Sangamon Sun

On December 3, 1818, Illinois was admitted as the 21st state of the United States. Each year on this date, Illinois Statehood Day is celebrated to honor this milestone. The journey to statehood began with the region's original inhabitants, various Native American tribes including the Illiniwek. French explorers Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet explored the area in 1673, claiming it for France and establishing settlements such as Cahokia and Kaskaskia.

Control of Illinois shifted following the French and Indian War when the 1763 Treaty of Paris ceded it to Britain. After the American Revolution, another Treaty of Paris in 1783 transferred it to the United States. Initially part of the Northwest Territory, Illinois became part of Indiana Territory in 1800.

The population growth led Congress to establish Illinois Territory on February 3, 1809, separating it from Indiana Territory. This territory included present-day Illinois and parts of Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan. Kaskaskia was named as its capital.

Ninian Edwards served as the first territorial governor and helped develop infrastructure and legal systems crucial for statehood. By 1818, a constitutional convention in Kaskaskia drafted Illinois's first constitution. On December 3 that year, President James Monroe signed a resolution admitting Illinois as a state with about 35,000 residents mostly in southern regions.

Illinois faced challenges such as difficult agricultural conditions due to thick prairie sod until John Deere's steel plow invention in 1837 improved farming capabilities. Slavery debates also marked early years; although prohibited by the Northwest Ordinance enforcement was weak leading some settlers to bring enslaved people into Illinois territory. A referendum in 1824 defeated slavery legalization solidifying its status as a free state.

Transportation development played a significant role in growth with projects like completing the Illinois and Michigan Canal in 1848 connecting Great Lakes to Mississippi River enhancing trade routes along with expanding railroads making Chicago an important hub.

For further details on this history visit "the Illinois Historic Preservation Division’s History of Illinois Timeline."