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Illinois Travel Guide |
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Travel in Illinois
Other Guides for IllinoisIllinois Destinations
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Chicago at night, Illinois (Corbis)
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Illinois Overview
For travelers coming from any direction the wind blows, Illinois may well be one of the easiest states to get to, with several major airlines and Amtrak using it as a central hub, and Lake Michigan making the city of Chicago not only windy, but also a fairly major port of call. This easy accessibility is one of the many reasons that Illinois has historically attracted large groups of emigrants—notably, Germans, Polish, Irish, and Mexicans, and African Americans escaping slavery—to settle within its boundaries, looking for work and a new home. Illinois fell to the side of its most favored son, Abraham Lincoln—who spent all of his adult pre-presidential years calling the state home—and thus was an anti-slavery state prior to the Civil War. However, there was a sad smear on this status when in 1853 Illinois state senator John Logan helped the local legislature to pass the appalling Black Codes, prohibiting African Americans, particularly those escaping slavery in the South, from immigrating into the state. Despite his success with the legislature, though, Logan clearly didn't have the support of his entire state. Because of its location on the Mississippi River, Illinois became one of many active Underground Railroad states in the Union, with the cities of Alton and Jacksonville in southwestern Illinois being particularly notable spots. Today, many of those sites and their artifacts have been preserved and are open to visitors year-round.
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AttractionsOprah Winfrey Show (The)
Harpo Studios: 1058 West Washington St. at the corner of Carpenter and Washington
110 North Carpenter St. Chicago, Illinois 60607 Description: The Oprah Winfrey Show first aired in 1984 as AM Chicago, and eventually became the... Read More
Expert Rated & Recommended
Lakeshore Athletic Club - Illinois Center
211 North Stetson
Chicago, Illinois 60601
Expert Rated & Recommended
Channing's Day Spa
54 E. Oak St.
Chicago, Illinois 60611 Description: Chicago's glamour girls have softened their heels and lacquered their fingernails at Channing's for... Read More
Expert Rated & Recommended
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