The village of Grand Ridge is located in the north central part of the state, in some of the best farmland in the country. It is in the rural south central part of LaSalle County between the towns of Ottawa (to the north) and Streator (to the south) on Illinois Route 23.
The early history shows that the area was an unincorporated settlement called “Livonia”. It was named after the wife of an early settler, Joseph Boyd, when he sold an acre of land to the Presbyterians for $25.00. This name lasted from 1860 – 1871
When the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad put a spur through the town, building a station in 1871, their engineers found a point on a nearby farm to be the highest elevation between Streator and Aurora. Railroad officials changed the name to “Grand Ridge.
The Village of Grand Ridge became incorporated in 1891.
Aerial photo by Ron Wilson
