Illinois Trivia & Tidbits - Page 9

Looking for Illinois trivia? Try our list Illinois little know facts, tidbits and trivia.

Chicago’s 6-year-old professional soccer team is named after the city’s worst disaster in history, the 1871 Chicago Fire.

first appeared: 2/1/2004

After 32 years as the state’s most popular name for newborn males, Michael was edged out by Jacob in 2000. Jacob is also first nationwide, with Michael second.

first appeared: 1/25/2004

The Chicago River is dyed green every St. Patrick’s Day, when teams in boats spread a 40-pound canister of orange dye into the river, resulting in a deep emerald hue.

first appeared: 1/18/2004

Carl Sandburg (1878-1967), the Pulitzer Prize winning poet and historian from Galesburg (pop. 33,706), once wrote, “I had studied monotony (and) decided whatever I died of, it would not be monotony.”

first appeared: 1/11/2004

Violets, the state flower, are both a harbinger of spring and a wholesome edible flower, being rich in Vitamin C.

first appeared: 1/4/2004

Built in 1859, the General Dean Suspension Bridge across the Kaskaskia River in Carlyle (pop. 3,406) is a national landmark used today for pedestrian traffic only.

first appeared: 12/28/2003

In 1992, Carol Moseley Braun made history as the first African-American woman elected to the U.S. Senate. Braun, who was born in 1947 in Chicago, is a Democratic candidate for president.

first appeared: 12/21/2003

In 1949, Orchard Field in Chicago was renamed O’Hare International Airport to honor Edward “Butch” O’Hare, a World War II fighter pilot hero from Chicago.

first appeared: 12/14/2003

Greenup (pop. 1,532) is nicknamed the “Village of Porches” for its 1860s downtown buildings with overhanging porches.

first appeared: 12/7/2003

Soon after the University of Chicago Press opened in 1891, the staff compiled a style sheet to bring consistency to manuscripts. Now in its 15th edition, The Chicago Manual of Style is an essential reference in the publishing world.

first appeared: 11/30/2003

In 1914, Bayard and Everett Heath opened a confectionery and ice cream shop in Robinson (pop. 6,822) and by 1928 had perfected their recipe for Heath English toffee bars.

first appeared: 11/23/2003

Brace Beemer, born in 1902 in Mount Carmel (pop. 7,982), lassoed young radio fans as The Lone Ranger from 1941 to 1954.

first appeared: 11/16/2003

The Harold Washington Library Center in Chicago is the world’s largest public library building with 756,640 square feet on 10 floors.

first appeared: 11/9/2003

Pupils at Cunningham Elementary School in Joliet successfully lobbied to name popcorn as the official state snack, so-designated last August.

first appeared: 11/2/2003

World-renowned type designer Frederic Goudy, who created 124 type styles, printed his first book in Park Ridge (pop. 37,775) in 1903. He was born in 1865 in Bloomington.

first appeared: 10/26/2003

In 1851, Aledo (pop. 3,613) was named by drawing letters from a hat until a pronounceable word formed.

first appeared: 10/19/2003

Drummer Gene Krupa, born in Chicago in 1909, performed with Benny Goodman at the first jazz concert at Carnegie Hall in 1938 and gave the first extended drum solo in Sing Sing Sing.

first appeared: 10/12/2003

Actor Eddie Albert is best known for his role as Oliver Douglas, a New York attorney living in Hooterville, on the 1960s sitcom Green Acres. Albert was born in 1908 in Rock Island (pop. 39,684).

first appeared: 10/5/2003

Robert Ridgway, an ornithologist and curator of birds for the Smithsonian Institution from 1874 to 1929, was born in 1850 in Mount Carmel (pop. 7,982).

first appeared: 9/28/2003

Built in 1885, the 10-story Home Insurance Building in Chicago is considered the world’s first skyscraper because of its steel frame.

first appeared: 9/21/2003

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