Illinois

[next_migration]

Here I am starting to present comments on Northeastern or presumptively Northeastern states in alphabetical order. That means starting with Illinois, which, though it would not be my personal first choice, should have room for quite a few people. My assumption is that most migrants will be working-class people, or younger white-collar workers, who lack huge savings and will need to get a job or set up independent work quickly. Therefore, as previously noted, my criteria for identifying promising migration destinations in each state emphasize moderate population size (neither too giant nor too small), reasonable cost of living, and reasonable unemployment rate. If these things don’t concern you, your top few choices might be extremely different from mine and you had better do your own research!

 

 

Illinois is a state that has rich natural resources and serious political problems, with considerable hostility between the rural “Greater Appalachian” south and the megalopolitan north. The state’s government is unusually corrupt, with four ex-governors (of both parties) in the past 50 years going to prison, and its finances are constantly a mess. There’s a high chance Illinois will be the first state of the Union to go bankrupt. Population has been declining, probably because people are fed up with the mismanagement.

If you don’t already live in the Chicago metro area, by all means don’t move there. The southwestern towns that form the eastern part of the St. Louis metro area should also be avoided; as a region, the area has serious problems including crime, bad governance, and powerful industries that put out horrific air pollution. Should the Union break up, I have suggested elsewhere that there would be circumstances in which ceding the bottom end of Illinois to the Confederate states in a land swap would maximize overall welfare and avoid violence. If you want to stay out of the Appalachian region, avoid Carbondale and small towns around the same latitude.

That leaves a lot of area in the central part of the state to consider. Some of the states we are considering, outside one or two overdeveloped metro areas, have huge rural areas studded with only a few cities of modest size, 10,000 to 20,000 or so at most, which limits the available jobs and services. Illinois has multiple downstate population centers of over 100,000 people. Kurtz et al. (2020) calculated that most of the urban areas have fairly large foodsheds at present but, as in many places, switching to a low-meat diet would make all of them locally supportable. Therefore, if you want or need to live in a larger city, Illinois could be a good choice. Several medium-sized metro areas have potential:

 

o  The Quad Cities in the northwest include Moline, East Moline, and Rock Island in Illinois and Davenport and Bettendorf in Iowa, which all together have a population of nearly 400,000, though individual towns are in the mid-five figures. The economy is accordingly diverse; the biggest employers on the Illinois side include the Rock Island Arsenal, John Deere agricultural machinery factories, and the medical industry. Moline has a branch campus of Western Illinois University with undergraduate and graduate programs in a few subject areas. Rock Island is the home of a Hindu temple and the Rock Island Grand Prix, a famous karting street race; there is a botanical garden.

o  Champaign-Urbana (or “Chambana,” about 130,000 people combined) is the home of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, a major research university with an excellent performing arts center, and Parkland College, an excellent community college. The medical, high-tech, and software industries employ many people. Chambana is known as a relatively green metro area with an active music and restaurant scene. Both halves have some big-city problems, including crime, drugs, and sprawl; property taxes are much higher in Urbana, but it is a Tree City with many attractive older neighborhoods. There is an Amtrak station.

o  Bloomington-Normal (also about 130,000 people combined) is the home of Illinois State University, a public ice-skating facility, an annual Shakespeare festival, the oldest continuously running Passion Play in the U.S., and much more. Major employers in the fairly diverse regional economy include insurance and financial services (State Farm Insurance has a huge presence) and manufacturing (recently including Rivian, which builds electric trucks to be used by Amazon). Has an Amtrak station.

o  Springfield (115,000 people) is the state’s capital. State government and the medical industry (including a medical school and insurance industry offices) are the largest employers; there is also manufacturing and transportation. Higher education includes a state university campus and a good-sized community college. Springfield is the home of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, and there is some Honest Abe tourism. There are many parks and urban cultural amenities. Housing has been very affordable for a biggish city. Has an Amtrak station.

 

Illinois cities have had problems with chronic economic depression in the past. Most seem to have improved of late (pre-pandemic), though the state as a whole still has above-average unemployment rates. Among the larger cities, Decatur in central Illinois and Peoria to the north still have particularly high unemployment (and crime) so are not recommended unless a job or outside income is guaranteed. However, in general the downstate cities also have affordable costs of living. Several, especially Champaign-Urbana, have universities that might provide jobs for academics, but the state system is not in great financial shape due to the state’s chronic issues. Smaller cities and larger towns with potential, which may often be cheaper and pleasanter, include:

 

o  Quincy, at the central west edge of Illinois on the Mississippi, has about 40,000 people, in a metro area of about 77,000. It is the northernmost river port with year-round barge traffic and is noted for a Germa historic district and a lively arts scene. There are several manufacturing employers in the town. So many jobs have been available of late that the town was offering incentives to attract new residents. Quincy has an Amtrak station and a town bus service that covers the denser areas with four peculiar routes. Low-lying areas flood frequently.

o  Galesburg in the northwest (about 30,000 people) has long been a center of the railroad industry, which should take on more importance as fossil fuel declines because of its greater efficiency relative to highway shipping and traffic, and BNSF Railway is a major employer. It is the home of a railroad festival, which includes a model railroad festival, and railroad museum and hall of fame. Has an Amtrak station (unsurprisingly) and a limited, but very cheap town bus service.

o  Danville, a town of about 30,000 on the Indiana state line, is on the shore of Lake Vermilion, popular for jet-skiing and water-skiing. Industries include tourism (with plenty of Lincoln history in the area) as well as manufacturing, construction, food processing, and professional services. It has a community college, orchestra, opera, and theater companies, an annual hot-air balloon festival, and decent local bus service.

o  Charleston and Mattoon are two southeasterly towns located close together that have close to 40,000 people between them. Employers include education (Eastern Illinois University, Lakeview College of Nursing, Lake Land College), health care, and food processing, though several manufacturing plants have closed recently. Mattoon is the home of the Rural King headquarters and has an Amtrak stop.

o  Jacksonville, west of Springfield, has about 19,000 people. Manufacturing (including Ferris wheel maker Eli Bridge) is important to the local economy, and some plants have closed recently. Jacksonville is home to Illinois’ School for the Deaf and School for the Visually Impaired. It has a symphony and theater and is known for its historic Portuguese-American community and 11 pipe organs.

o  Effingham, in south-central Illinois, has less than 13,000 people but sits at the junction of two major highways and two rail lines, so catering to travelers is a major part of the local economy. It’s for the giant 198-foot steel cross put up at the highway junction. Has an Amtrak stop.

o  Taylorville is a south-central town of about 11,000 near Springfield and Lake Shelbyville. Economic opportunities are limited and include tourism, with quite a few charming shops and restaurants clearly meant to cater to outsiders. Marketed as a charming small town, has an annual Chillifest. Almost all white.

 

There are three Amtrak lines in Illinois. All run from Chicago variously southwestward, but there are some “thruway” routes that connect some cities having downstate stations. Most, but not all, of the bigger cities have at least indirect connections allowing access to public transport. There are bus services from many places to Chicago and St. Louis, and Greyhound has stops in 31 cities and towns, including all cities mentioned above, but hardly any downstate smaller towns. However, it must be admitted that Illinois’ public transportation is neither the best nor the easiest in the region.

There are many small towns and villages in Illinois. These would not be suitable for most migrants, but if you should happen to be a farmer, or want to work in a business supporting agriculture, this would be a good state to live in. It has very productive agriculture, with some of the world’s finest topsoil, although many local communities are stupidly allowing developers to pave over it.