Will County | |
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.jpg)  Flanders House in Plainfield (1840),Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie. | |
 Seal | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofIllinois | |
 Illinois's location within theU.S. | |
| Coordinates:41°26′42″N87°58′43″W / 41.44503°N 87.97866°W /41.44503; -87.97866 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Illinois |
| Founded | January 12, 1836 |
| Named after | Conrad Will |
| Seat | Joliet |
| Largest city | Joliet |
| Area | |
• Total | 849 sq mi (2,200 km2) |
| • Land | 837 sq mi (2,170 km2) |
| • Water | 12 sq mi (31 km2) 1.5% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 696,355 |
• Estimate (2024) | 708,583 [1] |
| • Density | 832/sq mi (321/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Congressional districts | 1st,2nd,11th,14th |
| Website | willcounty |
Will County is acounty in the northeastern part of thestate ofIllinois. According to the2020 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.[2] Thecounty seat isJoliet.[3] Will County is one of the fivecollar counties of theChicago 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.
Will County was formed on January 12, 1836, out ofCook andIroquois Counties. It was named afterConrad Will, a politician and businessman involved in salt production in southern Illinois.[4] 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 ofKankakee County, Illinois, north of theKankakee 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 theNational Register of Historic Places.
"WILL, a county in the E. N. E. part of Illinois, bordering on Indiana, has an area of 1,236 square miles (3,200 km2). It is intersected by the Kankakee andDes Plaines Rivers, branches of theIllinois. 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 theIllinois and Michigan canal, by the Chicago branch of theCentral railroad, theChicago and Mississippi, and by theChicago and Rock Island railroad. Named in honor of Conrad Will, for many years a member of the Illinois legislature. Capital, Joliet. Population 16,703."
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of 849 square miles (2,200 km2), of which 837 square miles (2,170 km2) is land and 12 square miles (31 km2) (1.5%) is water.[5]
TheKankakee River,Du Page River and theDes Plaines River run through the county and join on its western border. TheIllinois and Michigan Canal and theChicago Sanitary and Ship Canal run through Will County.
A number of areas are preserved as parks (over 20,000 acres (81 km2) total) under theForest Preserve District of Will County. The 17,000 acres (69 km2)Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie is aU.S. Forest Service park in the county on the grounds of the formerJoliet Arsenal. Other parks includeChannahon State Park and theDes Plaines Fish and Wildlife Area.
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In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Joliet have ranged from a low of 13 °F (−11 °C) in January to a high of 85 °F (29 °C) in July, although a record low of −26 °F (−32 °C) was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of 104 °F (40 °C) was recorded in June 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.58 inches (40 mm) in January to 4.34 inches (110 mm) in July.[6]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1840 | 10,167 | — | |
| 1850 | 16,703 | 64.3% | |
| 1860 | 29,321 | 75.5% | |
| 1870 | 43,013 | 46.7% | |
| 1880 | 53,422 | 24.2% | |
| 1890 | 62,007 | 16.1% | |
| 1900 | 74,764 | 20.6% | |
| 1910 | 84,371 | 12.8% | |
| 1920 | 92,911 | 10.1% | |
| 1930 | 110,732 | 19.2% | |
| 1940 | 114,210 | 3.1% | |
| 1950 | 134,336 | 17.6% | |
| 1960 | 191,617 | 42.6% | |
| 1970 | 249,498 | 30.2% | |
| 1980 | 324,460 | 30.0% | |
| 1990 | 357,313 | 10.1% | |
| 2000 | 502,266 | 40.6% | |
| 2010 | 677,560 | 34.9% | |
| 2020 | 696,355 | 2.8% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 700,728 | [7] | 0.6% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[8] 1790–1960[9] 1900–1990[10] 1990–2000[11] 2010[12] 2020[2] | |||
| Race / Ethnicity(NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 1980[13] | Pop 1990[14] | Pop 2000[15] | Pop 2010[16] | Pop 2020[17] | % 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 orAlaska 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 orPacific Islander alone (NH) | x[18] | x[19] | 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[20] | x[21] | 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% |
As of the2010 Census, there were 677,560 people, 225,256 households, and 174,062 families residing in the county.[22] The population density was 809.6 inhabitants per square mile (312.6/km2). There were 237,501 housing units at an average density of 283.8 per square mile (109.6/km2).[5] 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.[22] In terms of ancestry, 21.6% wereGerman, 18.6% wereIrish, 13.3% werePolish, 11.1% wereItalian, 5.9% wereEnglish, and 2.1% wereAmerican.[23]
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.[22]
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 thepoverty line, including 9.0% of those under 18 and 5.6% of those 65 or older.[24]
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, andsheriff are all elected in a countywide vote. The current county executive isJennifer Bertino-Tarrant, who took office in 2020.
Will County government has been housed in a succession of courthouses, the first being erected in 1837.[25] The fourth courthouse was designed of reinforced concrete in theBrutalist style by Otto Stark ofC.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.[26] Considerable controversy surrounded the disposition of the 1969 courthouse, withLandmarks Preservation Council of Illinois including the building on its “2022 Most Endangered Historic Places in Illinois”.[27] After a number of votes and appeals, demolition was approved and the destruction of the building began on December 4, 2023.[28]
Like most of thecollar 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-bornHillary Clinton won it along with the rest of the "collar counties" aside from McHenry in 2016.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1892 | 6,720 | 49.51% | 6,434 | 47.40% | 420 | 3.09% |
| 1896 | 9,249 | 56.94% | 6,873 | 42.32% | 120 | 0.74% |
| 1900 | 10,056 | 59.22% | 6,655 | 39.19% | 269 | 1.58% |
| 1904 | 10,001 | 66.39% | 3,191 | 21.18% | 1,873 | 12.43% |
| 1908 | 10,358 | 61.29% | 5,693 | 33.68% | 850 | 5.03% |
| 1912 | 3,331 | 19.87% | 4,717 | 28.13% | 8,719 | 52.00% |
| 1916 | 19,881 | 62.59% | 11,378 | 35.82% | 506 | 1.59% |
| 1920 | 21,746 | 76.37% | 5,410 | 19.00% | 1,318 | 4.63% |
| 1924 | 22,780 | 64.16% | 4,707 | 13.26% | 8,018 | 22.58% |
| 1928 | 26,081 | 55.02% | 20,877 | 44.04% | 447 | 0.94% |
| 1932 | 25,173 | 48.16% | 25,798 | 49.36% | 1,295 | 2.48% |
| 1936 | 25,028 | 45.25% | 28,135 | 50.86% | 2,151 | 3.89% |
| 1940 | 32,291 | 52.13% | 29,442 | 47.53% | 213 | 0.34% |
| 1944 | 30,058 | 52.32% | 27,085 | 47.14% | 310 | 0.54% |
| 1948 | 28,601 | 51.41% | 26,430 | 47.51% | 597 | 1.07% |
| 1952 | 38,533 | 56.34% | 29,749 | 43.50% | 110 | 0.16% |
| 1956 | 45,628 | 64.34% | 25,188 | 35.52% | 100 | 0.14% |
| 1960 | 42,575 | 50.86% | 41,056 | 49.04% | 81 | 0.10% |
| 1964 | 38,619 | 43.75% | 49,663 | 56.25% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 43,630 | 49.32% | 31,576 | 35.70% | 13,254 | 14.98% |
| 1972 | 65,155 | 65.67% | 33,633 | 33.90% | 430 | 0.43% |
| 1976 | 61,784 | 53.85% | 51,103 | 44.54% | 1,840 | 1.60% |
| 1980 | 69,310 | 57.44% | 41,975 | 34.79% | 9,373 | 7.77% |
| 1984 | 78,684 | 63.25% | 45,193 | 36.33% | 520 | 0.42% |
| 1988 | 73,129 | 59.10% | 49,816 | 40.26% | 786 | 0.64% |
| 1992 | 58,337 | 38.35% | 59,633 | 39.20% | 34,153 | 22.45% |
| 1996 | 62,506 | 42.15% | 69,354 | 46.76% | 16,444 | 11.09% |
| 2000 | 95,828 | 50.00% | 90,902 | 47.43% | 4,940 | 2.58% |
| 2004 | 130,728 | 52.37% | 117,172 | 46.94% | 1,709 | 0.68% |
| 2008 | 122,597 | 42.69% | 160,406 | 55.86% | 4,178 | 1.45% |
| 2012 | 128,969 | 46.36% | 144,229 | 51.85% | 4,967 | 1.79% |
| 2016 | 132,720 | 43.63% | 151,927 | 49.94% | 19,579 | 6.44% |
| 2020 | 155,116 | 44.80% | 183,915 | 53.11% | 7,235 | 2.09% |
| 2024 | 157,672 | 47.93% | 162,874 | 49.52% | 8,391 | 2.55% |
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:[31]
K-12:
Secondary:
Elementary:
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.
Four differentMetra commuter rail lines (Metra Electric Main Line,Southwest Service,Rock Island District andHeritage Corridor) connect Will County with theChicago Loop.Amtrak serves the county atJoliet Transportation Center. TheLincoln Service operates between Chicago and St. Louis, while theTexas Eagle provides service from Chicago south toSan Antonio and west toLos Angeles.
I-55
I-57
I-80
I-355
US 6
US 30
US 45
US 52
IL 1
IL 7
IL 43
IL 50
IL 53
IL 59
IL 102
IL 113
IL 126
IL 129
IL 171
IL 394Will County is a major hub in the nationalnatural gas pipeline grid where pipelines fromCanada and theGulf of Mexico meet and then fan out to serve the Midwest. The following major energy companies own pipeline that runs through Will County:
ExxonMobil owns and operates theJoliet Refinery along theDes Plaines River just east ofI-55. According to ExxonMobil, the refinery employs about 600 people and was constructed in 1972.[32]
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Places adjacent to Will County, Illinois | |
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Municipalities and communities ofWill County, Illinois,United States | ||
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| Other communities | ||
| Ghost town | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
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