During the summer season, however, the population would reach an estimated 20,000 people, and at its peak, the area had 50 hotels and 2,000 cottages.

[6] Infamous Chicago gangster Al Capone is reported to have utilized an establishment now known as the Mineola Hotel and Restaurant as a hideout, although this has never been documented.

In 1979, the Mineola was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and may be the largest wooden frame structure in the state.

The village is situated among the Chain O'Lakes, where swimming, boating, jet skiing, tubing and boarding are popular activities.

[9] Fox Lake came under the national spotlight in September 2015 when Joe Gliniewicz of the Fox Lake Police Department was found deceased in a marsh via gunshot wounds after radioing that he was pursuing three subjects.

The subsequent manhunt for the alleged shooters employed over 400 law enforcement personnel, impacted the entire local community, and sparked a debate in the media regarding the "War on Cops" and the Black Lives Matter movement.

Thousands of people, including then-Governor Bruce Rauner, gathered for a funeral and memorial procession to show their support.

After a two-month investigation, authorities concluded that Gliniewicz committed "a carefully staged suicide".

It was learned that he had been involved in financial malfeasance related to his job as the head of the local Police Explorers program and had even attempted to hire a gang member to kill the village administrator who he was concerned would discover his crimes during her financial audit of the program.

The village limits extend north in a sinuous manner all the way to the Wisconsin border.