The first family to settle in this area (about 1833) was probably Joel Sterling Sherman. The area was name Shermerville for Frederick Shermer who donated the land for the first railroad station. In the 1870s Shermerville's brickyards prospered during the rebuilding of Chicago after the great fire of 1871.
Shermerville was named by Edward Landwehr in the early 1920s. He submitted, "Northbrook" in a naming contest. It was officially adopted in 1923.
Northbrook's growth was slow until after World War II. From 1940 through the remainder of the century, population increased from about 1,200 to more than 33,000.
Village of Northbrook, History of Northbrook, www.northbrook.il.us, accessed January, 2013.