Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 3,859, settled in 1859.
South Wheatland Township gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $161K, 2.6 years of the Decatur metro’s $63K median household income. It grades B overall, ranked 420th of 767 in Illinois. The low prices come with trade-offs. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 71% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. On the plus side, the median household earns $94K. 30% of residents are 65 or older in South Wheatland Township, above both Illinois’ towns (19%) and U.S. towns (18%). Only 57 of Illinois’ 1,284 towns score lower on walkability. South Wheatland Township's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 91% of U.S. towns.
Where South Wheatland Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Illinois), ordered by how far South Wheatland Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 4,185 in 2000, 4,040 in 2020. The archive holds 5 maps from 1929 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in South Wheatland 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 South Wheatland Township.
South Wheatland Township sends most of its workers to Decatur and beyond, but it trails even towns with similar incomes on health.
Sand Creek Conservation Area, at 781 acres with 7 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. Across 3 parks and preserves: 12 miles of trail.
| South Wheatland Township | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 5.4% | 3.6% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.4 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Sand Creek Conservation Area | 7 mi | 781 |
| 2. Borg Warner Field | — | 41 |
| 3. Kaufman Lakeside Conservation Area | — | 5 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
One of its 2 schools is below, with the reason it’s listed. Public schools: Decatur SD 61. Enrollment at South Wheatland Township’s public school: 423 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| American Dreamer STEM AcademyLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–8 | Grades K–8 | 423 | D− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IL on state tests and graduation
South Wheatland Township has 144 jobs for its 1,579 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. Jobs based here fell from 491 in 2013 to 144.
Commuting out is the norm in South Wheatland Township: 1% of working residents work locally. Jobs in the town fell by 347 from 2013 to 2023, to 144. Also worth knowing: the town’s mean commuting time comes in at 21 minutes. The top destinations are Decatur (51%), Springfield (5%) and Chicago (2%).
| South Wheatland Township | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 3.9% | 8.4% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 1.1% | 8.4% | 8% |
| Median household income | $94,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Of the losses FEMA expects in South Wheatland Township, 57% come from inland flooding and 16% from cold waves. Paid flood insurance claims in the town since 1982: one.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
A winter brings about 14 inches of snow, with January nights at 19° and July afternoons at 85°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Against the 9,383 U.S. towns with household incomes like South Wheatland Township’s, it is less healthy than 72%, so it trails even them.
Two figures for adults in South Wheatland Township: 39% have high blood pressure, 13% have diabetes. Of 32 CDC measures, South Wheatland Township beats the Illinois average on 1 and trails it on 8. For adults here, the share who have obesity is 41%.
| South Wheatland Township | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 37% | 35% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 35% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 11% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 13% | 14% |
| What stands out | South Wheatland Township | IL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 7.4% | 9.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.9% | 7.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
2 within 15 miles of the center of South Wheatland Township
About 4 of every 100 South Wheatland Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Illinois.
Township in Illinois, United States
South Wheatland Township is located in Macon County, Illinois, south of Decatur. As of the 2020 census, its population was 4,040 and it contained 1,841 housing units. The South Wheatland Fire Protection District consists of 5 officers; 1 Chief, 1 Asst. Chief, 1 Captain, and 2 Lieutenants, and 14 Firefighters, as well as 3 members on the Board of Trustees.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
7 towns share a border with South Wheatland Township.
| Town | IL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Wheatland Township | #420 | B | B | — | B+ | B− |
| Decatur Township | #697 | D | A− | — | D− | C− |
| Long Creek Township | #399 | B | B− | — | B+ | B− |
| Mount Zion | #99 | A | B | A− | A− | A− |
| Decatur | #758 | D− | B+ | D | D− | C− |
| South Macon Township | — | — | A− | — | B+ | B+ |
| Blue Mound Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Mount Zion Township | #281 | A− | B+ | — | A− | B− |
South Macon Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. South Wheatland Township, Decatur Township, Long Creek Township, South Macon Township and Mount Zion Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Blue Mound Township isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare South Wheatland Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. South Wheatland Township grades B overall, better than 58% of U.S. towns and #420 of 767 in Illinois. It grades B− for health and B+ for schools. Walkability is its weak spot, with a D.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.