The U.S. Census Bureau last week released estimates from its American Community Survey, which provides detailed statistics for 2007 to 2011 on everything from housing to employment to marital status in communities throughout the country.
Patch sites along the North Shore broke down the data for their communities. You can check out the individual stories by clicking on the links at the bottom of the page.
We also compiled some interesting data in the table below to show how the communities compared to each other demographically, as well as how they compare to the state as a whole. The Census Bureau's data is available here.
In general, the New Trier Township communities topped the charts for wealth, home value and level of education, though, interestingly, Glencoe had the second highest poverty level along the North Shore. Those communities also had the longest travel time to work, but perhaps that's because many residents take advantage of public transportation to get to the office.
Do you see anything that surprises you? Let us know in the comments section.
| Data | Top Community | Second Community | Third Community | All of IL |
| Median household income | Kenilworth: $242,188 | Winnetka: $208,750 | Deerfield: $192,394 | $56,575 |
| Families below poverty line | Evanston: 5.5% | Glencoe: 4.7% | Lake Bluff: 3.5% | 9.6% |
| Median home value (owner occupied only) | Kenilworth: more than $1 million | Winnetka: $992,800 | Glencoe: $971,100 | $198,500 |
| Median age |
Northbrook: |
Lake Forest: 45.8 | Glenview: 45 | 36.4 |
| Families that are married | Kenilworth: 83.1% | Winnetka: 76% | Lake Bluff: 75.1% | 49% |
| Families with children | Kenilworth: 51.6% | Winnetka: 51.1% | Deerfield: 43.1% | 30.8% |
| Graduate degree | Glencoe: 52.8% | Winnetka: 47.8% | Kenilworth: 46.4% | 11.6% |
| Mean travel time to work (in minutes) | Glencoe: 35.1 | Kenilworth: 34.5 | Winnetka: 33.4 | 28.1 |
| Drove alone to work | Glenview: 74.3% | Northbrook: 73.7% | Deerfield: 72.1% | 73.4% |
| Took public transportation | Kenilworth: 34.3% | Winnetka: 25.5% | Glencoe: 22.6% | 8.8% |
| Work from home | Glencoe: 13.1% | Highland Park: 11.3% | Lake Forest: 10.4% | 4% |
To see the individual stories on each Patch site, click on the links below: