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Despite being named after the Algonquian word for skunk, Chicago is one of America’s most thriving and spectacular cities. Spanning 22 miles along the southwest shore of Lake Michigan, the city itself holds nearly 2.9 million people and sits in the center of a metropolitan area containing more than 8 million.
Looking at the image, some of Chicago’s famous sites can be made out. The long black line coming into the center of the city from the southwest is the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. In the center of the city, just right of where the canal banks north to become the Chicago River, sits a small pier on Lake Michigan, perpendicular to the city, known as Meigs Field. Just to the left of the pier is Soldier Field. Scanning north of Meigs Field, another pier juts out onto the lake. This is Navy Pier. Though it cannot be made out in the image, the Water Tower District and the John Hancock Building sit between Navy Pier and the Chicago River. South of this area is downtown Chicago and the Sears Tower.
This simulated-color scene was acquired by the Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper plus (ETM+) on September 14, 2001.
  

”The purpose of NASA's Earth Observatory is to provide a freely-accessible publication on the Internet where the public can obtain new satellite imagery and scientific information about our home planet. The focus is on Earth's climate and environmental change. In particular, we hope our site is useful to public media and educators. Any and all materials published on the Earth Observatory are freely available for re-publication or re-use, except where copyright is indicated. We ask that NASA's Earth Observatory be given credit for its original materials.”
Buffalo Grove Pride Parade Buffalo Grove Illinois 6-2-19_0987
Picture of the Buffalo Grove post office building
Photo by NASA/USGS Landsat 7
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North AmericaUnited StatesIllinois

Buffalo Grove

Illinois, United States · North America

About Buffalo Grove

Buffalo Grove sits on the route: 10 minutes from Long Grove, 41km from Route 66 - Chicago Start.

Buffalo Grove is in Illinois, United States, with about 41,000 people. You drive on the right here. The nearest town is Long Grove, about 4 km away.

Buffalo Grove is a village in Lake and Cook Counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. A suburb of Chicago, it lies about 30 miles (50 km) northwest of Downtown Chicago and 20 miles (32 km) north of O'Hare International Airport. As of the 2020 Census, Buffalo Grove has a population of 43,212. It totals 9.6 square miles

Read more (25 km2) of land, with the northern three-quarters in Lake County and the southern quarter in Cook County. Roads in the village, such as Lake Cook Road and Illinois Route 83, converge on I-294. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. Before European colonization, Native American Potawatomi tribes inhabited the present area. The name "Buffalo Grove" comes from the English translation of the Potawatomi name for Buffalo Creek, which flows through some of the village. Initial Homesteaders sold their land to agricultural Catholic German immigrants, who established St. Mary's Church and a school. The area remained small and rural in character until housing developers began building single-family houses after the Korean War. After being incorporated in 1958, Buffalo Grove experienced a population boom for the rest of the 20th century. The village hosted a 50th Anniversary Celebration in 2008. The village features dozens of recreational facilities, parks, and festivals, including a months-long Farmers' market, two golf courses, and the popular "Buffalo Grove Days". Buffalo Grove has an elected council-manager government with home rule status. The local government's public works department is nationally accredited. Economically, residents work in health care, education, and professional services, while businesses in the village employ 20,000 daytime workers in 10 million square feet of commercial and industrial space. The population of the village has been stagnant since the early 2000s.

Read more on Wikipedia

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is there to see near Buffalo Grove?

Within an hour or so of Buffalo Grove: Willis Tower (Sears Tower) (40 km), Lou Mitchell's (40 km), Route 66 - Chicago Start (41 km), Art Institute of Chicago (41 km).

Are there any good drives near Buffalo Grove?

The nearest famous roads are Route 66 - Chicago Start.

Where is Buffalo Grove?

Buffalo Grove is in Illinois, United States, about 4 km from Long Grove.

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Quick Information

Population
41,496
Continent
North America
Country
United States
Region
Illinois
Timezone
America/Chicago
Coordinates
42.1514, -87.9598

Emergency & Services

Essential numbers in United States

Police
911
Ambulance
911
Fire
911
Driving side
right

AAA roadside assistance: 1-800-222-4357. Right turn on red is legal in most states unless signed otherwise.

Full driving guide for United States

Tags

North AmericaUnited StatesIllinoisTown

Worth the detour from Buffalo Grove

6 notable places within an hour's drive.

landmark

Willis Tower (Sears Tower)

Iconic 110-storey Chicago skyscraper with a glass-floored Skydeck, once the tallest building in the world.

40 km · about 45 min drive

cafe

Lou Mitchell's

Serving double-yolk eggs and free Milk Duds since 1923, this Chicago diner beside the start of Route 66 is the traditional first breakfast of the Mother Road journey.

40 km · about 45 min drive

66 US ROUTE

historic highway

Route 66 - Chicago Start

The 'Begin Route 66' sign on Adams Street at Michigan Avenue marks the start of the 2,448-mile Mother Road to Santa Monica: the classic photo stop before heading west.

41 km · about 45 min drive

museum

Art Institute of Chicago

One of the oldest and largest art museums in the US, renowned for its Impressionist collection and Grant Wood's American Gothic.

41 km · about 45 min drive

museum

Field Museum of Natural History

Home to Sue, the largest and most complete T. rex ever found, along with extensive anthropological and geological collections.

43 km · about 50 min drive

landmark

Shedd Aquarium

Iconic Chicago aquarium on the Lake Michigan waterfront housing over 32,000 animals from around the world.

43 km · about 50 min drive

Driving roads near Buffalo Grove

  • 41 kmRoute 66 - Chicago StartThe 'Begin Route 66' sign on Adams Street at Michigan Avenue marks the start of the 2,448-mile Mother Road to Santa Monica: the classic photo stop before heading west.

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Data sources:GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)•Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA)•Mapbox•Photography: George Lawrence