Illinois History Guide

The Illinois region was populated way before the European invasion. Cahokia, the urban center of the pre-Columbian Mississippian culture, was located near present-day Collinsville, Illinois. That civilization vanished in the 15th century for unknown reasons. The next major power in the region was the Illiniwek Confederation, or Illini, a political alliance among several tribes. There were about 25,000 Illinois Indians in 1700, but systematic attacks and genocide by the Iroquois reduced their numbers by 90%. Members of the Potawatomi, Miami, Sauk, and other tribes came in from the east and north.[14] In the American Revolution, the Illinois and Potawatomi supported the American cause.

In 1673 French explorers Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet began their exploration of the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers. Others followed, and for much-needed protection from indigenous Indians, forts were built. Other expeditions followed and in 1675, Father Jacques Marquette founded a mission at the Kaskaskia Indian Village near present-day Ottawa. In 1717, France placed Illinois into the Louisiana Colony. Illinois remained a part of the French Empire until the Treaty of Paris of 1763 when it passed to the victorious British in the French and Indian War (1754-1763).

During the Revolutionary War (1775-1783), George Rogers Clark of Virginia and a group called the "Big Knives" raided English forts in Illinois. They captured Kaskaskia and Cahokia and made Illinois part of the county of Virginia. The land was given to the U.S. government and later named part of the Northwest Territory in 1787. After the war, in 1783, this entire region was ceded to the United States by the State of Virginia, and it became part of the Northwest Territory; land that would be settled, and eventually divided into individual states within the United States.

In 1809, the Illinois Territory was created. Hundreds of settlers began moving to Illinois from Virginia, Kentucky, and Maryland. Indians, angry with the settlers for taking their lands, sided with Britain in the War of 1812. Many settlers were massacred as they attempted to leave Fort Dearborn near the mouth of the Chicago River.

Illinois became the 21st U.S. State in 1818 with its capital in Kaskaskia. In 1819 the capital was moved to Vandalia, and later to Springfield.

The Black Hawk War of 1832 resulted in all of the remaining native American tribes being driven west of the Mississippi River. The expansion of railroads in the 19th century facilitated the arrival of a large number of immigrant farmers from Sweden and Germany. In 1830, Abraham Lincoln's family moved from Indiana to Illinois. At age 23, he began his political career. As a lawyer, he served four successive terms in the Illinois House of Representatives, and was a powerful force in forming the Republican Party.

Lincoln became president of the United States two years later. Six southern states seceded from the Union and the Civil War (1861-1865) began after his inauguration. Ulysses S. Grant, general of the Union Army, and 250,000 soldiers fought from Illinois during the war.

There was a rapid increase in industrial development in Illinois after the Civil War. Railroads were a major catalyst, as they brought immigrants by the thousands to work in the quickly expanding factories in Chicago, and other northern cities. Chicago led the nation in grain and meatpacking production, but on Oct. 8, 1871 the city of Chicago was destroyed; the Great Chicago Fire burned for almost two days killing over 300 people. Chicago was quickly rebuilt, and by 1875 there was little evidence of the disaster remaining.

By the early 1900's, factories continued to expand in the northern cities, and coal mines in the central and southern parts of Illinois attracted large numbers of immigrants from eastern and southern Europe.

In the early 20th century laws were passed in America banning the manufacturing and selling of alcohol. During the years of Prohibition (1920-1933) in the Chicago area, the infamous gangster Al Capone, his mob and other gangs, sold illegal liquor; bringing unwanted notoriety and violence to Chicago.

When the Great Depression of the 1930's reared its ugly head, it proved financially disastrous across Illinois, and all of America. Industry all but shut down and thousands or workers lost their jobs. The discovery of oil in the southern-reaches of the state provided some of the needed economic recovery in the late 1930s.

Today, Illinois stands high in manufacturing, coal mining, agriculture, and oil production. The state's manufactures include food and agricultural products, transportation equipment, chemicals, industrial machinery, and computer equipment. The sprawling Chicago district (including a slice of Indiana) is a great iron and steel producer, meat packer, grain exchange, and railroad center. Chicago is also famous as a Great Lakes port.

Illinois is a leading producer of soybeans, corn, and hogs. Other agricultural commodities include cattle, wheat, oats, sorghum, and hay.

Illinois Famous People

• Jane Addams (1860 - 1935) Earned a Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts in helping the inner city poor; born in Cedarville.
• Black Hawk (1767 - 1838) Sauk leader who led the Indians in the black Hawk War; born near Rock Island.
• Gwendolyn Brooks (1917 -  2000) The first African-American woman to win a Pulitzer Price; grew up in Chicago.
• Hillary Rodham Clinton (1947 - ) Lawyer, politician, First Lady to President Bill Clinton, First Lady elected to the United States Senate; born in Chicago.
• Miles Davis (1926 - 1991) Trumpeter, Composer, Bandleader, and Artist; born in Alton.
• John Deere (1804 - 1886) Invented the first successful steel plow; born in Vermont lived in Grand Detour.
• Walt Disney (1901 - 1966) Creator of Mickey Mouse and founder of the Disneyland® and Walt Disney World® Theme Parks; born in Chicago.
• George Ferris (1859 - 1896) Inventor of the Ferris wheel; born in Galesburg.
• Marshall Field (1834-1906) Established the Marshall Field & Company store that became the largest retail business in the world at that time; lived in Chicago.
• Harrison Ford (1942 - ) Actor made famous in Star Wars and as Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark and its sequels; born in Chicago.
• Ernest Hemingway (1899 - 1961) Nobel Prize winning author; born in Oak Park.
• Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865) The 16^th President of the United States; moved from Kentucky to New Salem at the age of 21.
• Marlee Matlin (1965 - ) The youngest recipient (21) to win an Oscar for an acting role; born in Morton Grove.
• Bill Murray (1950 - ) Actor made famous in Saturday Night Live and movies such as Ghostbusters and Groundhog Day; born in Evanston.
• Ronald Wilson Reagan (1911 - ) The 40^th President of the United States; born in Tampico.
• Carl Sandburg (1878 - 1967) Pulitzer Prize winning author of Abraham Lincoln; The War Years; born in Galesburg.
• Shel Silverstein (1932 - 1999 ) Author of children?s books such as Where the Sidewalk Ends and The Giving Tree; from Chicago.
• Robin Williams (1952 - ) Actor made famous in the television show Mork and Mindy and movies such as Patch Adams and Toys; born in Chicago.