Illinois
ilapostille.Com

Illinois was the 21st state in the USA; it became a state on December 3, 1818.
State Abbreviation - IL
State Capital - Springfield
Largest City - Chicago
Area - 57,918 square miles [Illinois is the 25th biggest state in the USA]
Population - 12,419,293 (as of 2000) [Illinois is the fifth most populous state in the USA, after California, New York, Texas, and Florida]
Name for Residents - Illinoisan
Major Industries - agriculture (corn, soybeans, wheat, oats, barley, rye, sorghum), cattle, manufacturing, mining

Presidential Birthplace - Ronald Wilson Reagan was born in Tampico on February 6, 1911 (he was the 40th US President, serving from 1981 to 1989)

Major Rivers - Mississippi River, Ohio River, Illinois River, Wabash River
Major Lakes - Lake Michigan, Rend Lake
Highest Point - Charles Mound - 1,235 feet (376 m) above sea level
Number of Counties - 102
Bordering States - Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin
Bordering Body of Water - Lake Michigan

Origin of the Name Illinois - Illinois comes from the word Illini, a confederation of the Cahokia, Kaskaskia, Michigamea, Moingwena, Peoria and Tamaroa Indian tribes.
State Nickname - Prairie State
State Motto - State Sovereignty, National Union
State Song - "Illinois"
Illinois's original state flag was designed in 1913 by Lucy Derwent (who had won a contest), but was redesigned in 1970 by Mrs. Sanford Hutchinson. The flag's design is based upon the state's seal, which was designed by Sharon Tyndale, Illinois' secretary of state, in 1868.

The flag has a white background, and much of the Illinois state seal is pictured in the center. There is a bald eagle perched on a rock holding a red, white, and blue shield in its talons (the stars are white on a blue background and the stripes are red and white). The shield has 13 stripes and 13 stars, representing the original 13 colonies of the USA. The eagle is holding a banner in its beak which reads "STATE," "SOVEREIGNTY," "NATIONAL," and "UNION." The word sovereignty is upside down. The rock has the dates 1818 and 1868 written on it; 1818 refers to the year Illinois became a state and 1868 refers to the date the state seal was redesigned.

Tags:  abbreviation capital springfield chicago miles agriculture indiana kentucky missouri iowa wisconsin