Yorkville

Yorkville�s population has boomed in recent decades, but its most defining landmarks today would be familiar to its earliest settlers. Earl Adams built the area�s first log cabin in 1833, near the prominent hill that is the site of Kendall County�s historic courthouse, which early residents fought to rebuild after a devastating fire in 1887. Similarly, the Fox River and Blackberry Creek supported the community�s early commerce, from the sawmill John Schneider built in the 1830s to the state�s only man-made white-water course. Yorkville often fostered leaders who believed in making big contributions. Dennis Hastert, the longest-serving Republican speaker of the US House of Representatives, taught sociology, economics, and speech at Yorkville High School from 1965 to 1980. Glen D. Palmer oversaw the state�s first game farm before serving as the state�s conservation director from 1953 to 1961. Robert Mitchler, a Navy veteran who served as a state senator from 1964 to 1981, flew a large American flag day and night in his front yard off of Route 34.