I'd recommend a trip to Morton Arboretum, they'll have a nice variety of all these so you can really get a good feel for the differences. I've just never seen a scarlet oak in Chicago so I wouldn't feel safe recommending it (might just be a fluke). I mentioned the city proper thing as I've been told in Chicago that east of Damen the soil is more acidic, I'm west of that line, but I really heavily amended my entire yard (rototilled in tons of mushroom compost and manure) a few years before I planted the NRO, and it turned a great orangish-red last year. I suspect that buying a NRO (or scarlet, for that matter) from an established nursery gets more reliable fall color, as they know that's what people want/expect, even though the red in the title came from the wood/lumber industry. good luck, you can't go wrong with an oak no matter what, Chicago planted burr, shumard, swamp white and shingle oaks all over my neighborhood over the past few years, can't wait until they really get established.

We put red oak in our last home with a clear finish. It had pink undertones. We have 1919 white oak in this house and it has a clear oil finish. It has beautiful golden undertones that blend very nicely with the chestnut stained trim which has amber shellac finish. We also like the lighter floors contrasted against the darker trim. our flooring guy recently patched a 1x2" area in one room. He was able to find historic scrap oak which was feathered in, again with the oil finish. Can't tell where the patch is. Don't know if you will have to deal with feathering in against any existing floor.

mark_rachel, that is what I told my husband! And, Oak & Board, I've been studying this off and on for at least a year. You are one of my favorite commentors. I have learned a lot from you. Both of the samples are solid hardwood not engineered. KD is pleased with the quality of the floor and barely there bevel. Haven't seen a white oak floor yet in Michigan. Well aware of matching existing flooring of which we have none. Need a little more visual interest than the white oak. Considered natural hickory and I think it is too much for me. In my area, everyone is used to red oak. Boring Detroit area suburbs. Not a high end home.

https://theflooringgirl.com/hardwood-flooring/hardwood-flooring-trends/#:~:text=White%20oak%20allows%20a%20broader%20range%20of%20stain,than%20red%20oak%20%28due%20to%20its%20molecular%20structure%29. The link has a long article, but it basically says...trends for 2020. 1. People are choosing darker stained hardwood. Darker is more maintenance especially with kids. Choose between style or less maintenance. 2. Cool tones are in. Getting away from red-Browns and yellows. Going to browns with no red tones or grays. Add a touch of gray to the browns to make cooler and lighter. 3. Very dark brown floors. Use Ebony and Walnut 50/50 or Ebony and Jacobean 50/50 to get extremely dark opaque floors that hide most of the oak grain. Shows every bit of dust and footprints though. 4. To go darker, but not as dark as #3, try dark walnut, antique brown, coffee brown, or special walnut, or other blends. https://www.rocktherm.com/hardwood-floor-stain-colors-for-white-oak/ The above link shows a lot of stain testing with Minwax. Click of the link above, then click the right arrows to see the results. 25 pictures. Duraseal has a link with quite a few stain samples on white oak. https://www.duraseal.com/stain-gallery/ https://www.rocktherm.com/hardwood-floor-stain-colors-for-oak/ https://www.wideplankflooring.com/blog/three-reasons-to-love-white-oak-floors-2/ This link tells you about which white to choose. Some white oak from certain areas are not as strong as white oak from other areas. Google "stains on white oak flooring". Good white oak can last for 50 years. The color alone is worth it. Learn what red oak grain looks like vs white oak wood grain.