselves and posterity.” For more information, go to www.village.deer-park.il.us.

VILLAGE OF PORT BARRINGTON

The Village of Port Barrington originated as the Village of Fox River Valley Gardens (incorporated in 1969) with its name change occurring in January of 2003. Village boundaries fall in both Lake and McHenry Counties and four townships: Cuba, Wauconda, Algonquin, and Nunda. Port Barrington is bordered on the west by the Fox River and includes a series of man-made waterways known as the Nielsen Channels, which are noted as one of the best fishing spots in the entire Chain-O-Lakes region. Also included within its boundaries are several high-quality wetland areas and the Fox River Preserve of the Lake County Forest Preserves. Port Barrington remains a small community with a low-density population in a rural setting, with hiking and snowmobile trails and several boat launches and marinas. The Village’s goals are to maintain the rural and country atmosphere of Port Barrington, to achieve a healthful and peaceful relationship between human activity and the natural environment, and to maintain the unique qualities which are characteristic of a recreation-oriented, residential community. For more information, go to www.portbarrington.net.

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