Springfield, Illinois
Springfield is the capital city of the U.S. state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County. The city's population was 114,394 at the 2020 census, which makes it the state's seventh most-populous city,[10] the second largest outside of the Chicago metropolitan area (after Rockford), and the largest in central Illinois. Approximately 208,000 residents live in the Springfield metropolitan area.[11]
Springfield was settled by European-Americans in the late 1810s, around the time Illinois became a state. The most famous historic resident was Abraham Lincoln, who lived in Springfield from 1837 until 1861, when he went to the White House as President of the United States. Major tourist attractions include multiple sites connected with Lincoln including the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, Lincoln Home, Old State Capitol, Lincoln-Herndon Law Offices, and the Lincoln Tomb. Largely on the efforts of Lincoln and other area lawmakers, as well as its central location, Springfield was made the state capital in 1839.
Springfield lies in a valley and plain near the Sangamon River. Lake Springfield, a large reservoir owned by the municipal City Water, Light & Power company (CWLP), provides city residents with recreation and drinking water. Weather is fairly typical for middle latitude locations, with four distinct seasons.
The city has a mayor–council form of government and governs the Capital Township. The government of the state of Illinois is based in Springfield. State government institutions include the Illinois General Assembly, the Illinois Supreme Court and the Office of the Governor of Illinois. There are three public and three private high schools in Springfield. Public schools in Springfield are operated by District No. 186. Springfield's economy is dominated by government jobs, plus the related firms that deal with the state and county governments and justice system, and health care and medicine.
History[edit]
Pre-Civil War[edit]
Settlers originally named this community as "Calhoun", after Senator John C. Calhoun of South Carolina, expressing their cultural ties.[12] The land that Springfield now occupies was visited first by trappers and fur traders who came to the Sangamon River in 1818.[13]
The first cabin was built in 1820, by John Kelly, after discovering the area to be plentiful of deer and wild game. He built his cabin upon a hill, overlooking a creek known eventually as the Town Branch. A stone marker on the north side of Jefferson street, halfway between 1st and College streets, marks the location of this original dwelling. A second stone marker at the NW corner of 2nd and Jefferson, often mistaken for the original home site, marks instead the location of the first county courthouse, which was later built on Kelly's property. In 1821, Calhoun was designated as the county seat of Sangamon County due to its location, fertile soil and trading opportunities.
Settlers from Kentucky, Virginia, and North Carolina came to the developing settlement.[13] By 1832, Senator Calhoun had fallen out of the favor with the public and the town renamed itself as Springfield.[14] According to local history, the name was suggested by the wife of John Kelly, after Spring Creek, which ran through the area known as "Kelly's Field".[15]
Kaskaskia was the first capital of the Illinois Territory from its organization in 1809, continuing through statehood in 1818, and through the first year as a state in 1819. Vandalia was the second state capital of Illinois, from 1819 to 1839. Springfield was designated in 1839 as the third capital, and has continued to be so. The designation was largely due to the efforts of Abraham Lincoln and his associates; nicknamed the "Long Nine" for their combined height of 54 feet (16 m).[13][14]
The Potawatomi Trail of Death passed through here in 1838. The Native Americans were forced west to Indian Territory by the government's Indian Removal policy.
Springfield, Illinois has two sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International:
It maintains a "Friendship" city designation with Killarney, Ireland.[125]
