Sycamore

History

The first European settlers to the Sycamore-area arrived in 1835 and concentrated themselves mostly north of the Kishwaukee River (the name of which means sycamore) and the present site of Sycamore. The original town was platted by a New Yorker named Christian Sharer. A mill was constructed and the Kishwaukee dammed but the town failed. By 1837, after some controversy, the location of county seat was settled in favor of Orange, Sycamore's original name, and the settlement moved to the present-day site of the city. The present-day town site was platted by James Waterman and Evans Wharry in 1837 (the same year Chicago was founded). The first settler at the new site was Carlos Lattin, who preceded the town, having arrived in 1835. after the DeKalb County court intervened. When court convened the sheriff served a court order declaring Sycamore had built a Courthouse and that the Court session should be held there. In 1903, as the county prepared to construct a new courthouse, the debate over county seat was reignited. This time, it was the city of DeKalb that sought to wrest the title of county seat away from Sycamore. Two of DeKalb's most prominent citizens, Jacob Haish and Isaac L. Ellwood, each promised to donate $20,000 to help absorb some of the new building's cost. The city of Sycamore responded, raising funds of their own, and after some back and forth and legal wrangling, the issue was settled in Sycamore's favor. However, in April 2016, McCullough's conviction was overturned and he was released from prison after a post-conviction review of the evidence indicated that he could not have committed the crime. On the morning of February 10, 2010 at 3:59 a.m., Sycamore was near the epicenter of an earthquake. The shock had a moment magnitude of 3.8 and a maximum…

Geography

Sycamore is located along Illinois Route 64 (State Street in Sycamore) about southeast of Rockford and west-northwest of Chicago. It is along the south bank of the East Branch of the South Branch Kishwaukee River in DeKalb County. The terrain in Sycamore and the surrounding area is gently rolling and contains rich soil which was originally heavily forested. The commercial district of Sycamore is based on Illinois Route 64, and stretches about a mile down starting from the intersection of route 64 with Illinois Route 23 and ending at Center Cross Road. The district is composed of two-story shops, a bank, small movie theater, and former Midwest Museum of Natural History. The town also has the county courthouse, built in 1904, of limestone.

Most-observed species

• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  3,977
• Red-winged Blackbird

  Agelaius phoeniceus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  3,773
• Canada Goose (canadensis Group)

  Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  3,324
• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  3,225
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  3,185
• American Goldfinch

  Spinus tristis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  3,118
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  2,944
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  2,885

Most recent

• M 3.1 — 2024-07-15
  2 km WNW of Somonauk, Illinois
• M 3.6 — 2023-11-15
  1 km SSW of Standard, Illinois
• M 2.9 — 2015-03-25
  3 km WNW of Lake in the Hills, Illinois
• M 3.2 — 2013-11-04
  1 km SSW of Lyons, Illinois
• M 2.6 — 2013-06-10
  4 km NNE of Virgil, Illinois
• M 3.8 — 2010-02-10
  2 km NW of Lily Lake, Illinois