Springfield is the capital of the state of Illinois and the
administrative center of Sangamon County. The city was founded
in 1819, became an administrative center in 1823, and received
its charter in 1840. It became the capital of Illinois in 1837.
The legislature first met here in 1839. According to the census
of In 2010, the city had 111,454 inhabitants.
Originally,
around 1810, the city was called Calhoun, in honor of South
Carolina Senator John C. Calhoun, but after the population fell
out with him, the city was renamed Springfield.
Abraham
Lincoln was one of the most important inhabitants that the city
has had; he moved to the area in 1831, but did not live in the
city proper until 1837. US President Ulysses S. Grant also had
ties to Springfield.
In 1908 a major race riot broke out
in the city, culminating in the lynching of two African-American
residents.
The city is located on a plain that covers
most of the surrounding countryside. A reservoir, owned by a
local utility company, supplies the city with drinking water,
and also functions as a recreation center. The climate is
typical for a mid-latitude city, with warm summers and cold
winters. The weather during spring and summer can become violent
in the city; at least two destructive tornadoes have struck the
city during its history.
The city is governed by a
mayor-council, with the peculiarity of having a strong mayor.
The city owns as well as governmental entity the "Municipality
of the Capital". In addition, the Illinois State Government is
also located in Springfield. Government entities located in the
city include the Illinois General Assembly, the Illinois Supreme
Court, and the Illinois Governor's Office. There are eight
public and private institutes in the city. Springfield Public
Schools are operated by District 186. Springfield's economy is
marked by government jobs, which account for a high percentage
of the city's labor force. Unemployment in Springfield rose from
September 2006 to February 2007, from 3.8% to 5.1%.
1 Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum, 112 N 6th St. Tel:
+1.217.558-8844, Tel. toll-free: +1.800.610.2094. This stunning museum
features extremely rare exhibits about Lincoln and its environs. The
museum has an orienting four-dimensional theater. Open: Daily 9AM-5PM.
Price: $7.50/5.50/3.50/free (adults/seniors 62+ & military (with ID) &
students (with ID)/kids 5-15/kids under 5).
2 Lincoln Home National
Historic Site, 426 S Seventh St. Tel: +1 217 492-4241 ext 266. Abraham
Lincoln's home, beautifully restored in the 1860's, is on the site.
Entry into the house itself is only possible with a guided tour.
However, tickets are available at the visitor center and entry is free.
In addition to other exhibits that change regularly, the visitor center
also offers an orientation film. In addition to the house itself, a
four-block area has been preserved that looks as it did in Lincoln's
time. Some of the other houses also have exhibits. Open: Daily
8:30AM-5PM except 1 Jan 1st, 4th Th of Nov, and 25 Dec. Price: Tour
tickets are free. Parking $2.
3 Lincoln-Herndon Law Office (Sixth and
Adams Sts). Phone: +1 217 785-7960 . This building is the only surviving
office where Lincoln had a functioning law practice. It has been
restored and has a historical exhibition on the first floor. Guided
tours are available with a suggested donation. The building is located
just a stone's throw from the old Capitol, which is a great convenience
for both Lincoln and the modern traveler.
4 Old State Capitol, 1 Old
Capitol Plaza. Phone: +1 217 785-7960. This building served as the seat
of the state government of Illinois from 1839 to 1876. It was here that
Lincoln served during his final term in the Illinois House of
Representatives and delivered his famous "House Divided" speech. He used
some rooms in the capital as the headquarters of his presidential
campaign. On May 3-4, 1865, an estimated 75,000 mourners walked by
Lincoln's body as it lay in the Hall of Representatives in the Capitol.
Guided tours are possible, the last one starts 45 minutes before
closing. The tour lasts approximately 30 minutes and a 15-minute
orientation video is also available. The entire building is handicapped
accessible. Open: daily 9AM-5PM, closed during holidays.
5 Lincoln
Tomb (Oak Ridge Cemetery). Phone: +1 217 782-2717 . Lincoln's grave is
in Oak Ridge Cemetery, the second most visited cemetery in the United
States after Arlington National Cemetery. Within the large memorial is
the final resting place of Lincoln and most of his immediate family.
Also nearby is the small reception vault that originally housed
Lincoln's coffin. The interior of the mausoleum is wheelchair
accessible, but the outer upper deck is not. Open: Daily, Mar-Oct,
9AM-5PM. Tu, Jun-Aug, 7PM-8PM. Daily, Nov-Feb, 9AM-4PM.
6 Lincoln
Depot, 930 E. Monroe St. (10th & Monroe). Phone: +1 217 544-8695, +1 217
788-1356 . Abraham Lincoln's first trip to Washington, DC began at this
restored railroad depot, located just blocks from Abraham Lincoln's
home. On February 11, 1861, a large crowd gathered outside to watch him
board a special presidential train. Open: M-F 10 AM- 4 PM; Sa, Holiday:
Request availability. Price: free.
Illinois Korean War Memorial, Oak
Ridge Cemetery. Phone: +1 217 782-2177, +1 217 788-1356. Open: Apr-Aug
7AM-8PM, Sept-March 7AM-5:30PM.
7 Illinois State Museum, 502 S Spring
St. Tel: +1 217 782-7386
8 Vachel Lindsay House, 603 S Fifth St. Tel:
+1 217 782-6776. The birthplace and longtime home of the early 20th
century poet. The house was built before the Civil War, with a rear
annex built by Lindsay's father in 1893. Open: guided tours by prior
arrangement.
9 Illinois State Capitol
10 Springfield and Central
Illinois African-American History Museum, 1440 Monument Ave. Phone: +1
217 391-6323 . Open: Tu-F Noon-4PM, Sat 10AM-5PM
11 Edwards Place
Historic Home, 700 North 4th St. Tel: +1 217 523-2631
The city was originally called Calhoun, named after Senator John C.
Calhoun. In 1832 it changed its name to Springfield. The area of today's
city was settled for the first time around 1818 by whites. Springfield
has been the capital of Illinois since 1837. In 1838 the Potawatomi
Trail of Death passed through Springfield; it was a forced death march
of the Potawatomi Indians.
During the Civil War, Springfield
played a significant role for the Northern States. Illinois regiments
trained here. Including those who achieved a winning streak between 1861
and 1862 under the leadership of General Grant.
Camp Butler, 11
kilometers northeast of Springfield, was a training camp but also a
prisoner of war camp. While business people made money from the
soldiers, citizens of the city complained about the misconduct of
soldiers off duty. After the war, Springfield became a major railroad
hub in the United States. Mining was also the city's largest employer.
In 1908 there were racist riots in which seven uninvolved black people
were murdered. This crime led to the formation of the NAACP. On March
12, 2006, Springfield was hit by two tornadoes, causing significant
devastation.
On February 10, 2007, Senator Barack Obama announced
his candidacy in Springfield, on the steps of the Old State Capitol. In
2008 he was elected the first black President of the United States.
Five structures and sites in Springfield have National Historic
Landmark status, including the Lincoln Home National Historic Site,
Lincoln's Tomb and the Old State Capitol. The city has 63 structures and
sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) as of
November 3, 2018.
Many of the downtown jobs are related to bakeries with headquarters
in Springfield. Since 2002, the State of Illinois has been the largest
employer in both the city and county, employing 17,000 people across
Sangamon County. Since February 2007, Government Officials, Local
Including, State and County, Representing Approximately 30,000 of the
non-agricultural Employees of the City. The Commerce, The Transport, and
The Medical Assistance Industries Each Provide Between 17,000 and 18,000
Employees to the City. The largest private sector employer in 2002 was
Memorial Health Systems, with 3,400 people working for that company. of
6.50 dollars per hour for an adult. That means approximately 13 100
dollars working 2080 hours per year. For a family of four people,
expenses increase and the minimum living expenses reach $19.49 per hour
in the city. local work dropped from 116,500 in September 2006 to
113,400 in February 2007. In addition, the unemployment rate increased
during the same period from 3.8% to 5.1%.
The Illinois State Fair
has been held at the Illinois State Fairgrounds since 1894. The building
has been an oval for motorsport and motorcycle racing since 1910, and
has hosted races for the AAA National Championship and the USAC National
Championship.
As of the 2010 census, Springfield was home to 116,250 people in
50,714 households. The population density was 830.4 people per square
kilometer. Statistically, 2.23 people lived in each of the 50,714
households.
The racial makeup of the population was 75.8 percent
White, 18.5 percent African American, 0.2 percent Native American, 2.2
percent Asian, and 0.7 percent from other races; 2.6 percent descended
from two or more ethnic groups. Regardless of ethnicity, 2.0 percent of
the population was of Hispanic or Latino descent.
22.9 percent of
the population was under 18 years old, 62.8 percent were between 18 and
64 and 14.3 percent were 65 years or older. 52.8 percent of the
population was female.
The median annual household income was
$47,209. Per capita income was $28,542. 16.2 percent of the residents
lived below the poverty line.
The city is located at 39°47′00″N 89°39′01″W. It is located 178 meters above sea level.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 156.2 kilometers2. Of them, 139.9 kilometers2 correspond to land and 16.3 kilometers2 (10.46%) are water. The city is located on the lower river basin of the Illinois River, in an area widely known as Till Plain. Sangamon County and Springfield City are in Springfield Plain, a subdivision of Till Plain. El Llano is the result of the glacial flow, known as the illinoian flow, due to its great exposure over the areas of Illinois.
Springfield experiences a typical mid-latitude climate. Warm summers and cold winters are the normal climate. Illinois also experiences a large number of tornadoes. From 1961 to 1990 the city of Springfield experienced an average of 89.3 cm³ of annual precipitation. in July and minimums during the winter of -4.3 °C enero.
The city has at least one designated neighborhood division: Eastside, Enos Park, Hawthorne Place, Historic West Side, Lincoln Park, Near South, Oak Ridge, Shalom, Springfield Lakeshore, Twin Lakes and Vinegar Hill.
Health system
There are two hospitals in Springfield, Springfield
Memorial Medical Center and St. John's Hospital. The latter is home to
the Prairie Heart Institute, which performs more cardiovascular
procedures than any other hospital in Illinois.
Public services
The owner of Lake Springfield, City Water, Light and Power, provides
electricity to the city of Springfield and the neighboring towns,
providing in addition potable water to the entire sector already
supplied with electricity. Natural gas is supplied by AmerenCILCO,
dependent on the Central Illinois Light Company (CILCO).
Transport
Interstate 55 runs north and south through Springfield,
while I-72 (also known as US 36) runs east to west. In Springfield
operates the Amtrak passenger train service, which runs between Chicago
and Saint Louis and to Union Station in the city. Passengers' local
transportation needs are met by a bus service. Springfield's Springfield
Mass Transit District (Springfield Mass Transit District, SMTD) operates
Springfield's bus system. Through the city also passes the historic Road
66.
Abraham Lincoln Airport Capital is the city's airport and
provides routes to Chicago and St. Louis.