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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives wish to congratulate the Village of Harwood
4Heights on the occasion of its 75th anniversary; and
 
5    WHEREAS, In the 19th century, Israel Smith was the first
6settler who made his home in the area of what would become
7Harwood Heights; he left Chicago, traveling west to the first
8high point he encountered and purchased the land there; his
9family followed, purchasing land along the ridge that is now
10known as Smith's Ridge; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Harwood Heights was incorporated years later in
12the autumn of 1947; the village was awarded an official
13charter on March 4, 1948, and the origins of its name remain a
14mystery to this day; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Herbert Huening, the man who made the
16incorporation of Harwood Heights possible, was elected the
17village's first mayor after its incorporation; and
 
18    WHEREAS, In the 1950s, Harwood Heights expanded south of
19Lawrence and annexed additional areas east of Harlem that
20remained, stretching to Narragansett; due to the village's
21rapid growth during this time, the Union Ridge School added

 

 

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1new classrooms and a lunchroom, and the first church in the
2Village was constructed; and
 
3    WHEREAS, In 1958, the citizens of both Harwood Heights and
4Norridge took a vote to create a high school district and build
5a school, resulting in Ridgewood High School, which opened its
6doors two years later; and
 
7    WHEREAS, In 1963, Harwood Heights reached new heights with
8the building of Parkway Towers, the first high rise apartment
9buildings in the Northwest suburbs; and
 
10    WHEREAS, In 1964, Harwood Heights' Village Hall relocated
11from the basement of then-Mayor Huening's home to the current
12Village Hall on Wilson Avenue; and
 
13    WHEREAS, In 1968, the beginning steps of a fundraising
14drive were taken to open the area's first library, resulting
15in the Dwight D. Eisenhower Library, which moved from the
16ground floor of Parkway Towers to Olcott Avenue to its current
17residence on Oketo Avenue; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Harwood Heights has had nine residents serve as
19mayor since its incorporation, with Mayor Arlene Jezierny
20currently serving in the role, having served as mayor since
212009; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Harwood Heights is a thriving community in the
2Northwest suburbs that possesses a rich history, culture, and
3amenities; therefore, be it
 
4    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
5HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
6we congratulate the Village of Harwood Heights and the Board
7of Trustees on the village's 75 years of incorporation, and we
8wish the village continued success in the years to come; and be
9it further
 
10    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
11presented to Harwood Heights Mayor Arlene Jezierny to
12commemorate this significant anniversary.