Some Interesting Aspects of the Skokie Boundary in 1983
Some Interesting Aspects of the Skokie Boundary in 1983
In discussing the geographic growth of Skokie, we have already noted some points of unusual interest. Although the streets of Skokie are laid out on north-south and east-west section and fractional section lines with the consequence that the boundaries for the most part follow middle of street right-of-ways (the long eastern boundary being a significant exception), it is by no means the case that one may traverse the boundary of Skokie closely by walking on streets alone.
One especially interesting feature of Skokie's geography has been discussed -- the "hockey stick" configuration of the southwest part. The western line of the one foot wide strip running approximately one quarter mile down from the Teletype property to the Ionia block is on the central line of Central Avenue, 5600 west, which does not happen to exist at this point. Three or four industries in Niles are separated from the back yards of houses on Dowagiac in Chicago by two fences, about one foot apart. As for the block of Ionia, it is only the northern side of the last (most westerly) block of that street that belongs to Skokie: the border runs around these houses and up the alley in back of then. The dozen or so resident families of this block are on Chicago water and have a Chicago P.O. address (60646, Edgebrook). Otherwise they are serviced by Skokie.
Another feature already mentioned is the fact that due to the curious "double" annexation of a portion of the western arm, the border of Skokie runs up the east side of the railroad tracks next to Lehigh until approximately Mulford, then crosses to the middle of Lehigh. Zoning maps are themselves unclear on this point until about 1968 or 1969. (The matter may be still unclear, since if the 1928 annexation was valid except for the Schnur land, then the line should still cross the tracks at Howard.)
Since streets did not exist in many cases when the borders were fixed, some properties are bisected by the border line. The north-south border runs just to the west of the principal Teletype building. The big company parking lot to the west is in Niles. Also, the north-south border runs north from Mulford along Long Ave. to Main Street, but Long Avenue does not go all the way through. It stops at Madison Avenue, with the consequence that the border runs through the residences at 5560 Madison Avenue and 5561 Washington Avenue. Also, the properties of the four houses on the east side of Gross Point just south of Main are bisected by that line. These six properties pay divided taxes: a portion to Skokie, and a portion to Morton Grove.
From Dempster to Old Orchard Road the border runs north up Linder, but Linder stops at Foster. The rest of this north-south border runs through forest preserve, and the half mile between Golf and Old Orchard is unusually dense -- one can follow the border here only with the aid of a compass, since frequently one can see no more than forty or fifty feet ahead, when the trees are in foliage.
The long northern border, running from Greeley Avenue in Evanston, 4200 West, to 5600 West (north-south Central) is the line of the east-west Central Avenue, but only three blocks of this, from Lavergne to LaCrosse, is actually a street. The same border bisects the Westmoreland Golf Course, the northern two thirds of which lies in Wilmette, the southern third in Skokie. It is doubtful that many golfers there realize they are playing partly in Skokie -- though the treasurer of the club is doubtless well aware of the fact.
On the eastern side, the presence of the canal within the Skokie border presents the interesting possibility that boaters may some day have direct access to Lake Michigan from Skokie. A developer has already proposed building a marina along the banks of the canal with some 400 boat slips. This would necessitate some dredging and having the lock which holds out the lake water moved from its present location in Wilmette to a Skokie location down around Howard. The water in the canal would thus rise some 2 1/2 feet to the lake level.
Those who do walk portions of the border of Skokie may eventually find themselves on Lamon, going from Pratt up to Touhy. They may be confused to see Pohatan Park, in the Skokie Park District, to the east of the Skokie border just south of Estes. The Park itself actually lies in Lincolnwood. The Skokie Park District is not co-terminous with the Village boundary. There are many places where this is so, but the presence of Pohatan Park in Lincolnwood is the only visual reminder of the fact. The rectangle ceded to Evanston on May 16, 1928 remains in the Skokie Park District. A large triangle east of Lehigh, south of Oakton, and west of the one foot wide strip of the hockey stick is in the Skokie Park District, but within the Village of Niles. A significant portion of the northwest part of Skokie is not within the Skokie Park District. But no parks other than Pohatan are situated outside the Village boundary.