Mount Carroll began life as a mill town around 1841.
In 1843, a referendum moved the county seat from nearby Savanna to Mount Carroll.
The town was incorporated in 1855 and became a city in 1867; the first mayor was Nathaniel Halderman, a prominent local businessman and co-founder of the mill.

Shimer College was established in Mt. Carroll in 1853, but mounting debts forced a move to Waukegan in 1979 and subsequently to Chicago in 2006.
 The campus now is home to several organizations, most notably the Campbell Center for Historic Preservation Studies.

Political scientist Robert Keohane grew up in Mt. Carroll before attending Shimer.
Mount Carroll began life as a mill town around 1841. In 1843, a referendum moved the county seat from nearby Savanna to Mount Carroll. The town was incorporated in 1855 and became a city in 1867; the first mayor was Nathaniel Halderman, a prominent local businessman and co-founder of the mill.
Shimer College was established in Mt. Carroll in 1853, but mounting debts forced a move to Waukegan in 1979 and subsequently to Chicago in 2006.  The campus now is home to several organizations, most notably the Campbell Center for Historic Preservation Studies.
Political scientist Robert Keohane grew up in Mt. Carroll before attending Shimer.
Mount Carroll, Illinois