Crystal Lake is a city located in southeastern McHenry County in northeastern Illinois. It is named after Crystal Lake, a 230 acre (93 ha) lake 1.6 miles (2.6 km) west-southwest of downtown. Crystal Lake is also a suburb of the city of Chicago. The population was 38,000 at the 2000 census, but as of 2008 the population is at 51,231. Crystal Lake is the biggest city in McHenry county.
The City of Crystal Lake traces its origin to two separate comm...
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Crystal Lake is a city located in southeastern McHenry County in northeastern Illinois. It is named after Crystal Lake, a 230 acre (93 ha) lake 1.6 miles (2.6 km) west-southwest of downtown. Crystal Lake is also a suburb of the city of Chicago. The population was 38,000 at the 2000 census, but as of 2008 the population is at 51,231. Crystal Lake is the biggest city in McHenry county.
The City of Crystal Lake traces its origin to two separate communities which were established in the 1800s. Those communities were generally known as Nunda and Crystal Lake. In 1835, Ziba S. Beardsley had come to the shores of the lake and commented that the “waters were as clear as crystal”, thereby giving the lake its name. Ziba Beardsley continued south to Naperville. In February 1836, the first white settlers, Beman and Polly Crandall and six of their ten children, came from New York State traveling to Crystal Lake in a covered wagon. Their original cabin was built in the vicinity of today's...
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