Will County, Illinois

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Will County is located in the northeastern part of the state of Illinois. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 696,355, an increase of 2.8% from 677,560 in 2010, making it Illinois's fourth-most populous county.[1] The county seat is Joliet.[2] Will County is one of the five collar counties of the Chicago metropolitan area. The portion of Will County around Joliet uses area codes 815 and 779, while 630 and 331 are for far northern Will County and 708 is for central and eastern Will County.

History

Will County was formed on January 12, 1836, out of Cook and Iroquois Counties. It was named after Conrad Will, a politician and businessman involved in salt production in southern Illinois.[3] Will was a member of the first Illinois Constitutional Convention and a member of the Illinois legislature until his death in 1835. The county originally included the part of Kankakee County, Illinois, north of the Kankakee River. It lost that area when Kankakee County was organized in 1852. Since then its boundaries have not changed.

36 locations in Will County are on the National Register of Historic Places.

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"WILL, a county in the E. N. E. part of Illinois, bordering on Indiana, has an area of Script error: No such module "convert".. It is intersected by the Kankakee and Des Plaines Rivers, branches of the Illinois. The surface is generally level, and destitute of timber, excepting small groves. The soil is very fertile, and much of it is under cultivation. The soil of the prairies is a deep, sandy loam, adapted to Indian corn and grass. In 1850 the county produced 527,903 bushels of Indian corn; 230,885 of wheat; 334,360 of oats; 32,043 tons of hay, and 319,054 pounds of butter. It contained 14 churches, 3 newspaper offices; 3472 pupils attending public schools, and 200 attending other schools. Quarries of building stone are worked near the county seat. The Des Plaines river furnishes water-power. The county is intersected by the Illinois and Michigan canal, by the Chicago branch of the Central railroad, the Chicago and Mississippi, and by the Chicago and Rock Island railroad. Named in honor of Conrad Will, for many years a member of the Illinois legislature. Capital, Joliet. Population 16,703."

Template:Mdash 1854 U.S. Gazetteer

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Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of Script error: No such module "convert"., of which Script error: No such module "convert". is land and Script error: No such module "convert". (1.5%) is water.[4]

The Kankakee River, Du Page River and the Des Plaines River run through the county and join on its western border. The Illinois and Michigan Canal and the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal run through Will County.

A number of areas are preserved as parks (over Script error: No such module "convert". total) under the Forest Preserve District of Will County. The Script error: No such module "convert". Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie is a U.S. Forest Service park in the county on the grounds of the former Joliet Arsenal. Other parks include Channahon State Park and the Des Plaines Fish and Wildlife Area.

Climate and weather

Joliet, Illinois
Climate chart (explanation)
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Source: The Weather Channel[5]
Metric conversion
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In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Joliet have ranged from a low of Script error: No such module "convert". in January to a high of Script error: No such module "convert". in July, although a record low of Script error: No such module "convert". was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of Script error: No such module "convert". was recorded in June 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from Script error: No such module "convert". in January to Script error: No such module "convert". in July.[5]

Adjacent counties

Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Template:Sronly%±
184010,167—
185016,703Script error: No such module "String".%
186029,321Script error: No such module "String".%
187043,013Script error: No such module "String".%
188053,422Script error: No such module "String".%
189062,007Script error: No such module "String".%
190074,764Script error: No such module "String".%
191084,371Script error: No such module "String".%
192092,911Script error: No such module "String".%
1930110,732Script error: No such module "String".%
1940114,210Script error: No such module "String".%
1950134,336Script error: No such module "String".%
1960191,617Script error: No such module "String".%
1970249,498Script error: No such module "String".%
1980324,460Script error: No such module "String".%
1990357,313Script error: No such module "String".%
2000502,266Script error: No such module "String".%
2010677,560Script error: No such module "String".%
2020696,355Script error: No such module "String".%
2024 (est.)708,853[6]Script error: No such module "String".%
U.S. Decennial Census[7]
1790–1960[8] 1900–1990[9]
1990–2000[10] 2010[11] 2020[1]

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2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 696,355. The median age was 39.0 years. 24.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 14.1% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 97.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.6 males age 18 and over.[12]

The racial makeup of the county was 63.7% White, 11.6% Black or African American, 0.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 6.2% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 7.8% from some other race, and 10.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 18.8% of the population.[13]

95.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 4.9% lived in rural areas.[14]

There were 240,009 households in the county, of which 37.3% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 58.1% were married-couple households, 14.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 22.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 20.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[12]

There were 250,678 housing units, of which 4.3% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 81.1% were owner-occupied and 18.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.2% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.9%.[12]

Racial and ethnic composition

Will County, Illinois – Racial and ethnic composition
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Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) Pop 1980[15] Pop 1990[16] Pop 2000[17] Pop 2010[18] Pop 2020[19] % 1980 % 1990 % 2000 % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 275,048 294,103 388,523 455,577 418,418 84.77% 82.31% 77.35% 67.24% 60.09%
Black or African American alone (NH) 31,227 37,752 51,980 74,419 79,256 9.62% 10.57% 10.35% 10.98% 11.38%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 484 617 672 814 711 0.15% 0.17% 0.13% 0.12% 0.10%
Asian alone (NH) 2,816 4,608 11,021 30,458 42,416 0.87% 1.29% 2.19% 4.50% 6.09%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH) x [20] x [21] 120 104 82 x x 0.02% 0.02% 0.01%
Other race alone (NH) 1,107 260 536 751 2,105 0.34% 0.07% 0.11% 0.11% 0.30%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) x [22] x [23] 5,646 9,620 22,516 x x 1.12% 1.42% 3.23%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 13,778 19,973 43,768 105,817 130,851 4.25% 5.59% 8.71% 15.62% 18.79%
Total 324,460 357,313 502,266 677,560 696,355 100.00% 100.00% 100.00% 100.00% 100.00%

2010 census

As of the 2010 Census, there were 677,560 people, 225,256 households, and 174,062 families residing in the county.[24] The population density was Script error: No such module "convert".. There were 237,501 housing units at an average density of Script error: No such module "convert"..[4] The racial makeup of the county was 76.0% white, 11.2% black or African American, 4.6% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 5.8% from other races, and 2.3% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 15.6% of the population.[24] In terms of ancestry, 21.6% were German, 18.6% were Irish, 13.3% were Polish, 11.1% were Italian, 5.9% were English, and 2.1% were American.[25]

Of the 225,256 households, 44.0% had children under 18 living with them, 61.9% were married couples living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 22.7% were non-families, and 18.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.97 and the average family size was 3.41. The median age was 35.4.[24]

The median income for a household in the county was $75,906 and the median income for a family was $85,488. Males had a median income of $60,867 versus $40,643 for females. The per capita income was $29,811. About 5.0% of families and 6.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.0% of those under 18 and 5.6% of those 65 or older.[26]

Government

Will County is governed by a 22-member county board elected from 11 districts. Each district elects two members. The county executive, county clerk, coroner, auditor, treasurer, recorder of deeds, state's attorney, and sheriff are all elected in a countywide vote. The current county executive is Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant, who took office in 2020.

Will County government has been housed in a succession of courthouses, the first being erected in 1837.[27] The fourth courthouse was designed of reinforced concrete in the Brutalist style by Otto Stark of C.F. Murphy Associates and completed in 1969. Citing lack of space, inefficiency and high operating costs, the County Board chose to erect a new courthouse, which was designed by Wight & Co. and completed in 2020.[28] Considerable controversy surrounded the disposition of the 1969 courthouse, with Landmarks Preservation Council of Illinois including the building on its “2022 Most Endangered Historic Places in Illinois”.[29] After a number of votes and appeals, demolition was approved and the destruction of the building began on December 4, 2023.[30]

Politics

Like most of the collar counties, Will County was once a Republican stronghold. It went Republican in all but three elections from 1892 to 1988. Since the 1990s, it has become a swing county. It voted for the national winner in every presidential election from 1980 to 2012, but Chicago-born Hillary Clinton won it along with the rest of the "collar counties" aside from McHenry in 2016. Template:PresHead Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresFoot

Education

K-12 school districts

K-12 school districts, including any with any territory in Will County, no matter how slight, even if the schools and/or administrative headquarters are in other counties:[32]

K-12:

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Secondary:

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Elementary:

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Transportation

Will County is served by four U.S. interstate highways, four U.S. highways, and 12 Illinois highways. Pace provides bus transit services within the county.

Rail

Four different Metra commuter rail lines (Metra Electric Main Line, Southwest Service, Rock Island District and Heritage Corridor) connect Will County with the Chicago Loop. Amtrak serves the county at Joliet Transportation Center. The Lincoln Service operates between Chicago and St. Louis, while the Texas Eagle provides service from Chicago south to San Antonio and west to Los Angeles.

Major highways

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Energy infrastructure

Pipelines

Will County is a major hub in the national natural gas pipeline grid where pipelines from Canada and the Gulf of Mexico meet and then fan out to serve the Midwest. The following major energy companies own pipeline that runs through Will County:

Joliet Refinery

ExxonMobil owns and operates the Joliet Refinery along the Des Plaines River just east of I-55. According to ExxonMobil, the refinery employs about 600 people and was constructed in 1972.[33]

Municipalities

Cities

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Villages

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Census-designated places

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Fort

Unincorporated communities

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Townships

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See also

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References

Specific

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  1. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  3. ↑ "Was Dr. Conrad Will really worth his salt?" Template:Webarchive, Ledger-Sentinel, Roger Matile, June 22, 2006
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  20. ↑ included in the Asian category in the 1980 Census
  21. ↑ included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census
  22. ↑ not an option in the 1980 Census
  23. ↑ not an option in the 1990 Census
  24. ↑ a b c Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  29. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  30. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  31. ↑ retrieved 2007-02-13 Template:Webarchive
  32. ↑ Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1". - Text
  33. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".

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General
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External links

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  • Will County Board

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