The most common answer is seven, although there is some disagreement about what the seven names should be. Here is the chronology of what we know.
- 1834: Babcock’s Grove — When the first settlers arrived here, this area is actually described not as a town but as a large tract of land staked out by the Babcock brothers in 1833 (which included much of what today is Lombard).
- 1835: Fish’s Corners — Named for Daniel Fish who had a cabin near where three trails converged. Today, the trails are known as St. Charles Road, Geneva Road and Main Street. The little community was also called DuPage Center because of its location at the center of DuPage County.
- 1846: Stacy’s Corners — This name came into common usage when Moses and Joann Stacy built a popular stagecoach inn at the intersection where St. Charles Road meets Geneva Road and North Main Street.
- 1850: Newton Station — This was the initial name for a new community that grew up a mile south of Stacy’s Corners after the railroad came through that area — what is today downtown Glen Ellyn.
- 1851: Danby — Newton Station was renamed Danby by the new postmaster who had come from Danby, Vermont when he learned that there was another town in Illinois named Newton Station.
- 1874: Prospect Park — Danby’s name was changed to Prospect Park because the Village fathers thought it would improve the image of the town. (Danby had quite the reputation at that time.) Stacy’s Corners and Prospect Park both grew and gradually merged.
- 1894: Glen Ellyn — The town adopted this name after Lake Glen Ellyn was built by Thomas E. Hill and the town became a resort community. “Ellyn” is the Welsh spelling of Ellen, the name of Hill’s wife.
