Main Ideas
One of the most stimulating activities for students is for them to create their own maps and then to try to decide what those maps mean. There is the fun of watching geographical patterns emerge, and there is the intellectual challenge of explaining these patterns. The concept of region is explained, and material is provided so that students can create their own regions. There are no right or wrong answers. The success of the exercise must be measured by the extent to which it stimulates debate on regions, discussion of cause and effect, and interest in Illinois history.

The "historic present" is a useful method by which geography and history can be combined in the classroom. To discover the unique character of an area — in this case Illinois — at a particular time — in this case 1870 — one needs some basic facts, a willingness to think in terms of what was really important to people at that period, and a little imagination. Here are some of the things that might be important in interpreting the maps that the students will create. Illinois is basically a flat state (see Figure1); there are only four fairly small areas where bedrock dominates, and most of that land is too rocky and hilly for much farming: the Galena country in the northwest, the Lincoln Hills in Calhoun and southern Pike County, the Salem Plateau in the southwest, and the Shawnee Hills in the far south.

Illinois was settled by quite different groups. Upland Southerners came from Kentucky and Tennessee and moved north, while settlers from the eastern states came somewhat later and generally moved from east to west. Of the last group, the New Englanders who settled the northernmost counties of the state were perhaps the most different from the Upland Southerners.

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Until a few years before 1870 you could not farm until you put up a fence to keep out the neighbors' livestock, which did not have to be fenced in; this meant that trees for fences were essential for settlement, and it helps to explain why the last area in Illinois to be settled was the treeless Grand Prairie. Substantial parts of that zone had yet to be occupied in 1870. Many of the larger river valleys in Illinois are lined with rocky cliffs or swampy lowlands, which presented problems for farmers. Growing seasons in Illinois become shorter as one goes north, which in turn influenced the selection of crops. Corn was already the biggest money-making crop in Illinois in 1870, and huge amounts were being shipped to other states and countries. However, almost all farm work was done with the aid of horses, requiring farmers everywhere in Illinois to devote a large number of acres to oats to feed their work animals. The railroad network was making rapid progress in Illinois, but many areas were not yet served. Chicago had grown extremely rapidly between 1850 and 1870, and in 1870. Chicago was the only really large city in the state. In 1870 most people in Illinois lived on farms, and except perhaps in Cook County, population changes between 1860 and 1870 depended on changes in farming. Remember too, that the southern part of the state was settled first, so those counties generally had less room for new farms than did those in the north.

Connection with the Curriculum
Focusing on the region can facilitate an emphasis on higher level thinking. Students must process a great deal of information in the analysis of a variety of topics. Synthesis occurs when they attempt to understand the interrelationships of those topics and arrive at composite pictures of unique regions. Employing the temporal dimension of history and the spatial dimension of geography offers a powerful combination by which students can understand a part of their world.

Teaching Level
Grades 7-12

Materials for Each Student

• U.S. outline map

• 1870 data

• Illinois base map (with counties labeled)

• Illinois physiographic map

• Colored pencils or markers (optional)

Identification of data categories:

1. Population per square mile

2. % population growth, 1860-1870

3. % area in improved land

4. % woodland

5. % farms of 100 or more acres

6. % farms of fewer than 50 acres

7. % of total crop production in corn. (Note: Oats dominant in Boone, Cook, DeKalb, Du Page, Kane, Kankakee, Lake, and Will. Wheat dominant in Jersey, Monroe, Randolph, and St. Clair.)

8. $ value of market gardening per square mile

9. $ value of orchard products per square mile

10. Number of milk cows per square mile

11. Number of cattle per square mile (excluding milk cows and oxen)

12. Number of swine per square mile

1870 Data
County	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12
Adams	66	36	55	21	24	40	45	57	200	13	19	66
Alexander	45	124	9	12	15	43	79	8	23	2	3	21
Bond	35	34	60	18	35	30	56	1	105	10	13	45
Boone	46	34	76	17	41	23	34	1	82	25	28	28
Brown	40	23	29	48	22	44	62	3	19	7	16	53
Bureau	37	22	72	8	46	17	65	3	68	16	33	58
Calhoun	26	27	24	40	14	64	49	6	126	7	9	44
Carroll	38	40	66	10	45	23	50	3	44	18	33	59
Cass	31	2	39	14	50	20	79	0	6	6	17	34
Champaign	33	123	66	3	29	39	79	5	42	9	18	36
Christian	29	94	53	4	47	18	67	1	45	6	11	49
Clark	37	25	37	31	21	47	59	10	89	8	14	37
Clay	34	70	49	27	25	47	74	8	69	8	13	43
Clinton	35	48	49	16	33	26	43	6	87	8	9	38
Coles	50	78	64	14	27	46	81	2	56	11	22	66
Cook	365	141	57	3	38	31	24	156	20	24	15	16
Grawford	31	20	37	27	25	38	61	0	57	7	10	44
Cumberland	35	47	34	18	29	31	59	1	32	7	10	29
DeKalb	37	22	85	4	59	9	36	4	16	23	29	42
DeWitt	37	36	66	12	35	32	79	48	83	11	19	74
Douglas	32	88	55	4	40	28	84	1	44	8	28	42
Du Page	50	13	76	8	53	15	24	22	63	32	23	25
Edgar	34	27	67	17	32	46	78	0	98	11	33	62
Edwards	34	39	41	40	25	29	58	1	38	9	13	60
Effingham	33	100	39	18	21	47	51	0	74	9	11	36
Fayette	28	75	41	20	23	47	52	2	105	9	11	34
Ford	19	359	45	1	39	19	73	2	2	6	12	20
Franklin	31	34	30	2	13	64	66	20	90	8	14	62
Fulton	44	14	41	22	32	31	65	1	92	10	18	67
Gallatin	35	38	24	33	7	71	82	2	3	6	7	46
Greene	37	25	50	27	32	40	62	2	50	8	24	58
Grundy	35	44	72	2	48	8	50	3	7	16	30	20
Hamilton	30	31	32	34	8	66	70	2	110	8	9	57
Hancock	45	24	61	21	32	29	57	5	85	12	21	56
Hardin	28	36	24	39	12	65	74	0	2	6	8	45
Henderson	34	32	59	15	39	22	75	41	131	12	23	74
Henry	43	72	50	5	43	14	67	0	19	11	19	42
Iroquois	23	109	45	8	36	28	60	2	8	9	19	19
Jackson	33	105	21	23	8	68	56	6	113	5	7	45
Jasper	23	34	29	21	19	51	65	0	18	6	10	25
Jefferson	31	38	33	26	19	55	69	6	55	7	11	44
Jersey	40	25	39	22	34	33	45	1	98	8	21	43
Jo Daviess	46	2	41	21	26	35	52	11	79	17	30	57

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County	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12
Johnson	33	20	26	-	10	63	67	0	126	5	5	40
Kane	75	30	72	10	56	18	37	7	44	31	25	29
Kankakee	36	58	72	3	41	23	41	4	9	18	25	24
Kendall	39	-5	80	7	55	10	54	1	58	19	27	46
Knox	55	38	72	7	41	26	69	5	94	15	33	86
Lake	46	15	72	7	41	24	36	12	59	27	24	29
LaSalle	61	26	73	7	47	11	62	8	38	15	26	32
Lawrence	34	36	26	21	23	39	62	0	46	8	13	47
Lee	37	54	69	3	41	17	52	14	24	18	27	35
Livingston	30	170	56	2	39	16	59	1	4	10	14	27
Logan	37	62	81	7	42	22	84	5	43	10	9	77
Macon	46	93	55	5	41	20	75	8	43	9	14	51
Macoupin	38	33	53	15	44	23	44	3	40	8	14	37
Madison	61	41	55	19	26	39	56	96	99	11	8	72
Marion	36	62	37	13	.25	49	64	3	101	8	12	38
Marshall	44	26	67	11	35	25	68	14	75	14	18	52
Mason	30	48	61	9	48	24	83	3	44	8	11	31
Massac	40	54	16	22	13	35	58	3	38	4	4	23
McDonough	45	32	69	19	38	19	68	3	74	12	24	70
McHenry	39	7	59	6	36	30	44	17	42	27	24	35
McLean	46	88	67	5	47	16	75	10	45	10	23	52
Menard	37	22	67	17	37	34	86	0	71	11	32	86
Mercer	34	25	63	13	47	22	72	2	61	14	28	75
Monroe	33	2	37	34	14	46	40	5	43	7	4	34
Montgomery	36	83	61	11	31	40	52	6	58	9	11	49
Morgan	50	29	81	17	42	34	85	41	74	10	53	78
Moultrie	32	62	69	12	26	44	78	2	133	10	20	69
Ogle	36	20	65	9	56	11	61	9	27	17	29	44
Peoria	77	25	43	12	34	28	63	31	46	10	15	57
Perry	31	44	30	24	20	52	34	2	46	7	8	33
Piatt	25	78	34	2	50	19	83	0	20	5	12	29
Pike	37	13	44	24	25	42	53	3	34	9	15	62
Pope	31	70	23	37	11	60	69	8	79	5	7	34
Pulaski	43	121	9	6	7	72	76	108	140	4	7	28
Putnam	39	12	31	14	47	25	72	34	72	9	18	34
Randolph	36	21	38	43	18	46	26	2	112	8	9	42
Richland	36	32	33	18	26	38	57	3	24	8	11	34
Rock Island	70	42	57	12	32	33	71	39	163	18	30	63
Saline	33	36	29	29	8	74	78	2	9	8	9	53
Sangamon	54	43	76	9	44	29	85	32	95	10	30	88
Schuyler	40	19	34	22	21	40	55	0	73	10	19	54
Scott	42	16	53	28	37	35	73	3	35	9	24	69
Shelby	34	74	65	16	31	40	65	0	34	10	14	58
Stark	37	19	75	7	44	13	71	0	51	14	26	92
St. Clair	76	35	54	18	27	33	40	139	85	9	7	44
Stephenson	54	21	71	12	39	21	47	4	42	19	27	61
Tazewell	43	30	55	11	40	22	72	21	118	10	17	53
Union	40	47	29	31	7	77	69	59	363	7	10	61
Vermilion	34	90	63	9	26	51	78	3	64	11	26	58
Wabash	39	20	38	26	18	34	57	0	10	8	10	46
Warren	43	26	77	8	41	17	77	5	82	15	31	96
Washington	31	28	49	16	44	22	41	10	130	7	8	37
Wayne	28	61	32	32	12	63	67	1	134	8	13	55
White	34	36	29	25	11	58	74	0	54	7	8	50
Whiteside	40	47	66	5	46	19	60	2	57	19	32	55
Will	51	47	78	4	51	16	35	5	41	22	29	25
Williamson	41	42	47	43	9	60	65	1	56	9	12	71
Winnebago	57	20	73	11	46	19	45	38	92	2	31	38
Woodford	36	43	67	7	38	15	66	2	89	12	20	83

Objectives for Each Student
The student will:

• Draw the approximate boundaries of the Midwest region on a U.S. base map and list those phenomena that most significantly influence the boundaries.

• Map one category of data provided for Illinois in 1870 using recommended procedures.

• Using the maps they have already produced, establish, map, and justify in writing the agricultural regions of Illinois in 1870.

Opening the Lesson
• Begin the lesson by asking students to identify the characteristics that they associate with some region with which they are familiar. For example, Where is the South? The Great Plains? The Middle East? What are the characteristics of the region? How is it distinguishable from surrounding regions? How can you tell when you are entering or leaving the region?

• Distribute outline maps of the United States and ask students to list primary characteristics of and draw boundaries around what they consider to be the Midwest, first individually, then in small groups of three or four. Display the maps for inspection. Students will probably find they generally agree on a certain core of states, but disagree about areas on the margins. Their experiences will be similar in the following exercise on Illinois agricultural regions in 1870.

Developing the Lesson
Assign to each student a category of data to map. An equal number of counties can be placed in each of four categories, or four categories can be determined by an equal range of data values. Students then create maps by shading appropriate counties, using a uniform shading scheme so that maps can be compared. Highest values on the completed maps should jump out at the viewer. For example, fully shade the highest value, use crosshatching for the second, diagonal lines for the third, and small dots for the lowest category. Colors enliven maps, but too many bright colors are distracting.

Colors selected must reveal the range of highest to lowest values at a glance.

Such maps are called choropleth maps, and they are critical tools for geographers. This mapping stage is fairly time consuming, but it can be done as homework, and teachers will find that in the process of mapping students will learn a great deal about the geography of Illinois. Mapping programs on computers can do this rapidly.

Each student-produced map should contain TODALSIGS, the elements of good mapmaking: T = title, 0 = orientation (minimum of a North arrow), D = date, A = author, L = legend, S = scale, I = index, G = grid, and S = source. Index is not necessary in this exercise, and grid (latitude and longitude) can be noted along the map's margins to avoid clutter.

When the maps are completed, tape them to a wall or chalkboard, and give students a chance to examine the patterns illustrated. Then ask students to look for relationships by identifying areas where several patterns correspond. Are areas where corn dominates also those that have little woodland and have experienced rapid population growth? Does farm size differ from north to south? Why? Do the areas settled at an early date differ from those settled later?

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Distribute to each student a copy of the Illinois Physiographic Regions map and briefly describe the categories it displays. Ask students: How do their maps correspond with the map of physical regions? What does the information tell about the relationship between farmers and the environment? What advantages or disadvantages were posed by location and the environment? How were the disadvantages overcome? How does your particular county fit into the overall pattern? Is your county similar to or dissimilar from its neighbors? Do not fall into the trap of thinking that physiographic regions must correspond with agricultural regions in any exact way.

Once students have explored those questions, arrange students in groups of three or four, and instruct each group to create its own overall map, which will be titled Agricultural Regions of Illinois in 1870. Five to eight regions of varying sizes should be identified. Each should have its own descriptive name, should consist of several characteristics that seem to belong together, and be accompanied by a written defense. Tape the completed maps to the chalkboard for inspection.

Concluding the Lesson
Lead a discussion of students' ideas about Illinois regions. What are the merits of the various maps produced? What problems were encountered? How were they resolved? Can the class agree on one regional classification system? Could similar techniques be used to create regions for larger areas of the world?

Extending the Lesson
The answers to these questions could provide the basis for greater in-depth studies, either for individuals or for the class. Students could be asked to assume the roles of young men or women sent west to look for new farms to purchase in 1870. After traveling the state, they must write letters to their families explaining what they have seen in various parts of the state and why they are recommending particular places for new homes.

Assessing Student Learning
Choropleth maps can be collected for a grade, but the agricultural regions maps and accompanying rationales are better for the purpose of evaluating students' understanding of the concept region. Subjective observations of students working in groups on agricultural regions may also provide insight to student understanding.

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