What is the oldest incorporated town in Lake County, IL?
Answered by Eshu Chikoti · Licensed Illinois real estate broker, RE/MAX Top Performers
Answered October 12, 2026 · Hainesville
Hainesville, a village in Avon Township, is known as the oldest incorporated community in Lake County, Illinois, and its motto is "Lake County's Oldest Village." Its incorporation papers were drafted on February 26, 1847. The village is named for Elijah M. Haines (1822 to 1889), who bought a farm there in 1836 and surveyed and platted the town in 1846. Haines was admitted to the bar in 1851, moved to Waukegan a year later, and was sent to the state legislature in 1859, where he served eight terms. Today Hainesville covers about 1.88 square miles near Grayslake, with Belvidere Road (Illinois 120) and Hainesville Road among its main streets. The 2020 census counted 3,546 residents, and the Village Hall is at 100 N Hainesville Road.
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Licensed Illinois real estate broker, RE/MAX Top Performers
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