Will County, Illinois

Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox U.S. county

Will County is a county 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.<ref name="census.gov">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The county seat is Joliet.<ref name="GR6">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Will County is one of the five collar counties of the Chicago–Naperville–Elgin, IL–IN–WI Metropolitan Statistical 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.

HistoryEdit

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.<ref>"Was Dr. Conrad Will really worth his salt?" Template:Webarchive, Ledger-Sentinel, Roger Matile, June 22, 2006</ref> Will was a member of the first Illinois Constitutional Convention and a member of the Illinois legislature until his death in 1835. Besides its present area, 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 County Illinois 1836.png

Will County from its 1836 creation to 1852
Will County Illinois 1853.png

Will County in 1853, reduced to its current borders by the creation of Kankakee County

GeographyEdit

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert is land and Template:Convert (1.5%) is water.<ref name="census-density"/>

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 Template:Convert total) under the Forest Preserve District of Will County. The Template: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 weatherEdit

Template:Climate chart In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Joliet have ranged from a low of Template:Convert in January to a high of Template:Convert in July, although a record low of Template:Convert was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of Template:Convert was recorded in June 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from Template:Convert in January to Template:Convert in July.<ref name="weather"/>

Adjacent countiesEdit

Kane County (northwest)
DuPage County (north)
Cook County (northeast)
Lake County, Indiana (east)
Kankakee County (south)
Grundy County (southwest)
Kendall County (west)

DemographicsEdit

Template:US Census population

**Will County, Illinois – Racial and ethnic composition**
Template:Nobold
Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Partial<ref name=2020CensusP2>{{#invoke:citation/CS1\|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	% 2000	% 2010	Template:Partial
White alone (NH)	388,523	455,577	418,418	77.35%	67.24%	60.09%
Black or African American alone (NH)	51,980	74,419	79,256	10.35%	10.98%	11.38%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	672	814	711	0.13%	0.12%	0.10%
Asian alone (NH)	11,021	30,458	42,416	2.19%	4.50%	6.09%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)	120	104	82	0.02%	0.02%	0.01%
Other race alone (NH)	536	751	2,105	0.11%	0.11%	0.30%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)	5,646	9,620	22,516	1.12%	1.42%	3.23%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	43,768	105,817	130,851	8.71%	15.62%	18.79%
Total	502,266	677,560	696,355	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

2010 censusEdit

As of the 2010 Census, there were 677,560 people, 225,256 households, and 174,062 families residing in the county.<ref name="census-dp1">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The population density was Template:Convert. There were 237,501 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert.<ref name="census-density">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> 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.<ref name="census-dp1"/> 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.<ref name="census-dp2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

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.<ref name="census-dp1"/>

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.<ref name="census-dp3">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

GovernmentEdit

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.<ref name="Will County Court Facts">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> 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.<ref name="County Breaks Ground on New Courthouse">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> 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”.<ref name="Landmarks Illinois">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> After a number of votes and appeals, demolition was approved and the destruction of the building began on December 4, 2023.<ref name="Demolition Of Will County Courthouse Finally Arrives">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

PoliticsEdit

EducationEdit

Governors State University is a 6,000-student public university in University Park.
Lewis University is a 5,200-student four-year private university in Romeoville.
University of St. Francis is a 3,300-student four-year private university in Joliet.
The county is in Community College District 525 and is served by Joliet Junior College in Joliet.<ref>retrieved 2007-02-13 Template:Webarchive</ref> Joliet Junior College was the first two-year higher education institution in the United States.

K-12 school districtsEdit

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:<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }} - Text</ref>

K-12:

Secondary:

Elementary:

TransportationEdit

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.

RailEdit

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 highwaysEdit

Energy infrastructureEdit

PipelinesEdit

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:

Alliance Pipeline
Enbridge
Integrys Energy Group
- Peoples Gas
Kinder Morgan Interstate Gas Transmission
TransCanada
- ANR Pipeline - Fully owned & operated
- Northern Border Pipeline - Partially owned & fully operated
Vector Pipeline

Joliet RefineryEdit

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.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>