Quincy Reporter

State Senator Jil Tracy highlighted the anniversary of Illinois becoming a state in a December 3 Facebook post, stating, "Today, let's celebrate the wonderful state we get to call home!"

"Happy 206th Birthday, Illinois," said Tracy, according to Facebook. "Today marks another year since the Land of Lincoln joined the Union on December 3, 1818! Today, let's celebrate the wonderful state we get to call home!"

According to the Illinois State Museum’s "Illinois Bicentennial: The Story of Illinois" exhibit, Illinois became the 21st state in the Union on December 3, 1818. In the following three decades, it rapidly developed into an agricultural state, aided by technological advancements that expanded markets.

Screenshot of State Senator Jil Tracy's Dec. 3 Facebook post | State Senator Jil Tracy's Facebook page

Before achieving statehood, Illinois was a territory. Following the capture of Kaskaskia in 1778, the new United States established a claim to the Illinois country. The 1783 Treaty of Paris granted the area east of the Mississippi River to the United States. Between 1803 and 1812, Native Americans ceded most of their land in exchange for goods and annual payments, as detailed by the Illinois State Museum’s online exhibit.

The state's name derives from the Illiniwek Nation, comprising twelve smaller Indigenous nations. In the late 1600s, over 10,000 Indigenous people inhabited what is now Illinois. However, white American settlers displaced these Native American nations from the Ohio River Valley, leaving only a few remaining in Illinois. By 1699, French settlers had arrived and established Cahokia. In 1778, American troops incorporated Illinois as part of Virginia territory until it was taken over by the federal government in 1784. By 1832, remaining Indigenous people relinquished their land claims and relocated to present-day eastern Kansas. By 1851, they formed what is now known as the Confederated Peoria Tribe according to information from the History Channel.

Tracy has represented constituents of the 50th Senate District since January 2023. Before her tenure in the Senate, she served as a State Representative from 2006 through 2014. Her official biography notes her previous roles as Mt. Sterling City Attorney and private lawyer before serving as an Assistant Illinois Attorney General under Attorneys General Jim Ryan and Lisa Madigan. She resides with her husband in Quincy.