Explore Illinois Treasure Stories

African Treasure Trove Legend of Illinois

Buried Birch Gang Loot

Cave-in-Rock Counterfeiting and Duff's Treasure

Half-Way Tavern

Hauntstown Treasure

Welcome to Illinois, the Prairie State and "Land of Lincoln,"  where the world's first skyscraper was erected in Chicago in 1885.

Construction of the Erie Canal in 1825 provided easy transportation to the Midwest, bringing hundreds of people from the eastern states and Europe to settle the new state of Illinois.  In 1858, Abraham Lincoln, a Kentucky native who moved to Illinois and practiced law, ran against Stephen A. Douglas for the U.S. Senate.  Lincoln’s strong stand against slavery, part of his family's religious beliefs, during several debates in Illinois, gave him national attention.  He lost the election, but became the 16th president of the United States two years later, following which six southern states seceded from the Union, and the issues of slavery and the right to cessation ignited the 4-year-long Civil War, which began shortly after Lincoln’s inauguration in 1861.  After the war, industry grew at a fantastic rate in Illinois.  Railroads were expanding and bringing immigrants to work in meatpacking factories and granaries, especially around the Chicago area.  Chicago was booming until it was struck by the tragic Great Fire of Oct. 8, 1871 that started in a cow barn.  Almost the entire city of Chicago, in particular the business district, was destroyed over a period of two days, killing over 300 people.  Illinois is also unique in archeological treasures, including being home to the advanced Cahokia mounds.

http://www.treasure-adventure.com