LeRoy Commercial Historic District · Photo: Esvobod2 · CC BY-SA 3.0Empire Township has 35 acres of parks, 8.7 for every 1,000 residents
90% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 0.5 miles of mapped trail cross Empire Township.
Ahead of 27% of U.S. towns · #676 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Empire Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Empire Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Empire Township is ahead of 27% of U.S. towns, #676 of 768 in Illinois. The share of residents near a park holds 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.
26 conserved acres
under 1% of Empire Township’s land. Who manages Empire Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Howard Virgin Timber Park State Conservation Area | Town or city | 20 | Open |
| Bowman Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Town Center Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Pheasant Lane Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Falcon Ridge Owens Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| How Lot Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
14 places to go in Empire Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
11 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
2 dog parks without a name on the map.
1 disc golf course without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
0.0 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 Empire 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) | 9.6 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.0 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 33 | 38 | 50 | 63 | 74 | 83 | 85 | 84 | 79 | 66 | 50 | 38 |
| Rain (in) | 2.2 | 1.9 | 2.6 | 3.8 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 3.6 | 3.1 | 3.3 | 3.0 | 2.3 |
February is the driest month (1.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 4.4 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Empire Township →
Empire 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Empire Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 9 | 90% | C |
| West Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Dawson Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Downs Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Empire Township
How much of Empire Township is conserved land?
under 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 Empire Township’s trails?
Brickyard Park and Bowman Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Empire Township?
3,251 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Empire Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 35 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Empire Township have?
Ahead of 27% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #676 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 Empire 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 →