There's something so wrong about Illinois being known as the Prairie State. While Illinois is full of beautiful farmland and charming rural communities, the fact of the matter is that most of the state's population resides around Chicago. The Windy City is truly one of America's greatest cities but it is the surrounding residential communities that arguably offer a better quality of life.

Villages like Matteson offer the typically comfortable Middle American lifestyle. With an abundance of affordable housing and a lower cost of living, living in Matteson provides an excellent alternative for people who work in Chicago but do not want to live in the big city.

Situated in gorgeous Cook County, the village of Matteson had a total population of 12,928 at the time of the 2000 census. It is a part of the Chicago Metropolitan Area known as Chicagoland and is less than 25 miles away from the Windy City. However, residents of Matteson don't need to make the trek to Chicago for fun. Rather with local attractions like Odyssey Fun World, Balmoral Park Race Track, G.S.U. Center for Performing Arts, and the Matteson Historical Museum in close proximity, there's very little reason for residents of Matteson to leave this cozy little village.

Named after the tenth governor of Illinois, Joel Aldrich Matteson, the village's history can be traced back to 1855 when it was originally platted.