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Capital: Springfield

State Nickname: Prairie State

State Bird: Cardinal

State Flower: Native Violet

Admitted to the Union: December 3, 1818

December 2, 1822 to December 6, 1826:

Edward Coles

December 6, 1826 to December 6, 1830:

Ninian Edwards

December 6, 1830 to November 17, 1834:

John Reynolds

November 17, 1834 to December 3, 1834:

William L. D. Ewing

December 3, 1834 to December 7, 1836:

Joseph Duncan

December 7, 1838 to December 8, 1842:

Thomas Carlin

December 8, 1842 to December 9, 1846:

Thomas Ford

December 9, 1846 to January 10, 1853:

Agustus C. French

January 10, 1853 to January 12, 1857:

Joel A. Matteson

January 12, 1857 to March 18, 1860:

William H. Bissell

March 18, 1860 to January 14, 1861:

John Wood

January 14, 1861 to January 16, 1865

Richard Yates

January 16, 1865 to January 11, 1869:

Richard J. Oglesby

January 11, 1869 to January 13, 1873:

John M. Palmer

January 13, 1873 to January 23, 1873:

Richard J. Oglesby

January 23, 1873 to January 8, 1877:

John L. Beveridge

January 8, 1877 to February 8, 1883:

Shelby M. Cullom

February 16, 1883 to January 30, 1885:

John M. Hamilton

January 30, 1885 to January 14, 1889:

Richard J. Oglesby

January 14, 1889 to January 10, 1893:

Jospeh W. Fifer

January 10, 1893 to January 11, 1897:

John P. Altgeld

January 11, 1887 to January 14, 1901:

John R. Tanner

January 14, 1901 to January 9, 1905:

Richard Yates

January 9, 1905 to February 3, 1913:

Charles S. Deneen

February 3, 1913 to January 8, 1917:

Edward F. Dunne

January 8, 1917 to January 10, 1921>

Frank O. Lowden

January 10, 1921 to January 14, 1929:

Len Small

January 14, 1929 to January 9, 1933:

Louis L. Emmerson

January 9, 1933 to October 6, 1940:

Henry Horner

October 6, 1940 to January 13, 1941:

John H. Steele

January 13, 1941 to January 10, 1949:

Dwight H. Green

January 10, 1949 to January 12, 1953:

Adlai E. Stevenson

January 12, 1953 to January 9, 1961:

William G. Stratton

Janaury 9, 1961 to May 22, 1968:

Otto Kerner

May 22, 1968 to January 13, 1969:

Samuel H. Shapiro

January 13, 1969 to January 18, 1973:

Richard B, Ogilvie

January 8, 1973 to January 10, 1977:

Daniel Walker

January 10, 1977 to January 14, 1991:

James R. Thompson

January 14, 1991 to 1999:

Jim Edgar

January 11, 1999 to January 13, 2003

George H. Ryan

January 13, 2003 –

Rod R. Blagojevich

December 3, 1818 – March 4, 1829

Jesse B. Thomas

March 4, 1829 – October 14, 1830

John McLean * Died in office

November 12, 1830 – December 11, 1830

David J. Baker

December 11, 1830 – March 4, 1841

John McCracken Robinson

Democratic March 4, 1841 – March 27, 1843

Samuel McRoberts * Died in office

December 4, 1843 – March 4, 1847

James Semple

March 4, 1847 – June 3, 1861

Stephen A. Douglas * Died in office

June 26, 1861 – January 12, 1863

Orville Hickman Browning

January 30, 1863 – March 4, 1865

William Alexander Richardson

March 4, 1865 – March 4, 1871

Richard Yates

March 4, 1871 – March 4, 1877

John A. Logan

March 4, 1877 – March 4, 1883

David Davis

March 4, 1883 – March 4, 1913

Shelby Moore Cullom

March 26, 1913 – March 4, 1919

J. Hamilton Lewis

March 4, 1919 – February 25, 1925

Joseph M. McCormick * Died in office

February 26, 1925 – March 4, 1931

Charles S. Deneen

March 4, 1931 – April 9, 1939

J. Hamilton Lewis * Died in office

April 14, 1939 – November 21, 1940

James M. Slattery

November 22, 1940 – January 3, 1949

Charles W. Brooks

January 3, 1949 – January 3, 1967

Paul Douglas

January 10, 1967 – January 3, 1985

Charles H. Percy

January 3, 1985 – January 3, 1997

Paul Simon

January 7, 1997 –

Dick Durbin

December 3, 1818 – March 4, 1824

Ninian Edwards * Resigned office

November 24, 1824 – March 4, 1825

John McLean

March 4, 1825 – December 12, 1835

Elias Kane * Died in office

December 30, 1835 – March 4, 1837

William Lee D. Ewing

March 4, 1837 – March 4, 1843

Richard M. Young

March 4, 1843 – March 4, 1849

Sidney Breese

October 27, 1849 – March 4, 1855

James Shields

March 4, 1855 – March 4, 1873

Lyman Trumbull

March 4, 1873 – March 4, 1879

Richard James Oglesby

March 4, 1879 – December 26, 1886

John A. Logan

January 19, 1887 – March 4, 1891

Charles B. Farwell

March 4, 1891 – March 4, 1897

John M. Palmer

March 4, 1897 – March 4, 1903

William E. Mason

March 4, 1903 – March 4, 1909

Albert J. Hopkins

June 18, 1909 – July 13, 1912

William Lorimer

March 26, 1913 – March 4, 1921

Lawrence Yates Sherman

March 4, 1921 – December 7, 1926

William B. McKinley

December 7, 1926 – December 3, 1928

Frank L. Smith * Resigned office

December 3, 1928 – March 4, 1933

Otis F. Glenn

March 4, 1933 – January 3, 1939

William H. Dieterich

January 3, 1939 – January 3, 1951

Scott W. Lucas

January 3, 1951 – September 7, 1969

Everett Dirksen

September 17, 1969 – November 3, 1970

Ralph Tyler Smith

November 17, 1970 – January 3, 1981

Adlai Stevenson III

January 5, 1981 – January 3, 1993

Alan J. Dixon

January 5, 1993 – January 3, 1999

Carol Moseley Braun

January 6, 1999 – January 3, 2005

Peter Fitzgerald

January 4, 2005 – November 16, 2008

Barack Obama

Written by C.H. Chamberlain
Composed by Archibald Johnston

By thy rivers gently flowing, Illinois, Illinois,
O'er thy prairies verdant growing, Illinois, Illinois,
Comes an echo on the breeze.
Rustling through the leafy trees,
and its mellow tones are these, Illinois,Illinois,
And its mellow tones are these, Illinois.

1820: 55,211

1830: 157,445

1840: 476,183

1850: 851,470

1860: 1,711,942

1870: 2,539,891

1880: 3,077,871

1890: 3,826,351

1900: 4,821,550

1910: 5,638,591

1920: 6,485,280

1930: 7,630,654

1940: 7,897,241

1950: 8,712,176

1960: 10,081,158

1970: 11,110,285

1980: 11,426,518

1990: 11,430,602

2000: 12,419,570