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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Beautiful drive from Fox Glacier to Queenstown.I was admiring the view,Lidya was counting dead animals on the road (29 before she got bored)
pkfrancis (Paul Francis) Sun, 08 Nov 2009 04:44:49 -0000
Beautiful drive from Fox Glacier to Queenstown.I was admiring the view,Lidya was counting dead animals on the road (29 before she got bored)
@Ashesleighdown Oh? that's interesting...don't let any animals out of their cages? loll.
ChrystalJean92 (Chrystal) Sun, 08 Nov 2009 04:43:53 -0000
@Ashesleighdown Oh? that's interesting...don't let any animals out of their cages? loll.
Great night at Black Tie and Tails! Lots of money raised for Animal Friends Pittsburgh. Animals everywhere say thanks.
Peggy_S (Peggy Shields) Sun, 08 Nov 2009 04:43:49 -0000
Great night at Black Tie and Tails! Lots of money raised for Animal Friends Pittsburgh. Animals everywhere say thanks.
http://twitpic.com/opx2a - @petewentz Welcome to Australia where even the animals love Fall Out Boy =]
dozerkat (Casey) Sun, 08 Nov 2009 04:43:39 -0000
http://twitpic.com/opx2a - @petewentz Welcome to Australia where even the animals love Fall Out Boy =]
Just watched Earthlings, if you have ever had any curiosity/doubts about human mistreatment of animals you should give it a shot, I'll lend.
jmechy (jmechy) Sun, 08 Nov 2009 04:43:30 -0000
Just watched Earthlings, if you have ever had any curiosity/doubts about human mistreatment of animals you should give it a shot, I'll lend.
You can take rodents outside, I used to take Adam out all the time. Unlike other animals though you have to keep an eye out for predators.
maryjane_ (Maryann) Sun, 08 Nov 2009 04:42:32 -0000
You can take rodents outside, I used to take Adam out all the time. Unlike other animals though you have to keep an eye out for predators.

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