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Illinois, known as the Land of Lincoln, became a state on December 3, 1818 - making it the 21st state to do so.  Illinois has an area of almost 18 million people packed into an area of about 55,500 square miles.  While the capital city is Springfield, the largest urban center is Chicago.The major industry in Illinois has been farming for much of its history and even today they are the country's leading producer of soybeans.

In 1871 much of  the city of Chicago burned to the ground and hundreds of people died, and thousands more became homeless.

Chicago is also famous for organized crime and corruption, and especially for the gangster Al Capone - who bribed the mayor and was responsible for mass mayhem and murder during the prohibition era of the 1920's.  The city is also famous for the Sears Tower, which stand 1,454 feet tall as well as the world's biggest airport.  But corruption in government and politics continues in Chicago to this day.  Recently the Supreme Court struck down a Chicago law that banned citizens from owning handguns in the city - with the local government officials stating that they would make it so difficult and expensive to own a gun that no one will be able to afford it.  The right to bear arms is guaranteed in the second amendment and has now been established as an individual right by the Supreme Court, giving gun owners a major victory.

On a brighter side of history - Abraham Lincoln spent most of his professional law career in Springfield and was eventually elected president in 1860.

A brief history of Arizona. Drag the time line to see more events and click on the titles to see a description.

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