1. In 1818, the Illinois Territory was divided into counties including Bond, Crawford, and Edwards County, among others. The Illinois Territory was created by an Act of Congress in 1809 and became the State of Illinois on December 3, 1818.

2. Abraham Lincoln's funeral train passed through Illinois on April 19, 1865, stopping at cities such as Chicago, Springfield, and Quincy. Thousands of mourners paid their respects to the fallen president, who had been assassinated just 10 days earlier.

3. The Great Chicago Fire started on October 8, 1871, but it wasn't until April 19, 1874, that the city's first fireboat, the "Theodore Roosevelt," was put into service on the Chicago River. The fireboat was equipped with powerful pumps and hoses and helped prevent other large fires in the city.

4. On April 19, 1910, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign dedicated its new library, which was named after John Milton Gregory, the university's first president. The library contained over 100,000 books and was considered one of the largest and most modern in the country.

5. The deadliest tornado outbreak in Illinois history occurred on April 19, 1996. A total of 14 tornadoes touched down in northern and central Illinois, killing 12 people and injuring over 200 others. The tornadoes caused significant damage to homes, businesses, and infrastructure, and caused over $100 million in property damage.