W1: Mark Foulkes & Ronald Silkaitis W2: Jayme Muenz & Ryan Bongard W3: Bob Gehm & Vicki Spellman W4: David Pietryla & Bryan Wirball W5: Ed Bessner & Steve Weber
St. Charles or Saint Charles is a city[9] in Kane and DuPage Counties, Illinois, United States. The population was 33,081 at the 2020 census,[7] and was estimated at 33,482 in 2024.[8] It lies roughly 35 miles west of Chicago on Illinois Route 64. The official city slogan is "Pride of the Fox", after the Fox River that runs through the center of town. St. Charles is part of a tri-city area along with Geneva and Batavia, all western Chicago suburbs of similar size and socioeconomic condition.
St. Charles was the location of the Native American community for the chief of the Pottawatomie that inhabited the area. A city park overlooking the river was dedicated to the Native Americans.[10] After the Black Hawk War in 1832, the entire area of the Fox Valley was opened to American settlement. Evan Shelby and William Franklin staked the first claim in what is now St. Charles in 1833. They came back in 1834 with their families from Indiana and were joined by over a dozen other families later that year. The township was initially known as Charleston, but this name was already taken by the downstate city of Charleston, Illinois, so the name of St. Charles (suggested by S. S. Jones, a lawyer) was adopted in 1839.[11] St. Charles became incorporated as a city February 9, 1839, and reincorporated October 17, 1874 (under the 1870 Illinois Constitution).[12]
Underground Railroad
Widespread claims of slavery-eraUnderground Railroad stations operating in St. Charles homes, complete with tunnels and false doorways, have not been historically substantiated. Even so, an active abolitionist group was operating in St. Charles around this time, called the Kane County Anti-Slavery Society. The Society was founded in 1842 and had about 180 members at its peak. The most plausible[why?] connection to the Underground Railroad in the town is the Wheeler House, built in St. Charles in 1837.[13]
Transportation history
St. Charles was very isolated early in its existence. The village was located three days away from Chicago, and the Fox River was not navigable for large boats. By the 1850s, St. Charles had begun construction of a plank road to Sycamore but turned down an offer by the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad to construct a line through the town, which was eventually built in nearby Elgin. Lack of regional connections in the early years kept the town relatively small. St. Charles was without a railroad until 1871 when a branch line from Geneva was constructed, and was without a direct connection to Chicago until the 1880s with the coming of the Chicago Great Western Railway.[citation needed]
Streetcar lines along the Fox River between Elgin and Aurora were built through the city in 1896, operated by the Aurora, Elgin and Fox River Electric company. A direct automobile route to Chicago, which eventually became Route 64 (Main Street), was constructed in 1920. Four Illinois state routes including Routes 64, 38 (Lincoln Highway), 25 (5th Avenue), and 31 (2nd Street) now run through the city. Two major Kane County roads also cut through the city; Randall Road on the west side and Kirk Road on the east side.[citation needed]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 15.058 square miles (39.00km2), of which 14.462 square miles (37.46km2) is land and 0.596 square miles (1.54km2) (3.96%) is water.[5]
The Fox River runs through downtown.[15]Pottawatomie Park, which sits on the river, is the largest park in St. Charles and a popular destination for both tourists and tri-city area citizens.[16]
According to realtor website Zillow, the average price of a home as of October 31, 2025, in St. Charles is $451,481.[18]
As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 13,169 estimated households in St. Charles with an average of 2.46 persons per household. The city has a median household income of $115,350. Approximately 3.9% of the city's population lives at or below the poverty line. St. Charles has an estimated 67.0% employment rate, with 51.2% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 94.7% holding a high school diploma.[19] There were 13,780 housing units at an average density of 0.0 per square mile (0.0/km2).
The top five reported languages (people were allowed to report up to two languages, thus the figures will generally add to more than 100%) were English (83.3%), Spanish (8.2%), Indo-European (6.6%), Asian and Pacific Islander (1.9%), and Other (0.1%).
The median age in the city was 41.6 years.
St. Charles, Illinois – racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
As of the 2020 census, there were 33,081 people, 13,264 households, and 8,843 families residing in the city.[25] The population density was 2,297.13 inhabitants per square mile (886.9/km2). There were 13,809 housing units at an average density of 958.89 per square mile (370.2/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 81.17% White, 1.75% African American, 0.39% Native American, 4.43% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 4.56% from some other races and 7.68% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 11.26% of the population.[26]
There were 12,342 households, out of which 32.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.82% were married couples living together, 10.45% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.97% were non-families. 23.46% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.55% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.11 and the average family size was 2.60.
The city's age distribution consisted of 21.5% under the age of 18, 10.1% from 18 to 24, 22.7% from 25 to 44, 29.6% from 45 to 64, and 16.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $102,414, and the median income for a family was $124,032. Males had a median income of $70,051 versus $36,012 for females. The per capita income for the city was $50,467. About 1.8% of families and 3.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.9% of those under age 18 and 4.2% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
Top employers
According to the city's 2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report,[27] the largest employers in the city are:
Piano-making was a major industry in St. Charles in the first three decades of the 20th century. The arrival of the Chicago Great Western Railway enabled The Cable Co., one of the country's largest producers of pianos and reed organs, to build a factory on 11 acres (4.5 hectares) of land at 410 South 1st Street in 1901.[28]
Employing up to 500 workers:
"[The piano factory] gave St. Charles an international flavor. Ivory for piano keys came from India and Africa. Wool for the hammers came from Australia. Rich wood veneers were imported from Mexico, South America and the gold coast of Africa. In return, Cable distributed its pianos all over the world and had dealers in Spain, Italy, British East Africa, Japan, Australia, and other key foreign places."[28]
On January7, 1937(89 years ago)(1937-01-07), the St. Charles factory closed,[28] having been sold to the W.H. Howell company, which made furniture there until 1980.[29] The building reopened in May 1986 as the indoor Piano Factory Outlet Mall, whose outlet stores included Corning, American Tourister, Carter's, Pfalzgraff, and Anchor Hocking.[29] It was foreclosed and closed in 1997.[29][30] The building was razed in September 2000 to make way for a residential development; the site is now occupied by condominiums and mixed-use buildings.[29]
Arts and culture
Baker Memorial Park, northwest corner of Illinois Route 64 at Illinois Route 25, downtown St Charles Illinois (April 2010)Downtown St. Charles facing east, showing Hotel Baker on the left with an American flag flying
Kane County fair grounds on Randall Road is the home of the Kane County Fair in July, the Kane County Flea Market the first Sunday and preceding Saturday of every month. The annual Dragon Boat festival and family event during the second weekend of June are held in Potawatomi Park. Lincoln Park, in downtown St. Charles, serves as the central location for the Scarecrow Festival in October. St. Charles is home to the Fox Valley Concert Band.
St. Charles is home to the Arcada theatre, a notable attraction within the Fox River valley, where many famous performers have appeared including Martin Short, Joan Rivers, and Paul Anka. The Steel Beam Theatre, the Vero Voce Theater & School of Performing Arts, and Kane Repertory Theatre are theaters in the city. Historic Hotel Baker opened in 1928 and is a symbolic representation of the rich history of downtown St. Charles.[citation needed]
Downtown St. Charles was named one of the region's "Top 10" by the Chicago Tribune for fine dining, arts and entertainment, recreational opportunities, unique shopping, and a lively nighttime personality.[31] The St. Charles History Museum maintains a small museum of community artifacts in a historic former Texaco service station that was originally built in 1928 on Main Street.[citation needed]
The St. Charles Public Library is nationally ranked[32] among the best libraries in the U.S. and has earned a "three star" rating in the 2010 Library Journal Index.[33] Located near downtown St. Charles, the library has a large collection of print materials, as well as DVDs, CDs, downloadable content, online research databases, and a genealogy collection.
St. Charles is home to the Q Center, a 95-acre (38ha) conference site. Originally built as a Catholic Women's Liberal Arts College, St. Dominic College, it later became Arthur Andersen's Center for Professional Education. It is now used by Accenture and hosts meetings, conferences and executive learning for Fortune 500 companies, associations and social, military, education, religious, and fraternal organizations from all over the world.[34]
The Illinois Youth Center St. Charles (IYC St. Charles), a juvenile correctional facility of the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice, is in St. Charles. It opened in December 1904.[36]
Transportation
Pace provides bus service on Routes 801 and 802 connecting St. Charles to Elgin, Aurora, and other destinations.[37] The Chicago & North Western Railway had a branch line to St. Charles. It diverged from the main line at Geneva and closed in 1951. The Chicago Great Western line ran directly through St. Charles and had commuter service until 1906.
Education
The public education system in St. Charles is operated by the Community Unit School District 303, which has thirteen elementary schools: Anderson, Bell-Graham, Corron, Davis, Ferson Creek, Fox Ridge, Lincoln, Munhall, Norton Creek, Wasco, Wild Rose and also including Davis Primary (K-2), and Richmond Intermediate (3–5), two split elementary schools.[38] There are two middle schools: Thompson and Wredling; and two high schools: St. Charles East High School, and St. Charles North High School. The Glenwood School for Boys and Girls has a campus in St. Charles known as the Rathje Campus named for the Frank C. Rathje family. St. Patrick Catholic School opened its doors in 1930 and previously served about 500 students at the downtown campus. Saint Patrick Catholic school's downtown campus is now a preschool. The school opened another location off Randall Road which serves over 500 students. St. Charles is part of Community College District 509 which is served by Elgin Community College.
Notable people
Edward J. Baker, wealthy benefactor; provided the funding for several buildings in St. Charles
Robert F. Casey, Illinois state legislator and lawyer, practiced law in St. Charles[39]
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