DeKalb Times

On December 3, 1818, Illinois became the 21st state of the United States. This date is commemorated annually as Illinois Statehood Day. The journey to statehood for Illinois began with its early inhabitants, the Native American tribes including the Illiniwek, from whom the state gets its name.

European exploration in the region started in 1673 when French explorers Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet claimed it for France. Settlements like Cahokia and Kaskaskia were established as centers of trade and missionary work. Control shifted to Britain after the French and Indian War through the 1763 Treaty of Paris but was transferred to the United States following the American Revolution with another Treaty of Paris in 1783.

Initially part of the Northwest Territory, Illinois joined Indiana Territory in 1800. As population numbers increased, a need for localized governance led Congress to create the Illinois Territory on February 3, 1809. This territory included present-day Illinois, Wisconsin, and parts of Minnesota and Michigan, with Kaskaskia as its capital.

Ninian Edwards served as the first territorial governor, helping develop infrastructure and legal systems. By 1818, enough growth prompted a constitutional convention in Kaskaskia where delegates drafted Illinois's first constitution. President James Monroe signed a resolution admitting Illinois into the Union on December 3, 1818.

Despite achieving statehood, challenges persisted. The prairies' thick sod hindered agriculture until John Deere's steel plow invention in 1837 improved farming efficiency. Slavery debates also marked early years; although slavery was prohibited by the Northwest Ordinance, enforcement was weak. The state's constitution allowed existing indentured servitude contracts but tensions between pro-slavery and anti-slavery groups remained until a referendum defeated slavery legalization in 1824.

Transportation development was vital for growth; completion of the Illinois and Michigan Canal in 1848 connected trade routes from Great Lakes to Mississippi River while railroads transformed Chicago into a transportation hub.

For more information about Illinois history visit "Illinois Historic Preservation Division’s History of Illinois Timeline."