West Chicago is the first Illinois community created by the coming of the railroads - however, a few settlers owned property in the area of present-day West Chicago as early as the late 1830’s.  As a protection against claim-jumpers, and to settle their open disputes, three settlers here-Edward S. Winslow, William Blackman and William R. Currier-were among the 91 signers to an agreement made on February 6, 1836 to defend each other’s claims. Known as the Big Woods Claim Society, it was the first such organization in DuPage County.  Both the Currier property and the Winslow Property are located along what became Geneva Road.  Winslow’s home was built before 1842 and no longer exists.

The roadway, now known as Washington Street or Geneva road was surveyed as a public highway on November 19-20, 1845, four years before the arrival of the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad.  Geneva Road’s western terminus was with the pioneer state road, now Illinois Route 38 that was first surveyed in 1836.  Geneva Road ran east to Stacy’s Corners (originally known as Fish’s Corner’s) where it joined with the St. Charles Road (surveyed in 1843) that continued into Chicago.  It is conjectured that a local road existed between State Road and the Corners before Geneva Road was officially surveyed in 1843.

Geneva Road was a busy highway connecting the wagon traffic coming from the southern Fox Valley communities (all established in the late 1830’s) to Fish’s Corners (later known as Stacy’s Corners and today known as Glen Ellyn) to connect to St. Charles Road, coming from the north and going into Chicago.  All of the roadways were more than busy.  St. Charles road traffic (at Stacy’s Tavern) was so dense, children found it hazardous to cross the road. Geneva Road is the site of the earliest settlement of what was to become West Chicago.  It was from this intersection of Geneva Road and the track of the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad that present day West Chicago took shape.