A Website proves Illinois is more than just Chicago and Corn

People just assume Illinois is two things: Chicago & Corn, but a website claims that there are 9 different areas of Illinois that all have their own personalities and I totally agree with this take.

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The website chicagomag.com has written an article claiming that Illinois has 9 different  "sub-states" that all have their own unique personalities, and I think this perfectly describes Illinois. Here are the 9 sections that the site breaks the state into...

• Chicago - Which is just the city of Chicago, in the article they say "A city with a regional, national, even global outlook, Chicago doesn’t have time for Decatur or Peoria — except to steal their corporate headquarters."
• Collar Counties - These are the main counties that are surrounding Chicago including Lake, Dupage, Kane, McHenry, and Will.
• Corn & Bean Country - The largest part of the state has counties that touch the Collar Counties and spread west and south, in the article they say "Illinois is second in the nation in corn production, after Iowa. We’re number one in soybeans, ahead of Iowa."
• River Cities - Quincy, Illinois is part of this section of Illinois, which is all the counties that touch the Mississippi from the northern part of IL all the way to St. Louis. In the article, they say "The river cities are not as prosperous as they were when the Mississippi was the nation’s most important commercial thoroughfare, but legacies of wealth remain. Quincy has four historic districts, containing examples of just about every architectural style popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries: Queen Anne, Romanesque, Italianate, Second Empire, even Moorish."
• Forgottonia - This is an area that includes our neighbors like Brown County, McDonough County, and Schuyler County.
• Eastern Bloc - The area south and east that is on the Indiana border.
• Little Egypt - The area at the far southern tip of Illinois.
• Land of Lincoln - The area that is Springfield and the surrounding counties.
• American Bottom - The Illinois suburbs of St. Louis.

To see the map and the article for yourself click here!

I think this article nails breaking Illinois down. There is so much more depth to Illinois than just Chicago and corn, Quincy 1000% is a part of the river communities, and the area around Quincy being separated into Forgottonia and the Land of Lincoln area makes sense, Illinois really is such a unique state, and I understand people from other parts of the state hating on Chicago and Chicagoland because they feel overlooked by those areas, but those areas are also crucial parts of what makes Illinois special and unique.