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Lemont is a village in Cook County, Illinois, USA. The population was 13,098 at the 2000 census.
History
The village of Lemont began during the planning and construction of the Illinois and Michigan Canal (I&M Canal), in the mid 1800s. The location of the town of Lemont is just west of the originally planned location of a town on the I&M Canal to be called "Athens". The town of Athens was never built, due to the proximity of the village of Lemont. The town provided support services for construction of the canal, providing housing as well as a red light district known as "Smokey Row". Many of the original buildings of this era still exist in the downtown area. The historic central business district, adjacent to the I&M Canal, contains numerous examples of architectural styles of the mid 1800's. Many of these buildings are constructed of locally quarried limestone, which at the time of mining was termed "Athens Marble". One famous historic structure which is constructed of this material is the Chicago Water Tower (the only structure to survive the Great Chicago Fire).
The I&M Canal was used until the early 1900's. It was succeeded as a major conduit for shipment of cargo by the parallel Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. The Sanitary and Ship Canal, which is presently in use, is the sole water connection between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River.
Lemont is home to the Argonne National Laboratory, Cog Hill Golf Club (home of the PGA Tour Western Open) and the Hindu Temple of Greater Chicago.
Lemont was featured in the movie Save the Last Dance starring Julia Stiles. The first five minutes of the movie take place in various areas of Lemont. Lemont High School was depicted as Johnson's white Midwestern high school. Portions of the front of the high school were shown along with the main staircase inside the school. A Lemont home and flower shop were also featured in the beginning of the film.
Geography
Lemont is located at (41.668784, -87.988845).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 17.6 km² (6.8 mi²). 16.7 km² (6.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.9 km² (0.3 mi²) of it (5.15%) is water.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 13,098 people, 4,420 households, and 3,407 families residing in the village. The population density was 784.1/km² (2,029.9/mi²). There were 4,553 housing units at an average density of 272.5/km² (705.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the village was 97.40% White, 0.31% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.82% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.66% from other races, and 0.64% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.00% of the population.
There were 4,420 households out of which 39.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.4% were married couples living together, 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.9% were non-families. 19.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.85 and the average family size was 3.32.
In the village the population was spread out with 27.7% under the age of 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 90.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.4 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $70,563, and the median income for a family was $80,558. Males had a median income of $52,464 versus $37,314 for females. The per capita income for the village was $28,354. About 1.7% of families and 3.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.4% of those under age 18 and 11.5% of those age 65 or over.
External links
"Lemont, Illinois"