Prior to the arrival of white settlers, the North Shore was inhabited by Native people. In the 17th century, the first Europeans arrived. After the Treaty of Chicago was enacted in 1833, Native tribes were removed from the area and the land was opened for settlement.

By the early 1850s, Winnetka’s population had surpassed 100. As more settlers were drawn to the area for its beauty and opportunities, so too were speculators and developers looking to improve the burgeoning community.

In 1854, two important developments took place: the advent of the railroad and the first plat of the village named “Winnetka” by Walter Gurnee and Charles Peck. The subdivision created by Gurnee, the president of the railroad, and Peck, a former Chicago fireman and businessman, gave order to the scattering of settler farms and homesteads.

Once the village was laid out, growth was steady but slow. While the first general store, school, and church opened in the mid-to-late 1850s, several settlers remained dissatisfied with the rate of progress. They believed that Winnetka had yet to reach its potential.

In 1869, a small group of citizens, led by Artemas Carter and including J. P. Atwood, Timothy Wright, John Dale, Jared Gage, Thomas Bassett, and David Wilder, determined that in order to better foster development and create the educational system they desired, they would need to incorporate as a village. They drafted the village’s charter, which was granted on March 10, 1869.