McCook, Illinois

McCook station was an Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway station in McCook, Illinois. The station was next to the McCook Junction, where BNSF and Indiana Harbor Belt/CSXT tracks interchange. The station closed in 1971 when Amtrak took over United States passenger rail, although freight service still runs on the double-tracked line. This station was in operation until 1982 when it was closed along with GM Yard in Willow Springs, and the employees of both stations were laid off unless they could bump elsewhere.

Lyons is a village in Lyons Township, Cook County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 10,817. The Chicago Portage National Historic Site is located in Lyons.

Salt Creek is a 43.4-mile-long (69.8 km) stream in northeastern Illinois. It is an important tributary of the Des Plaines River, part of the Illinois River and ultimately the Mississippi River watersheds. It rises in northwest Cook County at Wilke Marsh in Palatine and flows in a meandering course generally southward through DuPage County, returning to central Cook County and emptying into the Des Plaines River in Riverside, Illinois. Most of the creek's watershed is urbanized, densely populated and flood-prone. Flood control dams were constructed along the creek in 1978 within the Ned Brown Forest Preserve near Elk Grove Village, Illinois, creating the 590-acre (2.4 km2) Busse Lake. A diversion tunnel was constructed approximately 1.6 miles (2.6 km) north of the confluence with the Des Plaines River, at a point where the two streams are separated by only 1,600 feet (490 m). Tributary streams include Addison Creek. The Graue Mill historic gristmill stands on the bank of the creek in Oak Brook. It was originally known to European settlers as the Little Des Plaines River but was given the name Salt Creek in the mid-nineteenth century after a large wagonload of salt spilled in the waterway. Some of the species of fish in the creek include carp, smallmouth bass, northern pike, bluegill/sunfish minnow/shad, and bullhead catfish.

Summit is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 11,161 at the 2020 census. The name Summit, in use since 1836, refers to the highest point on the Chicago Portage between the northeast-flowing Chicago River and the southwest-flowing Des Plaines River located just north of the village. Argo is a subdivision annexed by Summit in 1911 when it was new. Named for the nearby cornstarch and baking powder manufacturing plant, it developed separately from the older part of the village. The name "Argo" is still widely used but is not part of the name of the village itself.

The Avery Coonley House, also known as the Coonley House or Coonley Estate was designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Constructed 1908–12, this is a residential estate of several buildings built on the banks of the Des Plaines River in Riverside, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. It is itself a National Historic Landmark and is included in another National Historic Landmark, the Riverside Historic District.

Hofmann Tower is the name of a tower in Lyons, Illinois. It was built in 1908 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 22, 1978. Hofmann Tower is featured prominently in two books written by Rose Marie Benedetti and Virginia C. Bulat entitled Lyons: A history of a village and area important for 300 years (1959) and Portage, pioneers, and pubs: A history of Lyons, Illinois (1963).George Hofmann, Jr., a local brewer built a dam on the Des Plaines River to generate electricity. He also built the adjacent tower as part of a park that attracted visitors to picnic and ride boats.In the 1970s, Rose Marie Benedetti and Maureen S. Kiener worked closely with the preservation efforts of the Village of Lyons Historical Commission to have Hofmann Tower designated a village and state landmark and placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Hollywood is one of three stations on Metra's BNSF Line in Brookfield, Illinois. The station is 11.7 miles (18.8 km) from Union Station, the east end of the line. In Metra's zone-based fare system, Hollywood is in zone C. As of 2018, Hollywood is the 181st busiest of Metra's 236 non-downtown stations, with an average of 120 weekday boardings. An unstaffed shelter is on the north side of the three tracks. Hollywood station is the main stop for the Brookfield Zoo. It was originally built in 1893 when Samuel Eberly Gross, a Chicago lawyer, began selling building lots platted from farms and woodlands he had acquired along both sides of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad line. He did the same thing with the current Brookfield station in 1889, and the former West Grossdale station in 1895. All three developments built by Gross voted to be incorporated into the Village of Grossdale. After Gross divorced his first wife, married a teenager, filed for bankruptcy and moved to Michigan, the residents voted to change the name of the village to Brookfield as well as two of the stations in 1905. Hollywood station, however, kept its original name.

Brookfield is one of three stations on Metra's BNSF Line in Brookfield, Illinois. The station is 12.3 miles (19.8 km) from Union Station, the east end of the line. In Metra's zone-based fare system, Brookfield is in zone C. As of 2018, Brookfield is the 93rd busiest of Metra's 236 non-downtown stations, with an average of 546 weekday boardings. A staffed station is on the south side of the three tracks.

The Chicago Portage National Historic Site is a National Historic Site commemorating the importance of the Chicago Portage in Lyons, Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is located in Chicago Portage Forest Preserve and the Ottawa Trail Woods Forest Preserve, at the junction of Portage Creek with the Des Plaines River, on the west side of Harlem Avenue on the line of 48th Street. Preserved within the park is the western end of the historic portage linking the Chicago River to the Des Plaines River, thereby linking the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River. A memorial depicting the portage of French explorers is located at the parking area. A trail leads from the memorial down into the portage wilderness area. The site commemorates the Chicago Portage, first written about by French explorers Father Marquette and Louis Joliet during their use of the portage and exploration of the area between Lake Michigan and the Mississippi River. The portage crossed what was known as Mud Lake, which could be wet, swampy, frozen, or dry, depending on the season, and which has since been obliterated. Mud Lake extended roughly from the historic western end of the South Branch of the Chicago River (near today's Damen Avenue) to the Des Plaines River at the present National Historic Site. These explorers understood the importance of the easiest crossing of the continental divide between the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean watersheds. The site, which was designated January 3, 1952 as an affiliated area of the National Park Service, is owned and administered by the Forest Preserve District of Cook County. Visitor access is via Harlem Avenue, just north of Interstate 55. The site contains the parking area, a memorial statue, interpretive signs, and trails. Activities here are hiking and canoeing, and the Friends of the Chicago Portage sponsors guided walks.

Summit is an Amtrak and Metra train station in Summit, Illinois. It is served by Amtrak Illinois' Lincoln Service, which operates daily, and Metra's Heritage Corridor commuter line, which operates only during morning and evening rush hours in peak direction. Amtrak's Texas Eagle trains also use these tracks but do not stop. It is 11.9 miles (19.2 km) away from Union Station, the northern terminus of the line. In Metra's zone-based fare system, Summit is in zone C. Summit is also the closest Metra (and Amtrak) station to Midway Airport. Summit is the only Metra station that is served by more Amtrak trains (four trains per direction throughout the day) than by Metra trains (three inbound morning and three outbound evening rush hour trains). This was also a stop for the Ann Rutledge until April 2007. The eastbound Lincoln Service only stops at Summit to discharge passengers, while the westbound train stops to discharge and receive passengers. As of 2018, Summit is the 187th busiest of Metra's 236 non-downtown stations, with an average of 101 weekday boardings.

Brookfield (formerly Grossdale) is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, located 13 miles (21 km) west of downtown Chicago. Per the 2020 census, the population was 19,476. The city is home to the Brookfield Zoo.

Riverside Brookfield High School (RBHS) is a secondary school located directly between Riverside, Illinois, and Brookfield, Illinois, which educates grades 9-12. It serves the towns of Riverside, North Riverside, Broadview, and parts of LaGrange Park and Brookfield. Its campus is adjacent to Brookfield Zoo. The mascot of Riverside Brookfield (RB) is Rouser the Bulldog. Riverside Brookfield Township High School District 208 recently passed a $58 million referendum, resulting in renovations to the school building, including a new swimming pool, athletics stadium, and classrooms completed in the spring of 2010.