1. Illinois Constitution and Government
Unit 25

2. State History
Marquette and Joliet were discovered in 1673, however the state was not fully admitted into the Union until 1818
Prior to being admitted into the Union, the French and the English each controlled the area for a period
Robert Cavelier, Sieur de LaSalle and his lieutenant and successor, Henry de Tonty represented for France
Fort de Crevecoeur was established near Peoria in 1680
1682 Fort St. Louis on Starved Rock
Pimitouri, one of the first white villages was established in 1691 (later called Peoria)
Cahokia was organized in 1699 and in 1703 Kaskaskia was organized

3. State History Cont.
France was defeated by Great Britain in the French and Indian War
France had to give up claim to its possessions east of the Mississippi.
British rule was short over IL because of American militia, led by George Rodgers Clark (1778) captured the villages of Kaskaskia, Cahokia, and Vincennes, thus ending forever the foreign rule in IL

4. State History Cont.
1778 – IL was established as a county of Virginia
During the next 5 years, the area had no legally constituted government
, IL became part of the Northwest Territory
1800 – Indiana was established and IL was included

5. State History Cont.
1809 – IL and Wisconsin was made a territory (Kaskaskia was the capital and Ninian Edwards of Kentucky served as the 1st territorial governor)
December 3, 1818, IL (est. population 35,000) was admitted as a statehood.
Kaskaskia – State Capital
Shadrach Bond – 1st governor
1832 – Last Indian uprising in IL was Black Hawk War when Chief Black Hawk and his Sauk and Fox warriors defeated the white militia at Stillman’s Run.

6. State History Cont. IL capital moved from Kaskaskia to Vandalia
1839 – Springfield becomes the capital
Shortly after Springfield becoming the capital, the state was divided on slavery
1858 – Abraham Lincoln challenged Stephen A. Douglas (U.S. Senator) on the national policy on slavery
1858 – Lincoln was defeated as senator
1860 – Lincoln won the presidential nomination of the
Republican Party and became the 1st Republican president

7. State History Cont. 1837 – John Deere invents the prairie plow
IL becomes a leading agricultural state
1870 – Coal mining was one of Illinois’ largest industries

8. Illinois Constitution
1818 – 1st Constitution of IL adopted by a convention that met at Kaskaskia
33 delegates attended, representing 15 counties (majority of the population was in the southern part)
Constitution wrote at this convention became legal once approved by Congress and IL was admitted to statehood
Constitution of 1818 did not interfere with the status of slaves already in the state but it did prohibit any further extension of slavery.

9. Illinois Constitution Cont.
1824 – Some public support for a constitution that was more favorable to slavery (public rejected)
Governor Edward Coles kept IL a free state
1848 – New constitution adopted (increase of power to the people because they could elect officers that had been previously appointed)
1862 – New constitution was discussed but not adopted
1870 – New constitution adopted (lasted for more than 100 years)

10. Illinois Constitution Cont.
November IL voters elect delegates to the constitutional convention (constitution of 1870 was outdated)
1970 – Convention met for the 1st time and began working on a new constitution
Sam Witwer was elected president of the convention (after a 23 year fight for a new constitution)

11. Illinois Constitution Cont.
September 3, 1970 – New constitution written and adopted at the convention
December 15, 1970 – Constitution approved by the voters
July 1, 1971 – New constitution went into force
The purpose of the new constitution was to give greater protection to individual rights, modernize government at all levels and to improve the revenue (tax) system of the state

12. The Great Seal of Illinois
Eagle carrying a shield in its talons
Stars and stripes in the shield represent the original 13 states of the Union
1st design (basic) was created in 1818
August 26, 1818 is the date of the state’s 1st constitution
1818 represents the year of statehood
1868 represents the year the current seal was adopted

13. Organization of State Government
State Responsibilities
State Government
State highway construction, local laws, intrastate commerce, traffic laws, education, marriage, divorce laws, hospitals, voting regulations
3 branches
Checks and balances
Bill of Rights

14. Organization of State Government
Article 4 of the U.S. Constitution
Amendment 10 of the U.S Constitution