Batavia_web

Batavia, Illinois, a suburb of Chica- go, was founded in 1833 and is the oldest city in Kane County. Original- ly called “Big Woods” for the wild growth throughout the settlement, the town was renamed by a local judge and former Congressman, Isaac Wilson, in 1840, after his former home of Batavia, New York. The city was officially incorporated in 1872. During the latter part of the 19th century, Batavia was home to six American-style windmill manufactur- ing companies, and became known as “The Windmill City.” Many of the original limestone buildings that were part of these factories are still in use today as government facilities and private commercial offices and storefronts. Batavia was also a major manufacturer of the Conestoga wag- ons used in the country’s westward expansion. In 1936, the Campana Company built the historic Campana Factory to manufacture cosmetics, most notably Italian Balm, the nation’s best-selling hand lotion at the time. In 1966, the United States De- partment of Energy established the Fermi National Laboratory, known as Fermilab, just outside Batavia. Since BATAVIA, ILLINOIS WHERE TRADITION AND VISION MEET Batavia, Illinois