Illinois Facts -- National Geographic

Fast Facts

Population:: 12,653,544
Capital:: Springfield; 111,834
Area:: 57,914 square miles (149,998 square kilometers)
Per Capita Income:: U.S. $33,320
Date Statehood Achieved:: December 3, 1818

Farmland covers nearly 80 percent of the state, and Illinois is a major exporter of farm products. Chicago is home to nearly one-quarter of all Illinoisans. No other U.S. city moves more freight by train and truck. Linked to the Atlantic by the St. Lawrence Seaway, Chicago sends cargo into the U.S. interior; canals and the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers extend its reach to the Gulf of Mexico.

ECONOMY

Industry: Industrial machinery, electronic equipment, food processing, chemicals, metals, printing and publishing, rubber and plastics, motor vehicles
Agriculture: Corn, soybeans, hogs, cattle, dairy products, nursery stock

—Text From National Geographic Atlas of the World, Eighth Edition

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