1. In 1926, Carter G. Woodson started "Negro History Week" in Chicago, Illinois, which would later become Black History Month. This week was chosen to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass, two important figures in African American history.

2. On February 26, 1907, the state of Illinois became the first state in the United States to allow women to become licensed architects. The first licensed female architect in the state was Charlotte Perkins Gilman, who was also a feminist writer and social reformer.

3. In 1976, the city of Evanston, Illinois became the first city in the US to adopt a nuclear-free zone ordinance, which prohibited the city from engaging in any activities related to nuclear weapons or power.

4. On February 26, 2019, J.B. Pritzker, the Governor of Illinois, signed a bill that raised the minimum wage in the state to $15 an hour, making it one of the highest minimum wages in the country.

5. In 1931, Jane Addams, the founder of Hull House in Chicago, became the first American woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for her work in social reform and peace activism. Addams was a pioneer in the field of social work and was a fierce advocate for women's rights and world peace.