Palos Heights Farmer's Market

Residents of Palos Heights who were there when the city was incorporated will say it seems like only yesterday. Compared with the long histories of some neighboring communities, it was only yesterday. In the city’s brief 40-plus years, Palos Heights has grown to be one of the most desirable places to live in all of Chicagoland, full of quiet, tree-shaded neighborhoods of well-kept, homes and lush parklands. Indian burial grounds and the lingering remains of an old fort in neighboring Palos Park Forest Preserve trace a history of the area that dates back many centuries. What is now Palos Heights was open farmland bordering Harlem Avenue until 1935 when Robert Bartlett Building Corporation purchased it for housing. The nation was still struggling through the Great Depression and the long-stagnant housing market needed a shot in the arm. Bartlett saw what the firm called "Harlem Heights" as an opportunity to move real estate sales out of the doldrums. The company places a lengthy list of restrictions on each property as it was purchased. The convenants, though now judged unconstitutional, were designed to sustain the value of the new homes built, thus creating an incentive to buy. Lots, called "farmettes," were quarter-acre in size and sold for $99. Each lot came with a dozen trees and six grape vines. Of course, buyers had to plant the trees and be watchful when mowing the grass until the trees grew in size. Early buyers also received several incubated chicken eggs, in case they wanted to try chicken farming. As Bartlett’s development grew, so too did talk of incorporating as a community. Three times, the matter was put to referendum and lost every time. The fourth try on April 16, 1959 was successful. Harlem Heights became the City of Palos Heights, named for the "Palos" in Palos Township. Its first officials were elected on June 6, 1959 and the first annexation of new land came 19-days later. Palos Heights had begun to grow.