The Illinois Historic Preservation Division, formerly Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, is a governmental agency of the U.S. state of

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Roc ...

, and is a division of the

Illinois Department of Natural Resources The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) is the code department of the Illinois state government that operates the state parks and state recreation areas, enforces the fishing and game laws of Illinois, regulates Illinois coal mines, ...

. It is tasked with the duty of maintaining State-owned

historic site A historic site or heritage site is an official location where pieces of political, military, cultural, or social history have been preserved due to their cultural heritage value. Historic sites are usually protected by law, and many have been re ...

s, and maximizing their educational and recreational value to visitors or on-line users. In addition, it manages the process for applications within the state for additions to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artist ...

History of agency

The Illinois Historic Preservation Agency (IHPA) was created by State law in July 1985. What was the agency's oldest bureau, the

Illinois State Historical Library The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum documents the life of the 16th U.S. president, Abraham Lincoln, and the course of the American Civil War. Combining traditional scholarship with 21st-century showmanship techniques, the museum ...

, was created in 1889, but the origins of the agency could be said to date back to the state's involvement in building and caring for the Lincoln Tomb in Springfield, Illinois, in 1865. During the 20th century, the state of Illinois acquired and restored a wide variety of historic properties throughout the state. One key asset,

Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site is a reconstruction of the former village of New Salem in Menard County, Illinois, where Abraham Lincoln lived from 1831 to 1837. While in his twenties, the future U.S. President made his living in this ...

in Menard County, a reconstruction of a village where Abraham Lincoln lived in the 1830s, was established in the 1930s. The agency also administers the Cahokia

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

which includes the largest

pre-columbian In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era spans from the original settlement of North and South America in the Upper Paleolithic period through European colonization, which began with Christopher Columbus's voyage of 1492. Usually, ...

construction in the Americas north of Mexico. The IHPA continued to grow after its creation in 1985, largely because of continued public interest in Lincoln as the bicentennial of his birth approached in 2009. The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum (ALPLM), also in Springfield, Illinois, was dedicated in 2005. Unlike most

presidential libraries A presidential library, presidential center, or presidential museum is a facility either created in honor of a former president and containing their papers, or affiliated with a country's presidency. In the United States * The presidential libr ...

, the Lincoln Library is state-owned. The proposed 2016 budget of Governor

Bruce Rauner Bruce Vincent Rauner (; born February 18, 1956) is an American businessman, philanthropist, and politician who served as the 42nd governor of Illinois from 2015 to 2019. Prior to his election, he was the chairman of R8 Capital Partners and cha ...

sought to eliminate the agency, assigning its duties to the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Opponents of the move claimed that the Commerce Department had neither the expertise nor the interest to carry out the agency's functions and that any savings from the agency's 2015 budget of $15 million would be minimal. In 2017, the Agency was split, with the historic preservation and site management duties falling to a reorganized Division within the

(which manages State Parks and other resources), and the Library (ALPLM) becoming an independent agency.

List of Illinois State Historic Sites

The following is an alphabetical listing of the more than 50 Illinois State Historic Sites that are under the jurisdiction of the Illinois Historic Preservation Division: *

Albany Mounds State Historic Site Albany Mounds State Historic Site, also known as Albany Mounds Site, is a historic site operated by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. It spans over 205 acres of land near the Mississippi river at the northwest edge of the state of Illino ...

Whiteside County Whiteside County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it had a population of 58,498. Its county seat is Morrison. The county is bounded on the west by the Mississippi River. Whiteside County comprises ...

Apple River Fort State Historic Site Apple River Fort, today known as the Apple River Fort State Historic Site, was one of many frontier forts hastily completed by settlers in northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin following the onset of the 1832 Black Hawk War. Located in presen ...

Jo Daviess County Jo Daviess County () is the northwesternmost county in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it had a population of 22,678. Its county seat is Galena. Jo Daviess County is part of the Tri-State Area and is located near ...

Bishop Hill State Historic Site Bishop Hill State Historic Site is an open-air museum in Henry County, Illinois. It is located about 2 miles north of U.S. Route 34 in Bishop Hill, Illinois. The Illinois Historic Preservation Agency operates four surviving buildings in the villa ...

, Henry County * Black Hawk State Historic Site, Rock Island County *

Bryant Cottage State Historic Site The Bryant Cottage State Historic Site is a simple four-room house located in Bement, Illinois in the U.S. state of Illinois. It was built in 1856 and is preserved by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources as an example of Piatt County, Ill ...

, Piatt County * Buel House, Pope County * Cahokia Courthouse State Historic Site, St. Clair County *

Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site The Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site ( 11 MS 2) is the site of a pre-Columbian Native American city (which existed 1050–1350 CE) directly across the Mississippi River from modern St. Louis, Missouri. This historic park lies in south ...

, Madison County and St. Clair County * Campbell's Island State Memorial, Rock Island County *

Carl Sandburg State Historic Site Carl Sandburg State Historic Site was the birthplace and boyhood home of author Carl Sandburg in Galesburg, Illinois, United States. It is operated by the Illinois Historic Preservation Division. The site contains the cottage Sandburg was born in, ...

, Knox County * Crenshaw House, Gallatin County * Dana–Thomas House State Historic Site, Sangamon County *

David Davis Mansion State Historic Site The David Davis Mansion, also known as Clover Lawn, is a Gilded Age home in Bloomington, Illinois, Bloomington, Illinois that was the residence of David Davis (Supreme Court justice), David Davis, United States Supreme Court, Supreme Court j ...

, McLean County *

Douglas Tomb State Historic Site The Stephen A. Douglas Tomb and Memorial or Stephen Douglas Monument Park is a memorial that includes the tomb of United States Senator Stephen A. Douglas (1813 – 1861). It is located at 636 E. 35th Street in the Douglas, Chicago#Bronzeville, Br ...

Cook County Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40% of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. As of 20 ...

Fort de Chartres State Historic Site Fort de Chartres was a French fortification first built in 1720 on the east bank of the Mississippi River in present-day Illinois. It was used as the administrative center for the province, which was part of New France. Due generally to river ...

Randolph County Randolph County is the name of eight counties in the United States: * Randolph County, Alabama *Randolph County, Arkansas * Randolph County, Georgia *Randolph County, Illinois * Randolph County, Indiana *Randolph County, Missouri *Randolph County, N ...

Fort Kaskaskia State Historic Site Fort Kaskaskia State Historic Site is a 200-acre (0.8 km²) park near Chester, Illinois, on a blufftop overlooking the Mississippi River. It commemorates the vanished frontier town of '' Old Kaskaskia'' and the support it gave to George R ...

Governor Bond State Memorial Governor Bond State Memorial is a granite monument that marks the grave of Shadrach Bond, the first governor of Illinois after it became a state in 1818. Born in Maryland, Bond settled in Monroe County, Illinois in 1794, and served as an Illin ...

Governor Coles State Memorial The Governor Coles State Memorial, also known as the Edward E. Coles Monument and the Governor Coles Monument, is a concrete memorial dedicated to Edward Coles, the second governor of Illinois (1822 to 1826). Erected between 1928-1929, the memorial ...

, Madison County *

Governor Horner State Memorial Governor Horner State Memorial is a granite monument dedicated to Henry Horner, the thirtieth governor of Illinois who served from 1933 to 1940. The memorial stands in Horner Park in Chicago, Illinois at the corner of Montrose Avenue and Californi ...

Governor Small Memorial and Park A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political r ...

, Kankakee County *

Grand Village of the Illinois The Grand Village of the Illinois, also called Old Kaskaskia Village, is a site significant for being the best documented historic Native American village in the Illinois River valley. It was a large agricultural and trading village of Native A ...

, LaSalle County (not open to the public) * Halfway Tavern, Marion County * Hofmann Tower,

Illinois Vietnam Veterans Memorial Illinois Vietnam Veterans Memorial honors the 2,970 Illinois residents who are listed as killed or listed as missing in action during the Vietnam War. Dedicated in 1988, the Memorial includes the names of the dead or missing carved in black granit ...

, Sangamon County **

Purple Heart Memorial (Illinois) Quantico National Cemetery is a national cemetery in Triangle, Virginia for veterans who served in the United States Armed Forces. Adjacent to and originally part of Marine Corps Base Quantico, it was established as a national cemetery in 1983 wi ...

* Jarrot Mansion State Historic Site, St. Clair County *

Jubilee College State Historic Site Jubilee College State Park is an Illinois state park located west of Peoria, Illinois. It contains Jubilee College State Historic Site, a frontier Illinois college active from 1840 to 1862. Jubilee College, and the frontier community that suppo ...

, Peoria County *

Kaskaskia Bell State Memorial Kaskaskia Bell State Memorial is a monument located in Kaskaskia, Illinois containing the Kaskaskia Bell, also known as "The Liberty Bell of the West," a gift from King Louis XV of France to the Catholic Church of New France. The 140-pound bell ...

* Kincaid Mounds State Historic Site,

Massac County Massac County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it had a population of 15,429. Established in 1843 and named for a French fort founded in the 18th century, its county seat is Metropolis. Massac County is ...

Korean War Memorial (Illinois) The Illinois Korean War State Memorial honors the 1,748 Illinois residents who are listed as killed or listed as missing in action during the Korean War. Dedicated in June 1996, the Memorial centers on the names of the dead or missing carved on s ...

, Sangamon County * Lewis and Clark State Historic Site, Madison County * Lincoln–Herndon Law Offices State Historic Site, Sangamon County * Lincoln Log Cabin State Historic Site (including the Reuben Moore Home),

Coles County Coles County is a county in Illinois. As of the 2020 census, the population was 46,863. Its county seat is Charleston, which is also the home of Eastern Illinois University. Coles County is part of the Charleston- Mattoon, IL Micropolitan Sta ...

* Lincoln Monument, Lee County * Lincoln Tomb State Historic Site, Sangamon County *

Lincoln Trail State Memorial The Lincoln Trail State Memorial is a sculpture group designed in 1937 by Nellie Verne Walker and erected in 1938 to commemorate the first entrance of Abraham Lincoln, then a destitute 21-year-old frontiersman, into Illinois. It is located at t ...

, Lawrence County *

, Menard County *

Lovejoy State Memorial The Elijah P. Lovejoy Monument, also known as the Elijah Lovejoy Monument, Elijah Parrish Lovejoy Shaft, Lovejoy Monument, and Lovejoy State Memorial, is a memorial in Alton, Illinois to Elijah P. Lovejoy, an advocate of free speech and the abol ...

, Madison County * Martin–Boismenue House, St. Clair County * Metamora Courthouse State Historic Site, Woodford County *

Mount Pulaski Courthouse State Historic Site The Mount Pulaski Courthouse State Historic Site is a historic county courthouse located in Mount Pulaski, Illinois, United States. It was the county seat of Logan County from 1848 until 1855. It is one of only two remaining courthouses from I ...

, Logan County *

Norwegian Settlers Memorial The Norwegian Settlers Memorial is the official memorial of the U.S. state of Illinois maintained in honor of Norwegian American, immigrants from the nation of Norway. This Memorial commemorates the Fox River Settlement, the site of the first perm ...

, La Salle County *

Old Market House State Historic Site The Old Market House, currently being operated as the Galena Welcome Center, is a brick building built in the Greek Revival style in 1845 in Galena, Illinois. It is owned and operated by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency as an Illinois ...

Old State Capitol State Historic Site The Old State Capitol State Historic Site, in Springfield, Illinois, is the fifth capitol building built for the U.S. state of Illinois. It was built in the Greek Revival style in 1837–1840, and served as the state house from 1840 to 1876.

, Sangamon County * Pierre Menard Home State Historic Site,

* Postville Courthouse State Historic Site, Logan County * Pullman Site, including: ** Hotel Florence,

* Rose Hotel, Hardin County *

Shawneetown Bank State Historic Site The Shawneetown Bank State Historic Site is an historic bank building in Old Shawneetown, Illinois, and is the oldest structure in Illinois built specifically as a bank. A Greek Revival structure built in 1839–1841 in what was then called Sh ...

, Gallatin County *

U.S. Grant Home State Historic Site The Ulysses S. Grant Home in Galena, Illinois, Galena, Illinois is the former home of Ulysses S. Grant, the American Civil War, Civil War general and later 18th President of the United States. The home was designed by William Dennison

Vachel Lindsay Home The Vachel Lindsay House is a historic house museum at 603 South 5th Street in Springfield, Illinois. Built in 1848, it was the birthplace and lifelong home of poet Vachel Lindsay (1879–1931). It was declared a National Historic Landmark i ...

, Sangamon County * Vandalia State House State Historic Site, Fayette County * Washburne House State Historic Site,

Wild Bill Hickok Memorial Wild Bill Hickok Memorial is a state historic site operated by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. It is located in a small park at the intersection of Main and Ottawa Streets in Troy Grove, Illinois. The memorial marks the site of the birt ...

, LaSalle County * World War II Illinois Veterans Memorial, Sangamon County In addition to those above administered by the Illinois Historic Preservation Division, other historic sites operated by Illinois state agencies include: *

Dickson Mounds Dickson Mounds is a Native American settlement site and burial mound complex near Lewistown, Illinois. It is located in Fulton County on a low bluff overlooking the Illinois River. It is a large burial complex containing at least two cemeter ...

, operated by

(IDNR) * Fort Massac State Park, operated by IDNR * Starved Rock State Park, operated by IDNR

NRHP multiple property submissions

This List of NRHP Multiple Property Submission in Illinois are properties not part of a

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal protection from ce ...

but are, rather, listed individually on the National Register of Historic Places after a collective nomination with other similar properties, called a

Multiple Property Submission The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. * American Woman's League Chapter Houses Thematic Resources *

Archaeological Sites of Starved Rock State Park Starved Rock State Park is a Illinois state park, state park in the U.S. state of Illinois, characterized by the many canyons within its . Located just southeast of the village of Utica, Illinois, Utica, in Deer Park Township, LaSalle County, Il ...

Architectural and Historic Resources of Vermont, Illinois, Multiple Property Submission Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings o ...

Black Metropolis Thematic Resources Black is a color which results from the absence or complete Absorption (electromagnetic radiation), absorption of visible spectrum, visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or fi ...

Caught in the Middle; the Civil War on the Lower Ohio River Caught is a method of dismissing a batsman in cricket. A batsman is out caught if the batsman hits the ball, from a legitimate delivery, with the bat, and the ball is caught by the bowler or a fielder before it hits the ground. If the ball ...

Civil War Era National Cemeteries Civil may refer to: *Civic virtue, or civility *Civil action, or lawsuit * Civil affairs * Civil and political rights *Civil disobedience * Civil engineering *Civil (journalism), a platform for independent journalism * Civilian, someone not a me ...

Coles County Highway Bridges Over the Embarras River Thematic Resources Coles may refer to: Businesses *Coles Supermarkets, a supermarket chain in Australia *Coles Group, parent company of Coles Supermarkets, Coles Online, Coles Express, Coles Liquor and flybuys * Coles (bookstore), a bookstore chain in Canada, a div ...

* Fraternity and Sorority Houses at the Urbana-Champaign Campus of the University of Illinois Multiple Property Submission *

Highway Bridges in Iowa 1868-1945 A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-access ...

Historic and Historical Archaeological Resources of the Cherokee Trail of Tears History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

Historic and Architectural Resources of Route 66 Through Illinois U.S. Route 66 was a highway established on November 11, 1926, connecting Chicago, Illinois to the Southwestern United States, Southwest. Several buildings from the Route 66 era still stand and are part of the Historic and Architectural Resources of ...

Historic Fairgrounds in Illinois Multiple Property Submission History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as we ...

Historic Resources of Grafton, Illinois, ca. 1830-1943, Multiple Property Submission History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

Historic Resources of Highland Park Multiple Resource Area History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as we ...

Historic Resources of Maywood, Illinois, Multiple Property Submission History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as we ...

Historic Resources of the Chicago Park District Multiple Property Submission History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

Hyde Park Apartment Hotels Thematic Resources Hyde or Hydes may refer to: People *Hyde (surname) *Hyde (musician), Japanese musician from the bands L'Arc-en-Ciel and VAMPS American statutes *Hyde Amendment, an amendment that places well-defined limitations on Medicare spending on aborti ...

* Illinois Carnegie Libraries Multiple Property Submission *

Illinois State Park Lodges and Cabins Thematic Resources Illinois State Park Lodges and Cabins Thematic Resources is a Multiple Property Submission on the National Register of Historic Places in the U.S. state of Illinois. The listing includes the lodge and cabin sites in five different Illinois Stat ...

* Metal Highway Bridges of Fulton County Thematic Resources * Motor Row, Chicago, Illinois *

Native American Rock Art Sites of Illinois Multiple Property Submission Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entertai ...

Round Barns in Illinois Thematic Resources Round Barns in Illinois was the subject of a Multiple Property Submission to the National Register of Historic Places in the U.S. state of Illinois. The submission consists of 18 Illinois round barns located throughout the state. The list had ma ...

* Suburban Apartment Buildings in Evanston Thematic Resources *

University of Illinois Buildings by Nathan Clifford Ricker Thematic Resources A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', whic ...

University of Illinois Buildings Designed by Charles A. Platt A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', whic ...

References

External links

* {{authority control History of Illinois *

Historic Preservation Historic preservation (US), built heritage preservation or built heritage conservation (UK), is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance. It is a philos ...

State history organizations of the United States Government agencies established in 1985 1985 establishments in Illinois