DeKalb, IL

DeKalb is a northern Illinois city and the home of Northern Illinois University, which gives the town much of its student energy and regional importance. It began as Huntley's Grove before being platted in the 1850s, and it is also tied to Joseph Glidden and the history of barbed wire. Downtown, campus life, and the annual Corn Fest help define the local rhythm. DeKalb feels like a practical college town surrounded by flat farm country west of the Chicago suburbs.