Will Township, Will County, Illinois

Infobox Settlement
unit_pref=Imperial
settlement_type=Township
official_name = Will Township
nickname =
motto =


imagesize =
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mapsize =
map_caption = Location in Will County
subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_name1 = Illinois
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 = Will
leader_title = Supervisor
leader_name = Brian Cann
established_title = Established
established_date = Unknown
area_magnitude =
area_total_km2 = 93.49
area_total_sq_mi = 36.1
area_land_km2 = 93.49
area_land_sq_mi = 36.1
area_water_km2 = 0.0
area_water_sq_mi = 0.0
area_water_percent = 0.0
area_urban_km2 =
area_urban_sq_mi =
area_metro_km2 =
area_metro_sq_mi =
population_as_of = 2000
population_note =
population_total = 1568|population_footnotes=
population_density_km2 =| population_density_sq_mi =
population_metro =
population_density_metro_km2 =
population_density_metro_sq_mi =
population_urban =
timezone = CST
utc_offset = -6
timezone_DST = CDT
utc_offset_DST = -5
latd= |latm= |lats= |latNS=
longd= |longm= |longs= |longEW=
elevation_m =
elevation_ft =
website =
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Will Township is located in Will County, Illinois. The population was 1,568 at the 2000 census. Will Township was formed from the former townships of Carcy and Sherburn on an unknown date.

Township Headquarters

Will Township offices and road district headquarters are located on the southeast corner of Beecher-Peotone Road and Will Center Road. An old one room schoolhouse makes up part of the Will Township office complex. The buildings also serve as a voting precinct for the residents of Will Township.

Geography

Very gently rolling farmland makes up the majority of Will Township. Since the area was settled agriculture has been the main industry in Will Township. The fertile soil has allowed many generations of families to make a living from the land. Corn, soybean, hay, and wheat fields make up the farm landscape. A few dairy farms and beef farms still operate in Will Township. In recent years the area has seen an explosion of hobby farms. Many of these farms raise horses and a few acres of another crop.

Black Walnut Creek, Rock Creek, and the Exline Slough are the main bodies of water that run through Will Township. These creeks provide drainage for the farmland.

Infrastructure

Interstate 57 runs through the northwest corner of Will Township. Illinois Route 50 runs adjacent to a railroad on the west side of the township. These two roads are the most traveled roads in the township. Beecher-Peotone Road, also known as Beecher Blacktop, is also a main road that runs east to west through the middle of the township. Intersecting with Beecher-Peotone Road is Will Center Road, also a highly traveled route.

Bult Field is a small airport in Will Township. Formerly known as Sanger Airport, Bult Field is located on Kedzie Avenue, between Offner Rd. and Eagle Lake Road. Recently, the airport underwent extensive renovation.

The majority of the township roads are either tar and chip or gravel. These roads are well maintained by the township and provide travel for all township residents.

Township Roads

Will Township has the responsibility of maintaing about 50 miles of township road and right of way. Will Township roads are made up of gravel or tar and chip. The township currently has one and a half miles of asphalt road as well. Asphalt roads can be found on Kedzie Ave. between Eagle Lake Rd. and Offner Rd. and the stretch of North Peotone Rd. between Route 50 and Harlem Ave. There are no dirt roads remaining in the township.

The Crooked Bridge is a well known location to residents across the region. Located at the corner of Egyptian Trail and Church Road, the Crooked Bridge is a one of a kind bride that crosses Black Walnut Creek.

Other roads not previously mentioned that run through Will Township are Ridgeland Ave., Crawford Ave., Western Ave., Corning Ave., and Kennedy Rd.

Issues

Since the 1980's there has been talk of the State of Illinois building a third Chicagoland airport on the fertile farmland of Will Township. The majority of Will Township residents strongly oppose the Illinois Department of Transportation buying or taking land from area landowners for an airport that has not yet been approved by the Federal Aviation Administration.

External links

* [http://toi.org/willtownship Will Township Official Website]
* [http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/DatasetMainPageServlet?_lang=en&_ US Census]
* [http://www.city-data.com/township/Will-Will-IL.html City-data.com]
* [http://www.willcountyillinois.com/ Will County Official Site]
* [http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/irad/will.html Illinois State Archives]