Berwyn, IL

Mud Lake once reached nearly to present-day Berwyn’s southern edge, and heavy rains regularly flooded the area. Two older routes also crossed the land: a branch of the Green Bay Trail near today’s Riverside Drive and the Ottawa Trail, later followed by a plank road and stagecoach route. Berwyn Township separated from Cicero Township in 1908 and is coterminous with the city, which had 57,250 residents in 2020. Ogden Avenue became part of Route 66 and at its peak held more than a dozen Berwyn car dealerships. The Houby Day Parade, organized in 1968 to celebrate the city’s Czech and Slovak heritage, coincides with the autumn mushroom harvest; the Cartopia art-car parade began in 2006.