Illinois Statehood

SPRINGFIELD, IL — Illinois, our nation’s 21st state, will celebrate its bicentennial Dec. 3, 2018. To celebrate this milestone, the U.S. Postal Service dedicated the Illinois Statehood Forever stamp today at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library in Springfield.

“We are thrilled to honor Illinois as a state that has been instrumental to American ingenuity and the American spirit,” said U.S. Postal Service Acting Customer and Marketing Officer and Executive Vice President Jacqueline Krage Strako in dedicating the stamp. “The truth is: Illinois defies simple definition. It’s cosmopolitan and quaint, tough and nurturing — all at the same time. It’s a state with broad shoulders, a caring heart and Midwestern grit and values. Illinois is where the heartland calls home.”

Joining Krage Strako in the dedication were Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner (via video), Deputy Governor Leslie Munger, Springfield Mayor James Langfelder, Illinois Bicentennial Commission Co-Chair Randy Dunn and Illinois State Historian Sam Wheeler.