Encyclopedia
Illinois is the 21st
U.S. state and is located in the
Midwest region of the
United States of America. The state is the most populous in the Midwest, and the fifth most populous in the nation. Illinois is known for its large and diverse population; its balance of rural areas, small industrial cities, vast
suburbs and a great
metropolis; its highly diverse economic base; and its central location that has made it a transportation hub for 150 years. It is this mixture of factory and farm, of urban and rural that makes Illinois a microcosm of the nation.
About 2000
Native American hunters inhabited the area at the time of the
American Revolution, and a small number of
French villagers. American settlers began arriving from
Kentucky in the 1810s; they achieved statehood in 1818.
Yankees arrived a little later and dominated the north, creating the metropolis of Chicago in the 1830s. The coming of the
railroads in the 1850s made highly profitable the rich
prairie farmlands in central Illinois, attracting large numbers of immigrant farmers from
Germany and
Sweden. Northern Illinois, strongly
Republican, provided major support for Illinoisans
Abraham Lincoln and
Ulysses S. Grant during the
Civil War. By 1900, factories were being rapidly built in the northern cities, along with coal mines in central and southern areas, attracting large numbers of immigrants from
Eastern and
Southern Europe. Illinois was a major arsenal in both
world wars; large numbers of blacks left the cotton fields of the South to come to Chicago, where they developed a famous
jazz culture.
The state is named for the
Illinois River which was named by
French explorers after the indigenous Illiniwek people, a consortium of
Algonquian tribes that thrived in the area. The word
Illiniwek means "tribe of superior men."
Geography
The northeastern border of Illinois is
Lake Michigan. Its eastern border with
Indiana is all of the land west of the
Wabash River, and a north-south line above
Post Vincennes, or 87° 30' west longitude. Its northern border with
Wisconsin is fixed at 42° 30' latitude. Its western border with
Missouri and
Iowa is the
Mississippi River. Its southern border with
Kentucky is the
Ohio River. Illinois also borders
Michigan, but only via a water boundary in Lake Michigan. [Nelson 1978]
Though Illinois lies entirely in the
Interior Plains, it has three major geographical divisions. The first is
Chicagoland, including the city of
Chicago, its suburbs, and the adjoining exurban area into which the metropolis is expanding. This region includes a few counties in Indiana and Wisconsin and stretches across much of northern Illinois toward the Iowa border, generally along Interstates
80 and
90. This region is cosmopolitan, densely populated, industrialized, and settled by a variety of ethnic groups.
Cook County is the most populous county in the state, with over 5.3 million residents in 2004.
Southward and westward, the second major division is central Illinois, an area of mostly flat
prairie. The western section was originally part of the
Military Tract of 1812 and forms the distinctive western bulge of state. Known as the Land of
Lincoln or the Heart of Illinois, it is characterized by small towns and mid-sized cities. Agriculture, particularly
corn and
soybeans, as well as educational institutions and manufacturing centers, figures prominently. Major cities include
Peoria–the third largest metropolitan area in Illinois at 370,000,
Springfield–the state
capital,
Decatur, Bloomington-Normal and
Champaign-
Urbana. [Nelson 1978]
The third division is southern Illinois, comprising the area south of
U.S. Route 50, and including Little Egypt, near the juncture of the
Mississippi River and
Ohio River. This region can be distinguished from the other two by its warmer climate, different mix of crops , more rugged topography , as well as small-scale oil deposits and
coal mining. The area is a little more populated than the central part of the state with the population centered in two areas. First, the Illinois suburbs of St. Louis comprise the second most populous metropolitan area in Illinois with nearly 600,000 inhabitants, and are known collectively as the Metro-East. Second, the Carbondale,
Marion, West Frankfort, Herrin, Murphysboro area, is home to around 200,000 residents. [Nelson 1978]
Collectively, all of Illinois outside the Chicago Metropolitan area is called "downstate Illinois".
In extreme northwestern Illinois, the
Driftless Zone, a region of unglaciated and therefore higher and more rugged topography, occupies a small part of the state. Charles Mound, located in this region, is the state's highest natural elevation above
sea level at 1,235 feet . The highest true elevation in Illinois is the
Sears Tower with an elevation at the top of its roof of approximately 2,030 feet .
The floodplain on the Mississippi River from
Alton to the Kaskaskia River is the
American Bottom, and is the site of the ancient city of
Cahokia. It was a region of early French settlement, as well as the site of the first state capital, at Kaskaskia which is separated from the rest of the state by the Mississippi River. [Nelson ; Horsley ]
See also List of Illinois counties, List of Illinois county name etymologiesClimate
Because of its nearly 400 mile length, Illinois has a widely varying climate. Monthly average temperatures range from a high of 88°F in the south during the month of August to a low of 10°F in the northwest during February. Average yearly precipitation for Illinois varies from just over 48 inches at the southern tip to around 35 inches in the northern portion of the state. Normal annual snowfall exceeds 38 inches in Chicagoland due to
lake effect snow, while the south normally receives less than 14 inches. The highest temperature recorded in Illinois was 117°F, recorded on July 14, 1954, at East St. Louis, while the lowest temperature was -36°F, recorded on January 5, 1999, at Congerville. [Nelson ; Horsley ]
Recreation
Illinois has numerous museums. For example, the
Burpee Museum of Natural History in
Rockford which features the dinosaur fossil
Jane the Rockford T-Rex.
The Illinois state park system began in 1908 with what is now Fort Massac State Park becoming the first park in a system encompassing over 60 parks and about the same number of recreational and wildlife areas.
Areas under the protection and control of the
National Park Service include:
History
Pre-Columbian
Cahokia, the urban center of the pre-
Columbian Mississippian culture, was located near present-day
Collinsville, Illinois. That civilization vanished circa AD 1400–1500 for unknown reasons. The next major power in the region was the Illiniwek Confederation, or Illini, a political alliance among several tribes. The Illiniwek gave Illinois its name. The Illini suffered in the seventeenth century as
Iroquois expansion forced them to compete with several tribes for land. The Illini were replaced by the
Potawatomi, Miami, Sauk, and other tribes. [Nelson 1978]
European exploration
French explorers
Jacques Marquette and
Louis Joliet explored the
Illinois River in 1673. As a result of their exploration, Illinois was part of the French empire until 1763, when it passed to the
British as a result of the
French and Indian War.
George Rogers Clark claimed the
Illinois Country for the
Commonwealth of Virginia during his military campaigns there in 1778. The area was ceded to the new United States in 1783 and became part of the
Northwest Territory. [Biles ]
19th century
The
Illinois-Wabash Company was an early claimant to much of Illinois. The
Illinois Territory was created on February 3, 1809, with its capital at Kaskaskia. In 1818, Illinois became the 21st U.S. state. At the last minute, the state's northern border was controversially moved 50 miles north from the southern tip of Lake Michigan to its current location to include the port of Chicago. The capital remained at Kaskaskia, but in 1819 it was decided to move the capital up the Kaskaskia River to
Vandalia. Early U.S. settlement began in the southern part of the state and quickly spread northward, driving out the native residents. With the 1832
Black Hawk War, the last native tribes were driven out of northern Illinois.
The winter of 1830-1831 is called the "Winter of the Deep Snow". A sudden, deep snowfall blanketed the state, making travel impossible for the rest of the winter. Travelers lucky enough to find shelter had to stay where they were. Many others perished. Several severe winters followed, including the "Winter of the Sudden Freeze". On December 20, 1836, a fast-moving cold front passed through, freezing puddles in minutes and killing many travelers who could not reach shelter. The adverse weather resulted in crop failures in the northern part of the state. The southern part of the state shipped food north and this may have contributed to its name: "Egypt", after the
Biblical story of Joseph in Egypt supplying grain to his brothers.
Illinois is known as the "Land of
Lincoln" because it is here that the 16th
President spent most of his life, practicing law and living in
Springfield. In 1837, with Lincoln's support and urging, the General Assembly voted to move the capital to Springfield. As early as 1840, Illinois was called the "Sucker State". Illinois was not a strong anti-slavery state. In 1853, led by Democrat
John A. Logan, the legislature passed a Black Code designed to keep free blacks out of the state.
Chicago gained prominence as a
Great Lakes port and then as an
Illinois and Michigan Canal port after 1848, and as a rail hub soon afterward. By 1857, Chicago was Illinois' largest city. [Biles ]
Civil War
During the
Civil War, over 250,000 Illinois men served in the
Union Army, more than any other northern state except
New York,
Pennsylvania and
Ohio. Beginning with President Lincoln's first call for troops and continuing throughout the war, Illinois mustered 150 infantry regiments, which were numbered from the 7th IL to the 156th IL. Seventeen cavalry regiments were also gathered, as well as two light artillery regiments.
Twentieth century
In the 20th century, Illinois emerged as one of the most important states in the union with a population of nearly 5 million. By the end of the century the population would reach 12.4 million. The
Century of Progress world's fair was held at Chicago in 1933. Oil strikes in
Marion County lead to a boom in 1937, and by 1939 Illinois ranked 4th in U.S. oil production.
Following World War II,
Argonne National Laboratory, near Chicago, activated the first experimental nuclear power generating system in United States in 1957. By 1960, the first privately financed nuclear plant in United States, Dresden 1, was dedicated near Morris. Chicago became an ocean port with the opening of the
Saint Lawrence Seaway, in 1959. The seaway and the Illinois Waterway connected Chicago to both the Mississippi River and the Atlantic Ocean. In 1960,
Ray Kroc opened the first
McDonald's franchise in Des Plaines.
In 1970, the state's sixth constitutional convention authored a new constitution to replace the 1870 version. It was ratified in December. The first Farm Aid concert was held in Champaign to benefit American farmers, in 1985. The worst
upper Mississippi River flood of the century, the
Great Flood of 1993, inundated many towns and thousands of acres of farmland. [Biles ]
Demographics
As of 2005, Illinois has an estimated population of 12,763,371, which is an increase of 343,724, or 2.8%, since the year 2000. This includes a natural increase since the last census of 406,425 people and a decrease due to net migration of 63,011 people out of the state. Immigration from outside the United States resulted in a increase of 328,020 people, and migration within the country produced a loss of 391,031 people. As of 2004 there were 1,682,900 foreign-born .
At the northern edge of the state on Lake Michigan lies Chicago, the nation's third largest city. In 2000, 23.3% of the population lived in the city of Chicago, 43.3% in Cook County and 65.6% in Illinois's part of
Chicagoland, the leading industrial and transportation center in the region, which includes Will, DuPage, Kane, and Lake Counties as well as Cook County. The rest of the population lives in the smaller cities and in the rural areas that dot the state's plains. According to the 2000 census, the state population center was in
Grundy County northeast of Mazon.
[Biles ; Nelson ; Horsley ]
The top five ancestry groups in Illinois are:
German American ,
African American ,
Irish American ,
Mexican American , and
Polish-American . Nearly three in ten whites in Illinois claimed at least partial German ancestry on the Census. Blacks are present in large numbers in the city of Chicago, East St. Louis, and the southern tip of the state. Residents citing American and British ancestry are especially concentrated in the southeastern part of the state. Metropolitan Chicago has the greatest numbers of people of Irish, Mexican, and Polish ancestry.
7.1% of Illinois' population was reported as under age 5, 26.1% under age 18, and 12.1% were 65 or older. Females made up approximately 51% of the population.
[Horsley ]
Religion
Protestants are the largest religious group in Illinois. However, Illinois is not as heavily Protestant as neighboring states are. Roman Catholics, who are heavily concentrated in and around Chicago, account for 30% of the population.
Metro Chicago is home to the 3rd largest Jewish population in the United States.[Biles ]
Economy
The 2004 total gross state product for Illinois was nearly
US$522 billion, placing it 5
th in the nation. The 2004 per capita income was
US$34,721.
Illinois' agricultural outputs are
corn,
soybeans, hogs,
cattle, dairy products, and
wheat. Illinois' universities are actively researching alternative agricultural products as alternative crops. Its industrial outputs are machinery, food processing, electrical equipment, chemical products, publishing, fabricated metal products, transportation equipment,
petroleum and
coal.
Illinois' state
income tax is calculated by multiplying net income by a flat rate, currently 3 percent. There are two rates for state sales tax: 6.25 percent for general merchandise and 1 percent for qualifying food, drugs and medical appliances. The property tax is the largest single tax in Illinois, and is the major source of tax revenue for local government taxing districts. The property tax is a local—not state—tax, imposed by local government taxing districts which include counties, townships, municipalities, school districts, and special taxing districts. The property tax in Illinois is imposed only on real property. [Biles ; Nelson ; Horsley ]
Energy
It could be said that
nuclear power began in Illinois with the Chicago Pile-1, the world's first artificial self-sustaining
nuclear chain reaction in the world's first
nuclear reactor, built on a squash court under the abandoned west stands of the Alonzo Stagg Field stadium on the
University of Chicago campus.
As of 2006, Illinois has 6
Nuclear power plants which contain 11 electricity producing reactors.
As of January 1 2005 Illinois ranked 1st among the 31 States with nuclear capacity.
Illinois is a leading refiner of petroleum in the American Midwest, with a combined crude oil distillation capacity of nearly 0.9 million barrels per day. However, Illinois has very limited crude oil proved reserves that account for less than 1 percent of U.S. crude oil proved reserves. Residential heating is 81 percent
natural gas compared to less than 1 percent heating oil.
About 68% of Illinois has
coal-bearing strata of the
Pennsylvanian geologic period. According to the Illinois State Geological Survey, 211 billion tons of
bituminous coal are estimated to lie under the surface, having a total heating value greater than the estimated oil deposits in the
Arabian Peninsula. However, this coal has a high
sulfur content, which requires special equipment to reduce air pollution. [Biles ; Nelson ; Horsley ]
Transportation
Because of its central location and its proximity to the
Rust Belt and
Grain Belt, Illinois is a national crossroads and transportation hub, with
Chicago being the economic center of it all .
AIR -
O'Hare International Airport is one of the busiest airports in the world and is a major airport serving numerous domestic and international destinations. It is a hub for
United Airlines and
American Airlines, and a major airport expansion project is currently underway.
Midway Airport is the secondary airport serving metro Chicago. Bellville Mid-America Airport serves the
St Louis metro area .
RAIL - Illinois has an extensive rail network transporting both passengers and freight. Chicago is a national
Amtrak hub and in-state passengers are served by Amtrak's Illinois Service featuring the Chicago to Carbondale Illini and Chicago to Quincy Illinois Zephyr.
ROAD - Major U.S. Interstate highways crossing the state include:
I-24,
I-39,
I-55 
