Illinois is known for many things: Abraham Lincoln, the third largest city in the country, sprawling farmland, political corruption and die-hard sports fans.
But State Historian Samuel Wheeler said there are other lesser-known tidbits of Illinois history that make the 21st state in the Union remarkable.
“We have a lot of things to be excited about … being in Illinois,” said Wheeler, who is also director of research and collections at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield.
While historians, state officials and the public have taken part in various bicentennial celebrations throughout the year, Wheeler said this time is an opportunity to reflect on what has made the state stand out in the past and what could be the future of Illinois.
“So many people are getting a deeper appreciation” of the state’s history, he said. “It’s a good time for reflection, but also a good time to look forward. We all can have a part in creating the future in Illinois.”
To look back on what’s made Illinois the 57,000 square miles it is today, here are five of Wheeler’s favorite facts about Illinois, which was ratified as a state Dec. 3, 1818.
1. Forged census?
For a territory to petition U.S. Congress for statehood, it needed a population of at least 60,000, Wheeler said. But because Illinois didn’t have those numbers, territory representatives received permission from Congress to adjust that requirement, he said. “Congress said, sure, if you have 40,000 residents, you can advance to statehood.”
A census was taken, and the results showed 34,620 people living in the territory, Wheeler said.
“Authorities in Illinois said, hey, maybe we didn’t count everybody. Maybe we go back and see,” he said. Sure enough, on a second count in the summer of 1818, the population turned out to be 40,258.
How were there suddenly nearly 6,000 more people? Wheeler suspects representatives fudged the numbers.
“In the 20th century, we talked a lot about, in Chicago, to vote early and vote often,” he said. “That legacy goes back to pre-statehood.”
2. Chicago left out
When Illinois was applying for statehood, the borders had to be clearly defined, Wheeler said. An initial application had the northern border about 50 miles south of where it is now, which would have put what now is Chicago and the Lake Michigan coastline outside the state, he said.
Nathaniel Pope, the Illinois territory’s delegate in Congress, saw opportunity in moving the border north to include the lead-rich mines of Galena, as well as waterway access. He redrew the state, Wheeler said.
“He knew access to Lake Michigan was profound,” he said. “If (the border) wouldn’t have been moved … the state would’ve developed so much differently.”
The population in the northern part of the state (and Chicago) with its access to other parts of the country through Lake Michigan and connecting waterways is due to that shift in boundaries, Wheeler said.
“Wisconsin people have never forgiven us,” he said.
3. Abolitionist history
When Illinois first became a state, it entered the Union as a free state.
In 1824, there was a “major, credible effort to turn Illinois into a slave state,” he said. Voters were asked to consider writing a new state constitution to make that change.
Then-Gov. Edward Coles, originally from Virginia and whose father owned slaves, was an abolitionist. He freed his family’s slaves when he came to Illinois, Wheeler said. Coles spent his time in office fighting this effort to change Illinois’ stance on slavery and was successful.
“That’s the last real credible effort” to allow statewide slavery, Wheeler said. “Think about how much differently Illinois would’ve turned out. Lincoln goes on to save the Union and end slavery. Would he have settled in a slave state? Probably not.”
Not only is Illinois Lincoln’s adopted home state, but Lyman Trumbull, co-author of the 13th Amendment, which ended slavery, lived in downstate Alton, Wheeler said.
And in 1865, Illinois was the first state to ratify the 13th Amendment, he said. “That’s a beautiful legacy.”
“I try to highlight a lot of those stories,” Wheeler said. “People want to talk about the political legacy (of corruption). We also have a beautiful political legacy as well.”
4. Chicago’s rise from fire
The fire that ravaged Chicago in 1871, dubbed the Great Chicago Fire, burned for 36 hours, killing up to 300 people and leaving 100,000 residents homeless, Wheeler said. The cause of the fire remains uncertain.
While folklore blames the fire on an Irish woman named Mrs. O’Leary and her cow knocking over a lantern, Wheeler said anti-Irish sentiment at that time likely fueled that myth.
After the fire, there was a rebuilding of the city that included the world’s first skyscraper built in 1885, he said.
“The great thing about (the Great Chicago Fire) is it doesn’t destroy anyone’s spirit in making Chicago the world class city it is today.”
5, The women’s vote
Illinois was the first state east of the Mississippi River to give women the right to vote, Wheeler said. That was in 1913, seven years before nationwide suffrage for women.
Despite this forward thinking, there were caveats, he said. Women could vote for president, but not governor. And they couldn’t use the same ballot box as men.
