Mud Lake extended nearly to the southern border of today's Berwyn, and the land regularly flooded during heavy rains.

To encourage people to move to LaVergne, Baldwin sold an 80-foot-wide (24 m) strip of property to the Burlington and Quincy Railroad in 1862.

Baldwin's daughter, Emma, inherited her father's estate, and in 1879 she sold most of the land to a group of realtors controlled by Marshall Field.

In 1890, Charles E. Piper and Wilbur J. Andrews, two Chicago attorneys, purchased a 106-acre (0.43 km2) plot of land from the Field syndicate to develop.

Many also contained elaborate design elements typically not seen, such as stained glass windows, clay tile roofs, terra cotta, and intricate brick patterns.

According to the 2022 American Community Survey, the top ancestries reported in the city were Mexican (48.7%), and Puerto Rican (6.9%).

[12] The top five non-Hispanic ancestries reported in Berwyn as of the 2022 American Community Survey were Polish (6.1%), German (5.6%), Irish (5.4%), Italian (5.1%), and Filipino (2.5%).

The elevation change due to the ridge is clearly seen on the 2800 block of Maple Ave.[17] Prior to the settlement of Berwyn, the land was grassy marshland.

The mayor is given administrative authority, and he has the power to appoint and remove all officers of the municipality, except those covered by civil service.

The Berwyn Police Department has six main divisions: Administrative, Investigative, Patrol, K-9 Unit, Communications, Records, and Parking.

The Berwyn Fire Department is composed of 80 sworn professional firefighters, 30 certified paramedics, and 11 emergency medical technicians.

Berwyn North School District 98 used to host General Custer Elementary, which was built in 1908 and later torn down in 2000.

Ogden Ave, a segment of historic Route 66, is an automobile-centered district, and at its peak the road included over a dozen car dealerships in Berwyn.

Cermak Road earned the nickname "The Bohemian Wall Street" due to the many savings and loans located there.

In 1991, the Chicago Sun-Times reported that "Berwyn has the highest concentration of financial institutions in the world - a tribute to the frugality of its forebears."

The different shaped lots between Austin Blvd and Ridgeland along 19th Street attest to the previous presence of the line.

This is due to walkable neighborhoods of modestly sized bungalows, and easy access to grocery stores.

[38] From the 1920s to the 1970s, Berwyn had a large Czechoslovak population, and to celebrate their heritage the Houby Day Parade was organized in 1968.

[39] Ogden Avenue is part of the "Historic Route 66" in Berwyn, and an annual Vintage Car Show has taken place in the city every year in early September since 1990.

The Maria SS Lauretana Italian-Sicilian Religious Festival was held on the grounds of Morton West High School during Labor Day weekend until 2014.

[41] Berwyn was notable for the sculpture Spindle, created by artist Dustin Shuler and located in the Cermak Plaza shopping center along with other works of art.

The two topmost cars were placed in storage; as of 2012[update] the Berwyn Route 66 Museum on Ogden Avenue proposes to incorporate them into a reconstruction of the Spindle.

This is often complimented by jokes poking fun at the town's historically Central European heritage, or digs at the local culture of Berwyn.

Berwyn has also been used as the backdrop for multiple television productions, such as shows in the Dick Wolf Chicago franchise, The Chi, and Empire.

In 1987, the YMCA opened at 2947 Oak Park Ave, on the former site of a lumber yard that had burned down a decade earlier.

The building has an Olympic-sized indoor pool, racquet and handball courts, a gym, and exercise facilities.

The following table includes a complete list of Berwyn's public parks and recreational centers: Berwyn is a very diverse community, with some larger homes on its south side and many smaller, bungalow-type homes on the north side around Roosevelt Road and Cermak Road.

According to data published by the Center for Neighborhood Technology, Berwyn had the lowest per capita CO2 emissions from homes and private vehicles in the Chicago area.

[43] Berwyn has one of the world's largest laundromats, 13,500 square feet (1,250 m2) in size, with 161 washers and 140 dryers, a kids' play area, big screen TVs, a bird sanctuary, and free pizza on Wednesday nights.

This laundromat received considerable recognition for using a solar thermal system (the largest such installation in Illinois) to meet its hot water needs.