Illinois Outside of Chicago Trivia Quiz

Answer: Prairie

One of Illinois' nicknames is "The Prairie State". Prairie soil is rich, black, and fertile. It was difficult to farm until the invention of the steel plow. Central Illinois contains some of the most productive and valuable farmland in the world.

Answer: Galena

Galena is a mineral (lead sulfide) which is found in large quantities near the town. Galena was not only home to Ulysses S. Grant, but to eight other Civil War generals! The early economy was based on the lead mining industry (at one time, almost all of the lead produced in the United States came from the area around Galena). Nowadays, tourism is the main industry. Galena attracts over one million visitors each year.

Answer: Metropolis

Metropolis is located at the southern tip of Illinois, across the Ohio River from Paducah, Kentucky. It is home to the Superman Museum, and in 1972 the Illinois Legislature passed a bill naming Metropolis the "Hometown of Superman". The local newspaper is called "The Metropolis Planet". The city is also home to a large casino owned by Harrah's.

Answer: Mississippi

The Ohio and the Wabash Rivers make up part of the eastern and southern borders of Illinois. It is the Mississippi that makes up the western border. The Missouri River flows into Mississippi at St. Louis, Missouri, and the Ohio meets the Mississippi at Cairo, Illinois.

At some points, the Mississippi is more than a mile wide. The photo shows a well-known landmark, Tower Rock, located in the Mississippi River near Grand Tower, Illinois.

Answer: Abraham Lincoln

Lincoln's Tomb is the final resting place of Abraham Lincoln, his wife Mary Todd Lincoln, and three of their four children. It was Mrs. Lincoln who chose the location in Oak Ridge Cemetery, rather than a more central location favored by the city fathers. Lincoln's body was placed in a temporary vault until the tomb was completed in 1874.

In 1876, criminals smashed Lincoln's sarcophagus in an attempt to steal his body and hold it for ransom. Lincoln's body was moved several more times over the years until it was finally placed in a concrete vault below the floor of the burial chamber in 1901.

Answer: Cahokia Mounds

Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site is located in the southern part of the state, and covers about 3.5 square miles. It contains 80 mounds constructed by people of the Mississippian culture between 900-1200 AD. The largest of these, Monk's Mound, covers 13.8 acres and stands over 100 feet high.

Some of the mounds served as burial sites. Artifacts recovered show evidence of a very advanced society. The site appears to have been abandoned around 1300 AD for reasons that are still not clear.

Answer: Nauvoo

In 1839, the Mormon leader Joseph Smith left Missouri and led his people to the small town of Commerce, Illinois. He renamed the city Nauvoo, a word taken from the Hebrew meaning "beautiful place". Nauvoo prospered, and its population grew rapidly. Conflicts arose between the Mormons and their non-Mormon neighbors, and in 1844 Joseph Smith and his brother, Hyrum, were murdered by a mob in nearby Carthage, Illinois.

A few years later, the town was virtually abandoned when Brigham Young led the Mormons west to Utah. Restoration of the historic city began in the 1950s, and in 2002 a reconstruction of the original Mormon Temple was opened.

The city is now a center for tourism, attracting visitors from around the world.

Answer: Peoria

Peoria was founded in 1691 by the French explorer Henri de Tonti; it was named after the Peoria Indian tribe. Its advantageous position on the Illinois River, and later as a hub for many railroads, led to prosperity and growth. It was a popular spot for trying out new acts in the early days of Broadway and Vaudeville: "How will it play in Peoria?" was the question asked to see if a show would have appeal to a broad market outside of major urban centers. Peoria remains the world headquarters for Caterpillar, Inc., the world's largest producer of construction equipment.

Answer: Illinois Ozarks

Much of the southern tip of Illinois is heavily forested and very hilly terrain. The Shawnee Hills are quite rugged, with the highest point, Bald Knob Mountain, reaching a height of 1040 feet. Although not part of the Ozark Mountains, which begin in Missouri, these hills are often called the Illinois Ozarks. They attract many hikers, and offer many beautiful views.

Answer: Mother Jones

Mary Harris claimed to have been born in Cork, Ireland on May 1, 1830, but evidence shows she was actually born in 1837. Her family emigrated first to Canada and then to the United States, when she was a child. She was married to George E. Jones in 1861. When her husband and four children died in a yellow fever epidemic, she moved to Chicago in 1867, and became involved with the labor movement, especially the United Mine Workers. She traveled the country, stirring up trouble and agitating for unionization and workers' rights. She called the miners "her boys", and they began calling her "Mother Jones".

On October 12, 1898, an incident between striking coal miners and guards in Virden, Illinois left seven miners dead. The dead miners were buried in nearby Mt. Olive, and Mother Jones expressed a desire to be buried with them. Mother Jones died in Maryland on November 30, 1930, and her body was brought to Union Miners Cemetery for burial. The miners raised funds to build an impressive monument to Mother Jones, which was dedicated in 1936.