Elgin (Illinois)
Kane County Cook County
17-23074
Elgin is a city with 94 487 inhabitants ( 2000) in Illinois. It is located 57 km northwest of the city of Chicago, 59 miles north-west of the city of Joliet, 52 miles south-west of the city of Waukegan, 72 kilometers of the city of Kenosha and 72 km south-east of the city of Rockford in the Chicago metropolitan area and is part of the Kane County and Cook County.
After a land donation in 1864, the Elgin National Watch Company in 1866 opened its first watch factory here. By 1964, a majority of the watches produced in the U.S. was here, with a total of around 60 million units manufactured. The Elgin National Watch Company was one of the first companies which manufactured watches as a commodity.
Gallery
Residential building in Victorian style
Pocket Watch Elgin National Watch Company from 1911
Historical Museum in Elgin (Illinois )
Memorable people
- Dan Andriano, Rock Musician
- Bruce Boxleitner, actor
- Peter Fitzgerald, former Republican Senator
- Kevin Martin, singer and musician
- Donella Meadows, environmental scientist and author
- Bobby Rose Garden, jazz drummer and studio musician