Lansing, Illinois

The first family to settle in Lansing was that of August Hildebrandt in 1843. Henry, George, and John Lansing settled the area in 1846, which was incorporated in 1893. Early settlement in the village was primarily by Dutch and German immigrants. Industrial development of the surrounding Calumet region attracted immigrants from Ireland and Eastern Europe to the village in the 20th century. These settlement patterns are reflected in Lansing's current demographics; according to the census^[3] the top five ancestries that were in Lansing in 2000 were German (17%), Polish (13%), Irish (13%), Dutch (11%), and Italian (7%). However, according to City-data.com 2016 estimates, these ancestries began to change in the mid-90s and early 2000s, when most residents were of African American ancestry (8,871), followed by Latinos (4,183), and Asian (Southeast Asian) (255).^[4]

Lansing is 6.9 miles (11.1 km) south of the Chicago city limits at 138th Street, and 25.6 miles (41.2 km) from the Chicago Loop.

According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Lansing has a total area of 7.52 square miles (19.48 km²), of which 7.46 square miles (19.32 km²) (or 99.24%) is land and 0.06 square miles (0.16 km²) (or 0.76%) is water.^[5] Lansing sits on the Calumet Shoreline, an ancient shoreline of Lake Michigan.

As of the 2020 census^[10] there were 29,076 people, 10,741 households, and 6,818 families residing in the village. The population density was 3,867.00 inhabitants per square mile (1,493.06/km²). There were 12,053 housing units at an average density of 1,603.01 per square mile (618.93/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 46.62% African American, 32.17% White, 0.72% Native American, 0.93% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 10.67% from other races, and 8.88% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 20.61% of the population.

There were 10,741 households, out of which 31.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.18% were married couples living together, 22.04% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.52% were non-families. 31.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.87% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.23 and the average family size was 2.56.

The village's age distribution consisted of 24.2% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 24.8% from 25 to 44, 26.6% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 77.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 73.6 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $57,659, and the median income for a family was $70,775. Males had a median income of $47,236 versus $31,684 for females. The per capita income for the village was $28,708. About 12.4% of families and 16.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.8% of those under age 18 and 5.3% of those age 65 or over.

The current mayor of Lansing is Patty Eidam, while the board of trustees is composed of Saad Abbasy, Maureen Grady-Perovich, Brian Hardy, Micaela Smith, Leo Valencia, and Jerry Zeldenrust. Vivian Payne is the Village Clerk.^[11]

Lansing is represented in the United States Congress by Representative Robin Kelly, of Illinois's 2nd congressional district, as well as Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth in the United States Senate.

• College
  • Visible Music College Chicago Branch
• Public high schools
  • Thornton Fractional South
• Private high schools
  • American School of Correspondence
• Public primary and middle schools
  • Memorial Junior High School
  • Nathan Hale Elementary School
  • Heritage Middle School
  • Oak Glen Elementary School
  • Reavis Elementary School
  • Coolidge Elementary School
• Private primary and middle schools
  • Saint Ann Elementary School
  • Lansing Christian School^[12]
  • Saint John Lutheran School
  • Eagle Academy^[13]

Pace provides bus service connecting Lansing to destinations across the Southland.^[14]

• Bill W. Balthis (1936–2016), Illinois state representative, mayor of Lansing, and businessman^[15]
• Tom Gorzelanny, pitcher for the Milwaukee Brewers, spent part of his childhood in Lansing^{[citation needed]}
• Curtis Granderson, outfielder for the New York Mets, graduated from Thornton Fractional South High School
• Nnamdi Ogbonnaya, Musician
• Harry Smith, former co-anchor for CBS' The Early Show and the host of A&E's Biography series
• Pierre Thomas, running back for the New Orleans Saints, graduated from Thornton Fractional South High School
• Jack E. Walker, Illinois politician, practiced law in Lansing.^[16]

• Lansing Municipal Airport
• North Creek Woods

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lansing, Illinois.

• Village of Lansing official website