This Week in Illinois History
This Week in Illinois History provides a 90-second snapshot of an event significant to Illinois history. Join Host Clint Cargile as he covers big events while also exposing little-known pieces of Illinois history.
Latest Episodes
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Seventy-eight years ago, the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League had its first day of league play. The women's league was founded, in part,… -
On May 23, 1900, the world's first portable Ferris wheel, known as "Big Eli," made its debut. Its inventor, William Sullivan, launched an amusement ride… -
On May 17, 1955, the Illinois General Assembly approved the official state slogan: "Land of Lincoln." Before that, Illinois was known as the Prairie… -
On May 15, 1903, Illinois established the nation's first eight-hour workday . . . for children. The new law also set a 48-hour weekly limit on child… -
The story of the Haymarket Riot of 1886 actually begins 20 years earlier. After the Civil War, Chicago's labor unions had been pushing for an eight-hour… -
On April 28, 1941, Illinois Congressman Arthur Mitchell argued before the U.S. Supreme Court that African Americans were entitled to railroad… -
On April 22, 1856, crowds cheered and bands played in Rock Island, Ill., and Davenport, Iowa, as a train chugged across the first bridge to span the… -
Almost everyone is familiar with the tragedy of the Donner Party, but few remember that their ill-fated journey began in Springfield, Illinois.It was… -
The Twinkie, America’s model junk food, got its start in Illinois. Twinkies were invented on April 6, 1930, at the Continental Baking Company in River… -
No Foolin’: On April 1, 2007, the Illinois General Assembly passed Senate Resolution 255, designating every April 1 in Illinois as "Cheap Trick…
