Photo: User:Visviva · CC BY-SA 4.0Chatham Township has 149 acres of parks, 18 for every 1,000 residents
0.7 miles of mapped trail cross Chatham Township. 65% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 30% of U.S. towns · #649 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
How much outdoors does Chatham Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Chatham Township is ahead of 30% of U.S. towns, #649 of 768 in Illinois. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Pick a walk
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
146 conserved acres
1% of Chatham Township’s land. Who manages Chatham Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sangamon Valley Greenway State Recreation Area | Other state land | 76 | Open |
| Chatham Community Park Local Park | Town or city | 43 | Open |
| Westside Park Local Park | Town or city | 19 | Open |
| Chatham Trail State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 5 | Open |
| Unknown Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Interurban Trail Unknown | Town or city | 1 | Open |
5 places to go in Chatham Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Plus 1 dog park without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
1 lakes & rivers
2.9 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
August is the best month for walking in Chatham Township
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.7 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 15.0 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 35 | 41 | 52 | 65 | 75 | 83 | 86 | 85 | 79 | 67 | 52 | 40 |
| Rain (in) | 2.2 | 2.0 | 2.8 | 4.3 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 3.9 | 3.5 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 3.1 | 2.2 |
February is the driest month (2.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 86 °F). 4.6 inches fall in May, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 86 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Chatham Township →
Chatham Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chatham Township | 1% | under 0.1 | 18 | 65% | C |
| Ball Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 11 | 68% | C− |
| Auburn Township | under 1% | 0.1 | 20 | 70% | C+ |
| Chatham | 2% | under 0.1 | 10 | 71% | C |
| Springfield | 6% | 0.8 | 19 | 72% | B+ |
| Capital Township | 6% | 0.8 | 19 | 73% | B+ |
| Loami Township | under 1% | 0.1 | 15 | 24% | C− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Chatham Township
How much of Chatham Township is conserved land?
1% of its land, against a typical 4% for an Illinois town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Chatham Township’s trails?
Chatham Community Park and West Side Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Chatham Township?
2.9 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.5 of painted or protected lanes and 2.4 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Chatham Township?
2,302 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Chatham Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 149 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Chatham Township have?
Ahead of 30% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #649 of 768 in Illinois. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Chatham Township neighbors.
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →