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The State of Illinois is a state of the United States of America and the 21st state admitted to the Union. Illinois is the most populous state in the Midwest and the fifth most populous in the nation, and has a large and cosmopolitan population. Its balance of vast suburbs and the great metropolis of Chicago in the northeast, rural areas, small industrial cities, and renowned agricultural productivity in central and western Illinois, and the coal mines of the south give it a highly diverse economic base. Its central location, connecting the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River via the Illinois River, 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 United States.
About 2,000 Native American hunters and a small number of French villagers inhabited the area at the time of the American Revolution. American settlers began arriving from Kentucky in the 1810s; they achieved statehood in 1818. Yankees arrived a little later and dominated the north, founding the future 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 provided major support for Illinoisans Abraham Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant during the American Civil War. By 1900, factories were being rapidly built in the northern cities, along with coal mines in central and southern areas. This industrialization attracted large numbers of immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe, and also led to the state's material contribution as a major arsenal in both world wars. In addition to immigrants from Europe, large numbers of blacks left the cotton fields of the South to come to Chicago, where they developed a famous jazz culture.

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News from the Chicago Sun-Times

You'll pay more as city services are cut back

Nov 20, 2008 10:00 am

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Lane Bryant survivor off company payroll

Nov 20, 2008 10:00 am

The Lane Bryant employee who was the only person to survive a quintuple slaying at the store earlier this year is not getting paid.

Human bones discovered in burned out car

Nov 20, 2008 10:00 am

A rusty, burned out car hidden in a Gary corn field contained human bones, but few other clues to help police determine what happened there. Police officers discovered the car shortly after noon Wedne...

Wish comes true for 7-year old 'officer'

Nov 20, 2008 10:00 am

The Buffalo Grove Police Department welcomed a new officer into the ranks and helped make a dream come true. George Marijan, 7, was presented with a service award from the town Wednesday for capturing...

Not all like plan to add seats at elite CPS school

Nov 20, 2008 10:00 am

A plan that could double the number of entry seats at elite Skinner Classical on the Near West Side by using shuttered Sojourner Truth School in Cabrini-Green as a second campus was given the green li...

Gay school dispute isn't over

Nov 20, 2008 10:00 am

A Humboldt Park minister charged Wednesday that top designers of a gay-friendly high school reneged on a "deal'' with clergymen to strip the gay focus from the school's mission and said "hun...

Gas not the only price that's plunging

Nov 20, 2008 10:00 am

A plunge in gasoline prices and lower housing costs drove consumer prices in the Chicago area down 1 percent in October, the Labor Department said Wednesday. Nationally, prices also dropped 1 percent,...

Angels fire still 'very emotional'

Nov 20, 2008 10:00 am

Fifty years ago next month, 92 children and three nuns from Our Lady of the Angels School died in a fire so deadly, Chicago's fire code was rewritten to prevent a tragic repeat. Like Sept. 11 and the ...

Tollway board gives green light to carpool lanes

Nov 20, 2008 10:00 am

The Illinois Tollway board today approved a proposal to spend $1.8 billion on road improvements, including $1.4 billion on interchanges and $400 million to establish carpool lanes.

O'Hare opens new runway

Nov 20, 2008 10:00 am

The new runway at O'Hare International Airport is officially open for business after the arrival of the first plane to use the $450 million strip that's part of the O'Hare expansion plan. Mayor Richar...

Illinois News from BigNewsNetwork.com

UI police determine man only had toy gun

Nov 20, 2008 4:17 pm

Printer-friendly URBANA – University of Illinois police detained a Champaign man with a toy gun on campus Wednesday afternoon.Interim Chief Jeff Christensen said officers questioned a 26...

Durbin gathering FutureGen supporters for renewed effort

Nov 20, 2008 4:17 pm

Printer-friendly MATTOON – Sen. Dick Durbin is gathering members of the Illinois congressional delegation and officials from the FutureGen Alliance today to discuss FutureGen.It&#039...

School boards could have a few new faces after April

Nov 20, 2008 4:17 pm

Printer-friendly Local school boards may start to resemble a round of musical chairs come the April 7 election.With at least eight seats in three different districts up for re-election, and recent...

Caution light should speed fire trucks responding in Savoy

Nov 20, 2008 4:17 pm

Printer-friendly SAVOY – The village fire department is being held up by a stop sign.Currently, when responding to incident calls, emergency vehicles stop before turning onto Dunlap Aven...

IMAGE Chicago Magazine Celebrates 3-Year Anniversary With Over 50 Clients

Nov 20, 2008 4:16 pm

IMGW ) subsidiary IMAGE Chicago Magazine released its 3-year anniversary issue with over 50 advertising clients in the publication. IMAGE Chicago Magazine started out as a 5" by 6" magazi...

Drew Peterson set to appear in court on gun charge

Nov 20, 2008 4:10 pm

Drew Peterson faces felony gun charges for allegedly possessing an assault rifle with a barrel shorter than allowed by state law. He hasn't been charged in the 2007 disappearance of

Astronauts vow to hold onto remaining tool bag

Nov 20, 2008 4:09 pm

This image provided by NASA shows an extravehicular activity (EVA) tool bag drifting away from the International Space Station during the mission's first scheduled spacewalk Tuesday.

Broken rail stalls Metra trains in suburbs

Nov 20, 2008 4:09 pm

Metra officials say commuters are experiencing delays of up to 30 minutes on the Union Pacific West Line because of a broken rail in the vicinity of the Berkeley train depot.

Dems look to stop endangered species rule changes

Nov 20, 2008 4:09 pm

WASHINGTON -- With the Bush administration on the verge of relaxing regulations protecting endangered species, Democratic leaders are looking at ways to overturn any last-minute rule changes.

Accident on Route 53 in Arlington Heights shuts down one lane

Nov 20, 2008 4:09 pm

Fire and police are on the scene of an accident in Arlington Heights with injuries in the southbound lanes of Route 53 at Euclid Avenue, state police officials said.

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• WOODSTOCK
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• ZION

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