Conrad Will (June 3, 1779 – June 12, 1835) was an American physician, politician, and pioneer who is the namesake of

Will County, Illinois 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. The county seat ...

. Born in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, Will studied medicine in a town in the western portion of the state before moving to

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

. His farm in

Jackson County, Illinois Jackson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois with a population of 52,974 at the 2020 census. Its county seat is Murphysboro, and its most populous city is Carbondale, home to the main campus of Southern Illinois University ...

became the first county seat there. Will co-authored the

Constitution of Illinois The Constitution of the State of Illinois is the governing document of the state of Illinois. There have been four Illinois Constitutions; the fourth and current version was adopted in 1970. The current constitution is referred to as the "Constit ...

in 1818 and then served in the

Illinois Senate The Illinois Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state, State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adop ...

for the 1st Illinois General Assembly. Will remained in one of the two houses of the general assembly until his death. The following year, Will County was named in his honor.

Biography

Conrad Will was born near

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

on June 3, 1779. He was the sixth of ten children born to Daniel and Maria Will. As a youth, Will helped his father on the family farm. He attended a subscription school during winters and took an interest in medicine. He attended a medical school in Philadelphia and graduated with a doctor's degree. He moved west to

Somerset County, Pennsylvania Somerset County (Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania German: ''Somerset Kaundi'') is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the po ...

to establish a practice. In the early 1810s, Will decided to strike out as a pioneer and decided to visit the

Illinois Territory The Territory of Illinois was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 1, 1809, until December 3, 1818, when the southern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Illinois. Its ca ...

. Impressed with the region, he returned home then moved his family to

Kaskaskia The Kaskaskia were one of the indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands. They were one of about a dozen cognate tribes that made up the Illiniwek Confederation, also called the Illinois Confederation. Their longstanding homeland was in t ...

. Arriving in the spring of 1815, he found a suitable location on the

Big Muddy River The Big Muddy River is a river in southern Illinois. It joins the Mississippi River just south of Grand Tower. The Big Muddy has been dammed near Benton, forming Rend Lake. The Big Muddy has a mud bottom for most of its length. Hydrography T ...

in southern

Randolph County Randolph County is the name of eight counties in the United States: *Randolph County, Alabama *Randolph County, Arkansas *Randolph County, Georgia *Randolph County, Illinois *Randolph County, Indiana *Randolph County, Missouri *Randolph County, Nort ...

to live, building a double room log cabin. He obtained a license to practice medicine for around him. In 1816, Will purchased some kettles and began to manufacture salt from a spring near his farm, but the venture was unsuccessful. When

was created later that year, Will's farm was named the county seat as Brownsville. Will was named one of the first county commissioners. Will was one of two representatives from Jackson County at the Convention of 1818, which wrote the first

. Following its approval, Will was named the first

state senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...

from the county, making him one of the fourteen at the 1st Illinois General Assembly. The next term he was elected to the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 re ...

, where he served until returning to the Senate in 1828. While serving in the House of Representatives in 1823, Will issued a minority report in response to Governor Coles' request for legislation to eliminate slavery in the state; Will argued that Illinois lacked the authority to abrogate slavery and recommended that the state convene a constitutional convention in which delegates might remove restrictions on slavery as they saw fit, repeatedly urging the possibility of expanding slavery within the state. He served in the upper house until his death in 1835. Will married Susanah Kimmel in 1804. In his free time, Will liked to hunt. He also collected timber, soil, flowers, and fruits. He died near Brownsville on June 12, 1835. The following December, the

Illinois General Assembly The Illinois General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. It has two chambers, the Illinois House of Representatives and the Illinois Senate. The General Assembly was created by the first state constitution adopted in 181 ...

unanimously passed legislation dedicating thirty days of mourning in the assembly. On January 12, 1836, the legislature created a new county from the lower portion of

Cook County Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40% of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. As of 20 ...

. The new county was named

Will County Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...

in his honor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Will, Conrad 1779 births 1835 deaths County commissioners in Illinois Illinois state senators Members of the Illinois House of Representatives Physicians from Illinois People from Jackson County, Illinois Physicians from Philadelphia People from Kaskaskia, Illinois