This is the thirteenth diary in my Expanding the National Parks series. Last time I visited Idaho, this week I'm following in Lincoln's footsteps in Illinois. Illinois doesn't have much protected land on the federal level, only 1.8% of the state is owned by the feds, good for 41st among the states. Currently Illinois has 1 national forest, 11 wildlife refuges, and 3 other NPS units. I will propose giving Illinois its first monuments.
This is the thirteenth diary in my Expanding the National Parks series. Last time I visited Idaho, this week I'm following in Lincoln's footsteps in Illinois. Illinois doesn't have much protected land on the federal level, only 1.8% of the state is owned by the feds, good for 41st among the states. Currently Illinois has 1 national forest, 11 wildlife refuges, and 3 other NPS units. I will propose giving Illinois its first monuments.
Illinois
Total Area: 57 914 sq miles
Land Area 55 519 sq miles
Water Area 2 395 sq miles
Coastline 63 sq miles
Additional monuments-4
NATIONAL FORESTS-1
* Shawnee Established 1933 covers 265 616 acres
Located in the southernmost part of the state,Established by FDR in 1933, the forest was expanded during the depression and reforested by the CCC. the forest contains 7 wildernesses as well as the"little Grand Canyon" and is the largest area of public land in Illinois. there are efforts to frack the forest, so stronger protection of this area is needed.
WILDLIFE REFUGES-11
* Chautauqua Established 1936 Covers 4388 acres
one of four refuges located on the Illinois river, Chautauqua was created from a failed attempt to create agricultural land out of wetlands near the river. the attempt changed the layout and makeup of the area, but the passage of time and continued buildup of silt is slowly restoring the refuge to what it was before the attempts to dike and divert the land.
* Crab Orchard Established 1947 Covers 43890 acres
The second largest refuge in the state, Crab Orchard is an important stop on the Mississippi Flyway. 200000 Canadian geese winter there and nearly 250 species of birds have been identified in the refuge. the Crab Orchard wilderness, which covers the southernmost part of the refuge, covers 4000 acres.the eastern half of the refuge is a sanctuary and public access to limited. 1 million people visit the refuge annually.
* Cypress Creek Established 1990 Covers 16000 acres
Located at the southernmost tip of the state, this refuge is home to 50 endangered or threatened species. plans call for the refuge to expand to 36000 acres which would make the third refuge in the state to cover more than 30000 acres. while administered by FWS the area is part of a collaboration between federal and state agencies and conservation groups and private landowners.
* Driftless Area Established 1989 Covers 812 acres (in IL, IA and WI)
The smallest refuge in the state, this refuge was set up to protect the endangered Iowa Pleistocene snail and the threatened Northern Wild Monkshood. the refuge is slowly being expanded to protect the ecosystem and wildlife in the area.
* Emiquon Established 1993 Covers 11122 acres
set aside to protect portions of the Illinois riverbed, Emiquon was declared a Ramsar Wetland in 2012 goals include expanding the refuge, purchasing the portion owned by the Nature Conservancy, reconnecting the lakes and restoring the natural drainage patterns of the area, as well as incorporating the refuge into the Illinois River WR Complex.
* Hackmatack Established 2012 Covers 11800 acres(in IL and WI)
The newest wildlife refuge in the state, Hackmatack, is an urban refuge crossing the border into Wisconsin. while the refuge has only a small amount of land set aside as of this writing, plans call for nearly 12000 acres once the refuge is completed. Hamatack is a Algonquin word for the tamarack conifer, which used to be abundant in the area. the potowatomi tribe lived in region historically, using the area for fishing and hunting. development of the area around Chicago saw much of the wetlands disappear, the refuge is an attempt to restore some of the area to it previous state, which includes areas of tallgrass prairie. More than 100 species of animal, including the Blandings Turtle, make their home in the area designated for the refuge.
* Meredosia Established 1973 Covers 5255 acres
Located on Meredosia Island, it is part of the Illinois River WR complex, along with Emiquon and Chautauqua WRs. originally owned by a hunting club before being bought by the FWS, and efforts are ongoing to expand the refuge.
* Middle Mississippi River Established 2000 Covers 7000 acres (in IL and MO)
part of the former Mark Twain WR, the refuge consists of Meissner and Wilkinson Islands in Illinois and Harlow Island in Missouri. the refuge was created from lands damaged from the 1993 Mississippi River flood.
* Port Louisa Established 1958 Covers 10780 acres (in IL and IA)
Once part of the Mark Twain WR, Port Loiusa is a stopover on the Mississippi Flyway. it consists of four sections,Big Timber, Horseshoe Bend, Keithsburg and Louisa. of those four, Keithsburg is the smallest and the only one that lies in Illinois, the others lie in Iowa.
* Two Rivers Established 1958 Covers 8501 acres (in IL and MO)
Lying at the confluence of the Illinois and Mississippi rivers, the refuge consists of five parcels spread between Missouri and Illinois. Resident animals include wood ducks and bald eagles, who congregate in the refuge in larger numbers (over 500) than nearly anywhere else in the lower 48 states.
* Upper Mississippi River Established 1924 Covers 240000 actes (in IL, IA, MN and WI)
Spread out over 4 states and covering 89636 acres in Wisconsin, 51148 in Iowa,33869 in Minnesota and 33490 in Illinois, the refuge is the oldest in the state and was named as a Ramsar Wetland in 2010. the refuge ranges from large cliff bluffs along the Mississippi to hardwood forests to floodplain. the refuge is one of the largest intact floodplains in the lower 48. the refuge is one of only two refuges (Silvio O Conte is the other) to span 4 states.
HISTORIC SITES AND OTHER NPS UNITS-3
* Chicago Portage NHS Established 1952 Covers 91 acres
Protects the western end of the portage which connected the Chicago and Des Plaines rivers, which connected the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River and Gulf Of Mexico by extension. the rest of the portage has been extensively developed over the years, the site is the last remnant that has been kept in its native state.
* Lincoln Home NHS Established 1971 Covers 12 acres
Protects the home where Abraham Lincoln lived from 1844-1861, it was the only house Lincoln ever owned. the other houses in the district protected by the NHS have been been restored to period appearance. Lincoln's son Robert donated the house to the state in 1877 on condition it be well-maintained, it was bought by the NPS in 1971 and is to date the only property in the state owned by the Park Service.
* Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie NG Established 1996 Covers 18226 acres
the only national grassland east of the Mississippi, Midewin (which is the Potowatomi word for the tribes healers) protects a remnant of the vegetation that covered much of Illinois before settlement, but which today exists in 1/10th of 1 percent of the state. The area on the which the refuge now sits was once the Joliet Army Ammunition Plant, the land was turned over to the Forest service starting in 1997, and continued land transfers has increased the grassland to 20000 acres, of that roughly 7000 is open to the public, the rest is left to naturally restore itself.
ADDITIONAL MONUMENTS-4
*Coastal Bluffs Protects the bluffs straddling the Mississippi River in Minnesota Illinois, Wisconsin and Iowa. Currently endangered from sand fracking going on in Wisconsin, the bluffs were formed by the Mississippi river cutting slowly over thousands of years through the rock, creating bluffs hundreds of feet tall above the river. preserving the bluffs from fracking will require designation as a monument, as Congress is unlikely to act on slowing down the fracking going on in the area. Estimated area 1 million acres,an area roughly the size of Rhode Island.
* Illinois Coastal preserves open spaces up to 10 miles from the lakeshore and preserves Illinois' portion of Lake Michigan out to the boundaries with Wisconsin , Michigan and Indiana. given Chicago's development, available space is likely to be scarce. estimated area 74000 acres
* Lincoln includes all locations, historic sites and memorials connected with Lincoln spread through the state and country estimated area 1000 acres
*Shawnee upgrades the existing forest to monument status in order to preserve the forest from proposed fracking. estimated area 300000 acres
And there you have it folk, my rundown of Illinois is Complete. Next time I'll be in Indiana. As always, Comments, concerns and imput are welcome.