Arlington, Illinois 61312

Arlington has a history that is unforgettable. In the early 1900s, Arlington, which was then called 'Lost Grove', was experiencing rapid growth and development. Many companies set up shop to profit from the people flocking to the jobs at the coal mines in this area of Illinois. The businesses included a mattress factory, beer brewery, numerous restaurants, a brothel, and many others. The mayor at the time was from New York, and changed the town's name to Arlington, after the town of Arlington, NY. Arlington was about the size of Peru, Illinois. On November 13, 1909, a fire in a mine shaft killed 259 miners, young and old, at the Cherry coal mine. Authorities sealed the mine to contain the fire, trapping many rescue workers inside. When the mine was opened a week later only twenty men had survived of the hundreds involved. This disaster influenced early worker's compensation laws and labor practices in the coal mining industry. At the time Illinois had no laws governing working conditions for miners. Arlington's growth slowed drastically after this occurrence.