Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 3,554, incorporated in 1853.
15% of residents live below the poverty line in Gillespie Township, against 8.4% in Illinois’ towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. We don’t grade Gillespie Township yet; the figures below are still real.
Where Gillespie Township beats most towns.
Where Gillespie Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Census counts: 432 in 1880, a peak of 5,111 in 1930, 3,168 in 2020. The archive holds 5 old photos and papers going back to 1880 and 2 maps from 1912 on.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Gillespie Township, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
Ordered by what stands out in Gillespie Township.
Most working residents leave Gillespie Township for work: only 8% work in town. Jobs based in Gillespie Township fell to 813 in 2023, 152 fewer than in 2013. At 28 minutes, Gillespie Township’s average trip to work is above both Illinois’ towns (26 minutes) and U.S. towns (25 minutes).
| Gillespie Township | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $81,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by Gillespie CUSD 7. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Gillespie High School, with 328 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ben-Gil Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 523 | C |
| Gillespie High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 328 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts
Gillespie Township has chilly winters and warm summers. Gillespie Township’s July high is 87°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Gillespie Township beats the Illinois average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 9. 38% of Gillespie Township adults have high blood pressure.
| Gillespie Township | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 35% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 13% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 11% | 12% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 18% | 19% |
| What stands out | Gillespie Township | IL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 7.6% | 9.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 10.8% | 13.2% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.2% | 6.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 53% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
3.2 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. The trail density in Gillespie Township is 0.1 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Big Brick | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
1 within 15 miles of the center of Gillespie Township
About 5 of every 100 Gillespie Township residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Illinois.
City in Illinois, United States
Gillespie is a city in Macoupin County, Illinois, United States, and part of the Metro East region of the St. Louis metropolitan area. The population was 3,168 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
7 towns share a border with Gillespie Township.
| Town | IL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gillespie Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Dorchester Township · Dorchester | — | — | A− | — | C+ | B− |
| Cahokia Township | #546 | C+ | A+ | — | C | C+ |
| Hillyard Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Brushy Mound Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Benld | — | — | A+ | — | C | C |
| Mount Clare | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Dorchester Township and Benld have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Dorchester Township, Cahokia Township and Benld report no FBI crime data of their own. Gillespie Township, Hillyard Township, Brushy Mound Township and Mount Clare aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Dorchester and Dorchester Township are one community, graded once. Compare Gillespie Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
We don’t grade Gillespie Township yet; the figures below are still real.