Illinois (pronounced or "ill-i-NOY") is the 21st U.S. state and is located in the Midwest region of the United States of America. The state is known for its large and diverse population, its balance of rural areas, small industrial cities, vast suburbs and 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 by 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."State of Illinois. Illinois Symbols. Accessed on April 20, 2006

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chicagotribune.com -

Marathon organizers prepare for heat
Sat, 11 Oct 2008 16:06:40 -0500
With temperatures expected to exceed 80 degrees, race organizers said they plan to add more supplies at more stations, bananas and power gels for quick energy boosts and additional misting locations. 5 places to load up on carbs How to watch the race | Route map E-mail your photos to yourphotos@tribune.com
Palin denies 'abuse' of power
Sat, 11 Oct 2008 11:11:08 -0500

Ueberroth's pick for the 2016 Olympics? Chicago
Sat, 11 Oct 2008 16:46:25 -0500

Obama thanks McCain for toning down the rhetoric
Sat, 11 Oct 2008 11:25:48 -0500
On a campaign stop today in Philadephia, Obama acknowledged McCain's effort to tone down the rhetoric, as he did at his town hall meeting yesterday where voters urged him to get tough on Obama.
Bush: World economies shall overcome crisis
Sat, 11 Oct 2008 10:28:54 -0500

Reports: Chrysler, GM discuss merger, acquisition
Sat, 11 Oct 2008 20:35:00 -0500
DETROIT (AP) _ General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC have held preliminary talks about a merger or an acquisition of Chrysler by GM, according to published reports.

Chicago Sun-Times :: News ::

Two men say priest taught masturbation
BY ANDREW HERRMANN Staff Reporter aherrmann@suntimes.com Sat, 11 Oct 2008 04:00:00 -0600
Two men who say they were molested as teens by the Rev. Donald McGuire testified Friday that the now-defrocked priest convinced them that they were "addicted" to masturbation and needed to be "educated" on how to stop it.
7 cameras caught CTA bus killing
BY ANNIE SWEENEY Crime Reporter/asweeney@suntimes.com Sat, 11 Oct 2008 04:00:00 -0600
No fewer than seven CTA cameras caught the mayhem. Riders diving for cover, a teenager fatally shot in the head, and, outside the bus, Milton Wardlaw firing the gun, prosecutors said. Still, Wardlaw appeared in disbelief as he heard details of his alleged crime Friday in Cook County Bond Court.
Daley wants to hike event, parking taxes
BY FRAN SPIELMAN City Hall Reporter fspielman@suntimes.com Sat, 11 Oct 2008 04:00:00 -0600
Chicago sports fans, movie mavens, concertgoers and theater patrons will pay more to attend live events --and so will those who park their cars in garages and surface lots -- under a $25 million revenue package tied to Mayor Daley's 2009 budget. Daley tied his own hands by promising to close a massive budget gap without raising property taxes on the heels of last year's record $83.4 million increase.

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