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Village History

Located in the Mill Creek Valley, Lincoln Heights was the first African American self-governing community north of the Mason-Dixon Line. The development of Lincoln Heights began in 1923 when the Haley-Livingston Land Company of Chicago sold lots of land to black families in an unincorporated area called the Cincinnati Industrial Subdivision, now the southern section of Lincoln Heights.  Water and sewerage were provided by special assessment through the Works Progress Administration, there were no building and zoning code services, fires and police protection were virtually nonexistent, and street maintenance and lighting were extremely inadequate. 

In 1939, residents of the area began efforts to incorporate so they could provide safety and necessary services for their growing community.  Several of the original petitioners for incorporation lived in the Valley View subdivision, which later became the Wright Aeronautical plant, where many black migrants from the South came to help manufacture the famous B-29 bomber.  The Village of Lincoln Heights was incorporated in 1946.

Today, Lincoln Heights has a long history of prideful ownership that is passed from generation to generation designed to hold strong the family values this community was originally built on.  The community is built on wealth that cannot be measured in monetary value but rather measured by the strength of love.  The Village has created the following famous people, like; Nikki Giovanni (an infamous poet and educator), Dr. Charles Folds (singer/songwriter and Grammy Award winner), Charles Spurling (songwriter), Carl Westmoreland (a historian and a board member of the National Underground Freedom Center), Rev. Damon Lynch (board member of the National Underground Freedom Center), Hari Rhodes and Clarence Williams (actors), Mae Faggs (1952 Olympic gold medalist in track), Leslie Edwards (member of Tuskegee Airmen).

The overall goal and vision of the Village is to get it to a prosperous community for all of its residents.  Specifically, the Village is working on improving our infrastructure, education, income equality, parks and recreation, creating a safe and aesthetically pleasing environment, maintaining a financially thriving community and providing job opportunities for the whole community.