The Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society (JISHS) invites submissions for its upcoming issues. Established in 1908, JISHS is the peer-reviewed scholarly publication of the Illinois State Historical Society. […]
Robert D. Sampson, author of Ballists, Dead Beats, and Muffins: Inside Early Baseball in Illinois, answers questions on his new book. Q: Why did you decide to write this book? […]
Jeff Karzen, author of Playgrounds to the Pros: Legends of Peoria Basketball, answers questions on why he wrote his new book and the myths he hopes to dispel with it. […]
Visit University of Illinois Press at the Conference on Illinois History in Springfield, IL, October 6-7, 2022 for special sales, author signings, and more! Use the promo code CILH22 for […]
Peter J. Vagt, author of Light Through the Trees: Photographs at The Morton Arboretum, answers questions on his biggest influences, discoveries, and reader takeaways from his book. Q: Why did you decide […]
Bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) The Bluegill is the Illinois State Fish, and rightly so. If an Illinoisan has only caught one fish in their life, there’s a good chance it was […]
Rainbow Smelt (Osmerus mordax) Netting buckets of Rainbow Smelt once provided Chicagoans and Lakefront suburbanites with an annual rite of near-spring. News that spawning smelt had begun to run sent […]
Starhead Topminnow (Fundulus dispar) At just three inches long, the Starhead Topminnow invites predation. But as they say at the Charles Darwin School of Business, predation spurs innovation. “Starhead Topminnows […]
Walleye (Stizostedion vitreum) The Walleye can reach 36 inches in length. As you might guess, a yard-long sport fish offers sport indeed. The range map above, courtesy of the Atlas […]
Chinook or King Salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) The largest North American salmon, the Chinook or King Salmon grows to 58 inches and can weigh over 30 lbs. The Chinook, like the […]
Northern Pike (Esox lucius) In middle school, I knew a kid with one of those dads who spent every spare moment fishing. This man went straight from work to the […]
Northern Brook Lamprey (Ichthyomyzon fossor) A poll on Favorite Fish of Illinois would presumably return zero votes for any lamprey. Granted, most of us do not consider the lamprey a […]