Historical Facts & Development Of Aurora

Aurora was originally home to Potawatomi Native Americans. In 1834, Joseph and Samuel McCarty build a sawmill near the Fox River site, on an island at a bend in the river that was later to become a spot for the location of several landmark buildings.

The two separate settlements on both sides of the river got merged in 1857 to form the town of Aurora. In time the city developed as a manufacturing town with textiles, heavy machinery, foundries, and machine shops that brought an influx of tourists from several European countries.

With the extension of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad line came more employment for the migrant dwellers. Aurora remained a proactive development oriented town from the start by building schools, electric street lights and manufacturing powerhouses that paved the city’s growth.

Aurora responded to modernization by welcoming a riverboat casino to its downtown, developing the area around the casino, developing nearby residential communities and has presently created multiple business parks on the outer skirts of the city. Today, Aurora enjoys a resurgence as commerce continues to expand in the area.