museum
Field Museum of Natural History
Home to Sue, the largest and most complete T. rex ever found, along with extensive anthropological and geological collections.
24 km · about 25 min drive
North AmericaUnited StatesIllinois
Blue Island
Illinois, United States · North America
About Blue Island
Blue Island works well as a base: 5 minutes from Morgan Park, 25km from Route 66 - Chicago Start.
Blue Island is in Illinois, United States, with about 24,000 people. You drive on the right here. The nearest town is Morgan Park, about 4 km away.
Blue Island is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States, 16 miles (26 km) south of Chicago's Loop. Blue Island is adjacent to the city of Chicago and shares its northern boundary with that city's Morgan Park neighborhood. The population was 22,558 at the 2020 United States census.
Blue Island was established inRead more
the 1830s as a way station for settlers traveling on the Vincennes Trace, and the settlement prospered because it was conveniently situated a day's journey outside of Chicago. In 1884, Alfred T. Andreas observed, "The location of Blue Island Village is a beautiful one. Nowhere about Chicago is there to be found a more pleasant and desirable resident locality."
Since its founding, the city has been an important commercial center in the south Cook County region, although its position in that respect has been eclipsed in recent years as other significant population centers developed around it and the region's commercial resources became spread over a wider area. In addition to its broad long-standing industrial base, the city enjoyed notable growth in the 1840s during the construction of the feeder canal (now the Calumet Sag Channel) for the Illinois and Michigan Canal and as the center of a large brick-making industry beginning in the 1850s, which eventually gave Blue Island the status of brick-making capital of the world. Beginning in 1883, Blue Island was also host to the car shops of the Rock Island Railroad. Blue Island was home to several breweries, who used the east side of the hill to store their product before the advent of refrigeration, until the Eighteenth Amendment made these breweries illegal in 1919. A large regional hospital and two major clinics are also located in the city.
Although initially settled by "Yankee" stock, Blue Island has been the point of entry for many of America's immigrants, beginning in the 1840s with the arrival of a large German population that remained a prominent part of the city's ethnic makeup for many years. By 1850, half of Blue Island's population was either foreign-born or the children of foreign-born residents. Later, significant groups came from Italy, Poland, Sweden and Mexico.
The city is one of eleven incorporated areas in Illinois to have been designated by the White House as a "Preserve America" community.
Where to Stay in Blue Island
Compare prices across Booking.com, Airbnb, Expedia, and more. Select your dates to see availability.
Filter presets
Pick your must-haves once: provider links open pre-filtered. Each filter lists which sites it applies to.
Compare before you book!
Prices can vary significantly between platforms. We recommend checking at least 2-3 sites to find the best deal for your stay in Blue Island.
Explore the Area
Discover famous landmarks, scenic roads, and more near Blue Island.
Loading map...
Frequently Asked Questions
What is there to see near Blue Island?
Within an hour or so of Blue Island: Field Museum of Natural History (24 km), Shedd Aquarium (24 km), Willis Tower (Sears Tower) (25 km), Route 66 - Chicago Start (25 km).
Are there any good drives near Blue Island?
The nearest famous roads are Route 66 - Chicago Start.
Where is Blue Island?
Blue Island is in Illinois, United States, about 4 km from Morgan Park.
Road trip
Drive to Blue Island
Add it as a stop and the planner works out the driving, the nights and what's worth seeing on the way.
Start planningWhat's nearby?
Swipe through places to go
Places within a drive of Blue Island. Keep the ones you like and add them to your trip.
Explore now
Quick Information
- Population
- 23,652
- Continent
- North America
- Country
- United States
- Region
- Illinois
- Timezone
- America/Chicago
- Coordinates
- 41.6573, -87.6800
Emergency & Services
Essential numbers in United States
AAA roadside assistance: 1-800-222-4357. Right turn on red is legal in most states unless signed otherwise.
Full driving guide for United StatesTags
Worth the detour from Blue Island
6 notable places within an hour's drive.
landmark
Shedd Aquarium
Iconic Chicago aquarium on the Lake Michigan waterfront housing over 32,000 animals from around the world.
24 km · about 30 min drive
landmark
Willis Tower (Sears Tower)
Iconic 110-storey Chicago skyscraper with a glass-floored Skydeck, once the tallest building in the world.
25 km · about 30 min drive
historic highway
Route 66 - Chicago Start
The 'Begin Route 66' sign on Adams Street at Michigan Avenue marks the start of the 2,448-mile Mother Road to Santa Monica: the classic photo stop before heading west.
25 km · about 30 min drive
museum
Art Institute of Chicago
One of the oldest and largest art museums in the US, renowned for its Impressionist collection and Grant Wood's American Gothic.
25 km · about 30 min drive
cafe
Lou Mitchell's
Serving double-yolk eggs and free Milk Duds since 1923, this Chicago diner beside the start of Route 66 is the traditional first breakfast of the Mother Road journey.
25 km · about 30 min drive
Driving roads near Blue Island
- 25 kmRoute 66 - Chicago StartThe 'Begin Route 66' sign on Adams Street at Michigan Avenue marks the start of the 2,448-mile Mother Road to Santa Monica: the classic photo stop before heading west.
Nearby Destinations
Other places to explore near Blue Island.
Plan a trip around Blue Island
Your trip starts here
Plan a road trip from Blue Island.
Pick the days, drop in the stops, and share it with whoever's coming.