Illinois cities and towns

The man who just bought Michael Jordan's Highland Park Mansion a month or so back says that he's not personally moving into the former Jordan estate, but instead is going to open it up as a timeshare for anyone (with some money) who's always wanted to stay where Michael Jordan once lived.

The gang at HGTV know a thing or two about great places to live, so they decided to name the top 50 most charming small towns in America, giving some recognition to one small town in each state. If you've spent any amount of time in Illinois, you might think Galena would be their choice...but it's not.

You want old-world town names that we pronounce much differently than the original town was pronounced? Check. How about Native American names that can easily and frequently mispronounced? Check. Illinois has a tongue-twisting city or town name for everyone.

Everybody on Earth knows what city holds the title of being Illinois' largest, but I'm guessing not too many can name our state's smallest town. Now you'll be able to.

Time to start guessing. Not one person I asked to guess which suburb we're talking about got the answer right this morning, so let's see if you can do better. Name that burb!

You know what they say: One man's boring place is another man's...uh...hmm...not boring place...? Okay, so no one actually says that. There's no doubt that Illinois does have some really exciting and interesting places, so it should be reasonable to assume that we also have places in our state that are as dull as dirt. Let's look at some of those spots.

There are small charming towns scattered all over our state, so it's nice to see a group that's not headquartered in Illinois throw some love at those places. Sure, Galena is always going to make this kind of list, but there are also eleven more Illinois spots you should definitely visit if you're looking to be charmed.

Living someplace safe is great, unless that place is unaffordable. Conversely, it's nice to live someplace affordable, but not if you're constantly worried for your personal safety. A new study found one city in the entire state of Illinois hit the mark for both safety and affordability in 2024.

Most studies of Illinois cities and towns include rave reviews for Galena and Naperville, but this time the crown doesn't go to either of those places. If you want a clue, think about watches...

When you think about charming towns in Illinois, it's almost inevitable that you'll have Galena cross your mind. Not to give anything away, but Galena is on the list of the 12 most charming towns in Illinois...and there are eleven other towns that really crank up the charm factor in this state, too.