Illinois’ North Shore

The North Shore refers to the suburbs which are north of Chicago along the lakefront. The area includes many of the most affluent communities in the Midwest and in the United States. The North Shore Community received a great deal of exposure in the 1980s as the setting of many teen movies. Many of these classic cult films were directed writer/director John Hughes. The North Shore is also a noteworthy community because it is one of the few remaining agglomerations of streetcar suburbs in the United States.

There are a few inland suburbs — e.g., Glenview, Skokie, Northbrook and Northfield — also considered by some to be part of the North Shore. This is because of their contiguity and affluence.

These suburbs are also home to various regional shopping destinations, including Westfield Old Orchard, the Glen Town Center and Northbrook Court shopping malls. However, most locals insist that the North Shore comprises only the older suburbs (fully or substantially developed before World War II and certainly prior to the 1963 demise of the North Shore rail line) directly adjacent to the lake, not the younger (mostly developed after World War II), inland suburbs.

The North Shore is also the home of the Ravinia Festival, a world-class outdoor music theater. The Green Bay Trail, an award-winning pedestrian and bicycle path, begins in Wilmette and runs north just to the east of the Chicago Botanic Garden and past the front gate of Ravinia Festival park all the way up to Illinois Beach State Park in Zion, alongside Metra’s Union Pacific North Line railroad tracks.