Aurora history

Aurora is probably most recognized by contemporary society as the homestead of the wacky Wayne's World characters in the popular early-1990s comedy, which stemmed from a Saturday Night Live skit with Mike Myers and Dana Carvey. But, as you may have guessed, there's more to Aurora than a goofy movie. it's actually one of the most sought-after communities west of Chicago.

Aurora got its start in 1834 when Samuel and Joseph McCarty, brothers from New York, chose to build a mill at a bend in the Fox River. It was a prime site for settlement because the river served as both a power source and a means of transportation for the area. The growing colony was incorporated a decade later in 1845, as other mills and factories sprung up along the waterway. At the same time, a separate settlement formed on the opposite side of the river, but by 1857 the two were combined, creating a single community. Unfortunately, the union wasn't as simple as building a quick bridge and calling it a day. In the following year there was constant jockeying for municipal power as both sides vied to establish themselves as the central core. So it was finally determined the town hall and other official offices would be situated on an island in the middle of the river, which still remains Aurora's city center to this day.

After the marriage of the river's two sides, Aurora quickly developed into a bustling manufacturing town that provided, among other things, building materials for that little boomtown directly to the east (Chicago). Construction and repair shops for the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad were also located in Aurora beginning in the mid-1850s, and they became the largest employer in the city. In the following decades, Aurora attracted thousands of European immigrants who crossed the Atlantic in search of jobs and to escape the war-torn continent. The new wave of residents joined the ranks of blue-collar workers who thrived in Aurora's deep-seated industrial hotbed.

Aurora remained a manufacturing mecca until the 1980s, when many of the town's plants closed down. Aurora was forced to think creatively and to find another economy on which the city could operate. As result, downtown Aurora was redeveloped and populated and business parks and new residential communities were built to attract new residents to the area. The town also added riverboat casinos to boost city revenues, which have become some of Aurora's most popular tourist attractions.

Now, Aurora is one of the more diverse communities located outside of Chicago. It has attracted thousands of Mexican-American immigrants over the past couple of decades, and the town has experienced steady growth since the 1990s. The one thing that Aurora grapples with is its identity in relation to Chicago ... Some call it a Chicago suburb, but most Aurora residents will tell you Aurora is an independent city, distinct from Chicago.