While Springfield is the seat of Illinois government today, the state has actually had two other capitals since becoming a state in 1818.

Kaskaskia became the first capital of Illinois after having served as the Territorial seat of government since 1809.

This year, National Twinkie Day is celebrated April 6. Did you know Twinkies were created in Illinois? One of America’s favorite snack food was created in 1930 by James Dewer at Conventional Baking Company in River Forest, Ill.

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s the man of steel! Did you know that parts of the hit film “Man of Steel” were filmed in Illinois? Many of the most pivotal scenes in the movie were filmed in and near Chicago. (Spoilers for “Man of Steel ahead”.)

Considered by some to be the best comedian of all time, Robin Williams was born in Chicago in 1951 and went on to make many people laugh. He performed standup comedy and provided his acting talents to many movies.

Several Illinois hospitals took top rankings in Newsweek’s annual list of the top 200 hospitals in the world. Illinois’ top hospitals in 2021 are Northwestern Memorial Hospital (58), Rush University Medical Center (75), and the University of Chicago Medical Center (101-200).