ILLINOIS

CHICAGO
In the beginnings:
• In the mid-18th century, the area was inhabited by a Native American
tribe known as the Potawatomi, who had taken the place of
the Miami and Fox peoples. The first known non-indigenous permanent
settler in Chicago was Jean Baptiste Point du Sable. Du Sable was
of African and French descent and arrived in the 1780s. He is commonly
known as the "Founder of Chicago".
• In 1795, following the Northwest Indian War, an area that was to be
part of Chicago was turned over to the United States for a military post
by native tribes in accordance with the Treaty of Greenville. In 1803,
the United States Army built Fort Dearborn, which was destroyed in
1812 in the Battle of Fort Dearborn and later
rebuilt. The Ottawa, Ojibwe, and Potawatomi tribes had ceded
additional land to the United States in the 1816 Treaty of St. Louis. The
Potawatomi were forcibly removed from their land after the Treaty of
Chicago in 1833.
Civil War and after
• During the American Civil War, Illinois ranked fourth in men who
served (more than 250,000) in the Union Army, a figure surpassed
by only New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. Beginning with
President Abraham Lincoln's first call for troops and continuing
throughout the war, Illinois mustered 150 infantry regiments, which
were numbered from the 7th to the 156th regiments. Seventeen
cavalry regiments were also gathered, as well as two light artillery
regiments.The town of Cairo, at the southern tip of the state at the
confluence of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, served as a
strategically important supply base and training center for the
Union army. For several months, both General Grant and Admiral
Foote had headquarters in Cairo.
Where is Illinois?
• Illinois is a state in the
United States. Its capital is
Springfield and its largest
city is Chicago. It is
bordered to the north by
Wisconsin, to the west by
Iowa and below that, by
Missouri (both borders are
along the Mississippi
River). To the south-east,
Illinois is bordered along
the Ohio River by Kentucky
and to the east by Indiana.
Illinois' northeasternmost
boundary is to Lake
Michigan.
Religion
• 71% identify as Christians, 7% identity with other faiths, and 22% have
no religious affiliation. Chicago also has
many Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, and others. Chicago is the
headquarters of several religious denominations, including
the Evangelical Covenant Church and the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America. It is the seat of several dioceses. The Fourth
Presbyterian Church is one of the
largest Presbyterian congregations in the United States based on
memberships.
• The first two Parliament of the World's Religions in 1893 and 1993
were held in Chicago.[171] Many international religious leaders have
visited Chicago, including Mother Teresa, the Dalai Lama and Pope
John Paul II in 1979.
Economy of Illinois
• The economy of Illinois is the
fifth largest by GDP in the
United States and one of the
most diversified economies
in the world. The Chicago
metropolitan area is home to
many of the United States'
largest companies, including
Allstate, Caterpillar, Kraft
Heinz, McDonald's,
Motorola, United Airlines,
and more. The Chicago area
headquarters a wide variety
of financial institutions, and
is home to the largest
futures exchange in the
world, the Chicago
Mercantile Exchange.
Agriculture

• Illinois's major agricultural outputs are corn, soybeans, hogs, cattle, dairy products,
and wheat. In most years, Illinois is either the first or second state for the highest
production of soybeans. Illinois ranks second in U.S. corn production with more than
1.5 billion bushels produced annually. With a production capacity of 1.5 billion gallons
per year, Illinois is a top producer of ethanol, ranking third in the United States in
2011. Illinois is a leader in food manufacturing and meat processing. Although Chicago
may no longer be "Hog Butcher for the World", the Chicago area remains a global
center for food manufacture and meat processing, with many plants, processing
houses, and distribution facilities concentrated in the area of the former Union Stock
Yards. Illinois also produces wine, and the state is home to two American viticultural
areas. In the area of The Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Byway, peaches and
apples are grown. The German immigrants from agricultural backgrounds who
settled in Illinois in the mid- to late 19th century are in part responsible for the
profusion of fruit orchards in that area of Illinois. Illinois's universities are actively
researching alternative agricultural products as alternative crops.
Climate of Illinois
• Because of its nearly 400 miles length and mid-continental
placement, Illinois has a widely varying climate. Most of Illinois has
a humid continental climate with hot, humid summers and cool to
cold winters. Average yearly precipitation for Illinois varies from 48
inches at the southern tip to 35 inches in the northern portion of
the state. Normal annual snowfall exceeds 38 inches in Chicago,
while the southern portion of the state normally receives less than
14 inches. The highest temperature recorded in Illinois was 47.2 °C,
recorded on July 14, 1954, at East St. Louis, while the lowest
temperature was −38.9 °C, recorded on January 31, 2019, at Mt
Carroll, Illinois.
Culture of Illinois
• Museums:
• Illinois has numerous museums;
the greatest concentration of
these are in Chicago. Several
museums in Chicago are ranked as
some of the best in the world.
These include the John G. Shedd
Aquarium, the Field Museum of
Natural History, the Art Institute
of Chicago, the Adler Planetarium,
and the Museum of Science and
Industry.

• The modern Abraham Lincoln

Presidential Library and Museum
in Springfield is the largest and
most attended presidential library
in the country. The Illinois State
Museum boasts a collection of
13.5 million objects that tell the
story of Illinois life, land, people,
and art.
• Music

• Illinois is a leader in music

education, having hosted the
Midwest Clinic International
Band and Orchestra Conference
since 1946, as well being home
to the Illinois Music Educators
Association (IMEA), one of the
largest professional music
educator's organizations in the
country. Each summer since
2004, Southern Illinois
University Carbondale has
played host to the Southern
Illinois Music Festival, which
presents dozens of
performances throughout the
region. Past featured artists
include the Eroica Trio and
violinist David Kim. Chicago, in
the northeast corner of the
state, is a major center for music
in the midwestern United States
where distinctive forms of blues
(greatly responsible for the
future creation of rock and roll),
and house music, a genre of
electronic dance music, were
developed.
Illinois facts:
• The word “Illinois” comes from the French version of an Indian
word which means “men” or “warriors.”
• On April 15, 1955, the first McDonald’s franchise in Des Plaines,
Illinois, was opened.
• In 1814, The Kaskaskia Illinois Herald was the first newspaper that
was printed in Illinois.
• Illinois generates 12% of the nation’s nuclear power.
• The Lincoln Park Zoo (founded in 1886) is one of the free zoos in
the U.S. and among the nation’s oldest public zoos.
• The term “Jazz” was coined in Chicago in 1914 by Benny Goodman
and Gene Krupa.
• Most of the area of the state was once covered with prairie grass,
which earned the state its nickname – “The Prairie State.”
 Bibliography
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illinois
• http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/usaweb/snapshot/Illinois.htm
• https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/worlds-busiest-airports-preliminary-2017/index.html
• http://www.willistower.com/history-and-facts
• https://data.ers.usda.gov/reports.aspx?ID=17844
• https://www.britannica.com/place/Illinois-state
• http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/tallest-man-ever
• https://www.moving.com/tips/the-top-10-largest-us-cities-by-population/
• http://www.boeing.com/company/
• https://www.britannica.com/topic/McDonalds
• https://wikitravel.org/en/Route_66
• https://wallethub.com/edu/states-with-the-highest-and-lowest-property-taxes/11585/
• http://www.governing.com/gov-data/number-of-governments-by-state.html
• (“Kaskaskia: Where Illinois’ History”) Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, IL), December 26, 2017
• http://www.200illinois.com/illinois-is-the-heart-of-the-u-s-interstate-system/
• http://exhibits.museum.state.il.us/exhibits/athome/1800/timeline/index.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago
• http://www.netstate.com/states/intro/il_intro.htm
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Mound
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaskaskia,_Illinois
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vandalia,_Illinois
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peoria,_Illinois
• http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/politics/chi-chicagodays-reversingriver-story-story.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_River
• https://www.sciencenews.org/blog/context/anniversary-first-controlled-nuclear-chain-reaction
• https://www.nbcchicago.com/blogs/ward-room/Illinois-Was-The-First-State-To-Ratify-The-13th-Amendment-179690281.html