Joliet, Illinois
| Joliet, Illinois | |
| City | |
 Downtown scene
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| Official name: City of Joliet | |
| Name origin: Louis Jolliet | |
| Nicknames: City of Steel, City of Stone, City of Champions, Prison City | |
| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| State | Illinois |
| Counties | Will, Kendall |
| Townships | Joliet, Troy, Plainfield, Lockport, New Lenox, Jackson, Channahon, Seward, Na-Au-Say |
| River | Des Plaines |
| Elevation | 614 ft (187 m) |
| Coordinates | 41°31′14″N 88°09′02″W / 41.52056°N 88.15056°WCoordinates: 41°31′14″N 88°09′02″W / 41.52056°N 88.15056°W |
| Area | 62.77 sq mi (163 km2) |
| - land | 62.11 sq mi (161 km2) |
| - water | 0.66 sq mi (2 km2) |
| Population | 147,806 (2013)
149,395 (2016) |
| Density | 2,373.6/sq mi (916/km2) |
| Settled | 1833 |
| Incorporated | 1852 |
| Government | Council-manager |
| Mayor | Bob O'Dekirk (R) |
| Timezone | CST (UTC-6) |
| - summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| Zip codes | 60431, 60432, 60433, 60434, 60435, 60436, 60586 |
| Area codes | 815, 779 |
| Demonym | Jolietan |
   Location of Joliet within Illinois
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| Statistics: | |
| Website: www.cityofjoliet.info | |
149,395 (2016)
Joliet (/ˈdʒoʊli.ɛt/ or /dʒoʊliˈɛt/) is a city in Kendall and Will counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, 40 miles (64 km) southwest of Chicago. It is the county seat of Will County. At the 2010 census, the city was the fourth largest in Illinois, with a population of 147,433. A special census done in 2016 puts Joliet's population at 149,395 making it the 3rd largest City in Illinois.
In 1833, following the Black Hawk War, Charles Reed built a cabin along the west side of the Des Plaines River. Across the river in 1834, James B. Campbell, treasurer of the canal commissioners, laid out the village of "Juliet", a name local settlers had been using before his arrival. The origin of the name was most likely a corruption of the name of French Canadian explorer Louis Jolliet, who in 1673, along with Father Jacques Marquette, paddled up the Des Plaines River and camped on a huge mound, a few miles south of present-day Joliet. Maps from Jolliet's exploration of the area, placed a large hill or mound on what is now the southwest corner of the city, since there is no point that is farther southwest. That hill was named Mound Jolliet. The spot was mined by early settlers and is now a depression. Just before the economic depression of 1837, Juliet incorporated as a village, but to cut tax expenses, Juliet residents soon petitioned the state to rescind that incorporation. In 1845, local residents changed the community's name from "Juliet" to "Joliet". Joliet was reincorporated as a city in 1852. Cornelius Cohenhoven Van Horne was active in getting the city its first charter, and because of this he was elected Joliet's first Mayor. When the city later built a new bridge it was named The Van Horne Bridge.
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