Illinois
Illinois
Its motto: State Sovereignty — National Union.
Its nicknames: Corn State, Land of Lincoln, Prairie State.
Its motto: State Sovereignty — National Union.
Its nicknames: Corn State, Land of Lincoln, Prairie State.
The spirit of the prairie, the heart of America
Illinois was the place where the sky began, the place where new
settlers emerged from the shadows of the eastern woodlands into a
vast, sun-drenched plain. Here, standing at the edge of an ocean of
grass, Americans got their first glimpse of the immense fertility of
the continent.
So rich was the soil of the prairie that the first settlers who
farmed it did not have to work very hard to survive. It took only 50
days of plowing, planting, cultivating, and harvesting to bring in a
10-acre corn crop. One traveler thought that Illinoisans "do the least
work in the world." In 1837 John Deere made farming still easier,
manufacturing a steel plow that cut through the tough grass roots.
Deere's plow ushered in the age of large-scale agriculture.
Today, 80 percent of the state's land is devoted to farming, and
Illinois produces much of the nation's corn, soybeans, and wheat. In
the south farmers cultivate lush orchards of plums, apples, peaches,
cherries, and pears.
The contrast between industrialized north and rural south is one
of the aspects that gives Illinois its dynamism. From its early days
this midwestem state has been a crossroads of cultures, politics,
religions, and economic forces. It was the place where the people
and attitudes of North and South mingled.
Railroads, meatpacking, steel, banking, commerce, and a host of
other enterprises drew millions of immigrants, creating the mighty
"City of the Big Shoulders" — Chicago. The atomic age began
when, in 1942, Enrico Fermi and other University of Chicago
scientists produced the first self-sustained nuclear reaction.
Illinois joined the Union in 1818 as the 21st state.
The spirit of the prairie, the heart of America
Illinois was the place where the sky began, the place where new
settlers emerged from the shadows of the eastern woodlands into a
vast, sun-drenched plain. Here, standing at the edge of an ocean of
grass, Americans got their first glimpse of the immense fertility of
the continent.
So rich was the soil of the prairie that the first settlers who
farmed it did not have to work very hard to survive. It took only 50
days of plowing, planting, cultivating, and harvesting to bring in a
10-acre corn crop. One traveler thought that Illinoisans "do the least
work in the world." In 1837 John Deere made farming still easier,
manufacturing a steel plow that cut through the tough grass roots.
Deere's plow ushered in the age of large-scale agriculture.
Today, 80 percent of the state's land is devoted to farming, and
Illinois produces much of the nation's corn, soybeans, and wheat. In
the south farmers cultivate lush orchards of plums, apples, peaches,
cherries, and pears.
The contrast between industrialized north and rural south is one
of the aspects that gives Illinois its dynamism. From its early days
this midwestem state has been a crossroads of cultures, politics,
religions, and economic forces. It was the place where the people
and attitudes of North and South mingled.
Railroads, meatpacking, steel, banking, commerce, and a host of
other enterprises drew millions of immigrants, creating the mighty
"City of the Big Shoulders" — Chicago. The atomic age began
when, in 1942, Enrico Fermi and other University of Chicago
scientists produced the first self-sustained nuclear reaction.
Illinois joined the Union in 1818 as the 21st state.
(”The USA Diversity of 50 States”)
(”The USA Diversity of 50 States”)