Located on the North Shore of Lake Michigan, Evanston is a municipality in Cook County, Illinois, USA. It is a suburb of Chicago, positioned 12 miles (19 km) north of Downtown Chicago. Evanston shares borders with Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, Wilmette to the north, and Lake Michigan to the east. As of 2020, the population of Evanston was recorded as 78,110.

Tinkertoys were first invented in Evanston, and this city is also among those that lay claim to the creation of the ice cream sundae. The Clayton Mark and Company, based in Evanston, provided a significant number of employment opportunities for a long time.

Based on the 2021 census gazetteer files, Evanston spans across a land area of 7.80 square miles, with 7.78 square miles (or 99.72%) being land and 0.02 square miles (or 0.28%) being water.

According to the 2020 census, the city had a population of 78,110 individuals, with 27,918 households and 15,184 families. The population density was 10,012.82 people per square mile (3,865.97/km2). The city had 34,462 housing units, with an average density of 4,417.64 units per square mile (1,705.66/km2).

In 2012, around 12.3% of the businesses in Evanston were owned by black individuals, while in 2017, approximately 24% of the employer firms in the city were owned by women.

Attractions worth visiting include the Frances Willard House, the Free School of Evanston, the Grosse Point Lighthouse, the Ladd Arboretum, Mount Trashmore, Northwestern University, and the North Shore Channel Trail.

Evanston boasts numerous shopping districts, including Downtown, Central Street, Dempster Street, Main Street, Howard Street, Chicago Avenue, and Noyes, where the first Marshall Field’s and Sears stores in the suburbs were once located.

Established in 1873, the Evanston Public Library currently operates a satellite branch located at the Robert Crown Community Center. Heather Norborg holds the position of Interim Library Director.

During the 2020 presidential race, Joe Biden, a Democratic candidate, garnered 90% of the voter support, whereas Donald Trump, a Republican candidate, only secured 7%.

Established in 1855, Evanston is the residence of Northwestern University. Situated by Lake Michigan, Northwestern’s grounds cover an area of 240 acres, housing approximately 250 structures. Since 1908, both the Kellogg School of Management and Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary (founded in 1853) have been located on the same campus as Northwestern.

There are several publications in Evanston, including The Daily Northwestern, which is the student newspaper for Northwestern University. Additionally, there is The Evanstonian, the student newspaper for Evanston Township High School. For subscription-based news, residents can rely on The Evanston Review, which is a weekly newspaper that is part of Pioneer Press. The Evanston RoundTable is a free online news site, while The Evanston Sentinel is a free weekly newspaper that caters to the African-American community. Lastly, there is Evanston Now, an online newspaper and community website.

According to IMDb, the film script of The Princess Bride indicates that the boy and his grandfather reside in Evanston. Mandy Patinkin also confirmed this during an interview discussing the making of the movie. William Goldman, the author of the story, was born in Chicago and spent his childhood in Highland Park, which is slightly over ten miles away from Evanston.

Evanston remains connected to Chicago via rail transportation. The Purple Line, part of the Chicago ‘L’ system operated by CTA, passes through the city. Starting from its originating point at Howard in Chicago, the line travels north, stopping at various stations including South Boulevard, Main, Dempster, Davis, Foster, Noyes, and Central, before reaching its final destination at the Linden station in Wilmette. Additionally, Evanston is also served by Metra’s Union Pacific North Line, with stations located at Main Street, Davis Street, and Central Street, conveniently situated near Purple Line stations. The CTA’s Yellow Line traverses through Evanston, although it does not make any stops within the city. Furthermore, Evanston benefits from the availability of six CTA bus routes and four Pace bus routes for convenient local transportation.

Evanston is home to two hospitals: Evanston Hospital, which is a part of NorthShore University HealthSystem, and Ascension Saint Francis Hospital Evanston, which is affiliated with Ascension.

Prominent individuals include Edmund Phelps, a professor and recipient of the Nobel Prize in economics, as well as Dale T. Mortensen, a Nobel Prize laureate in economics who is part of the faculty at Northwestern University. Additionally, there are notable figures from the entertainment industry, such as actor and comedian Bill Murray, renowned actor Marlon Brando, and actor John Cusack. Moreover, John Dickson is recognized as a poet and writer of short stories.