n ancient times, beginning a hundred millennia ago, great sheets of ice enveloped large portions of what now is our nation. Powerful claws of ice reached from the arctic to shape and carve these lands. Hills were made smooth. Then, slowly, the age of ice came to an end. Glaciers melted, and great waterways sprung up as they retreated. Powerful waters carved this region, making a great and wide valley. Peoria lies in the heart of the ancient bed of the Mighty Mississippi.

Finally, the great age of ice unleashed a series of fierce floods — the greatest was the Kankakee Torrent. The ages of ice also forced the Mississippi westward, to its present-day location. The river that remained would come to be known as the Illinois. Its valley would hold the rise and fall of its waters each year. Amid this ever-changing cycle, an amazing diversity of life adapted to the seasonal flooding and flourished in its wake.

Today, more than 15,000 years later, we honor this ancient river – the Illinois – and its restoration, which will see new life with The Nature Conservancy’s Emiquon.