Nearly 5,000 runners turned out to the very first Chicago Marathon, then named the Mayor Daley Marathon, on September 25, 1977. The attendance made the inaugural marathon the largest marathon in the world at the time.

In 2006, marathon organizers teamed with four other races in Boston, London, Berlin and New York to create a series of qualifying competitions worldwide. Tokyo was recently added to that list, creating six World Marathon Majors.

The Bank of America 2015 Chicago Marathon was held October 11 and featured nearly 50,000 participants.

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Read more about the history of the Chicago Marathon

Did you know the fields surrounding Morton in Central Illinois supply much of the nation’s canned as well as ornamental pumpkins? The area is so well known it is commonly referred to as the “Pumpkin Capital of the World.” With an amiable climate and high-quality soils needed for pumpkin growth, Illinois produced a record 278,000 tons of pumpkins in 2013, making up 90 percent of the nation’s pumpkin production.

In celebration of pumpkins, the Morton Pumpkin Festival is held every year and draws more than 75,000 attendees to a four-day celebration offering all kinds of pumpkin-inspired treats as well as the infamous Punkin Chuckin’ Contest.

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Read more on the impact pumpkin production has on Illinois’ economy
Illinois: The Great Pumpkin State

George Pullman revolutionized long-distance rail travel in the 1860s with the invention of the Pullman Sleeping Car, a comfortable boxcar far superior to most accommodations of the time. The industrialist was also known for creating a workers’ community surrounding his factories just south of Chicago. The town of Pullman, Illinois grew to become internationally recognized for the level of offerings to its worker inhabitants. Gas and water hookups in each home, a large amount of green space and parks and other amenities distinguished Pullman from other company towns.

While the community was known on the outside to be clean and progressive, tension between workers and factory owners was often high. A dramatic decrease in worker pay and benefits led to a violent strike in 1894 that left several dead and hundreds of rail cars burned. The strike and corresponding lock out of union workers would lead to several prominent and influential moments in American union history, including the celebration of the first Labor Day in 1894 and the rise of the nation’s first African-American union, the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters.

After operations at the factories ceased in 1957, the neighborhood fell on hard times. With the area threatened with demolition in 1960, a group of residents advocated for its preservation and were successful in designating the area an Illinois Historic District in 1969 and a National Historic Landmark District in 1970. In February, President Obama designated the area a national monument, recognizing Illinois' history in the railroad industry and as a unique part of the birth of the labor rights movement in the United States.

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Visiting the Pullman neighborhood? Click here for information on factory tours and tours of the famous Hotel Florence
Read more on the history of the Town of Pullman from the Chicago Historical Society

72 years ago today, Chicago’s first subway line opened to commuters. A product of President Roosevelt’s Public Works Administration program, the subway line featured modern escalators and soundproof telephone booths. The original State Street Subway line (now the Red Line) featured a 3,300 foot platform that contained many stations along the path.

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Read more about Chicago’s State Street Subway

Actor Craig Robinson, best known for his role as Darryl Philbin on “The Office,” was born in Chicago on October 25, 1971. He was raised on the South Side of Chicago and attended Whitney M. Young Magnet High School. After graduating, he went on to get his undergraduate degree from Illinois State University in 1994 and obtained his graduate degree in education from Saint Xavier University.

His stand-up career began at The Second City in Chicago, and in 2005, he took on the role of Darryl Philbin on “The Office.” Following this role, Robinson appeared on “Arrested Development,” “Lucky,” “Friends,” “Halfway Home,” “Eastbound and Down” and “Last Comic Standing.” In addition to acting, Robinson has dabbled in music, both as a comedy act in L. Witherspoon & Chucky and with his band The Nasty Delicious.

He has played a role in over 40 different films and television series since 2001, and has worked on multiple movies that are soon to be released. Robinson remains a fan of the Chicago White Sox and Chicago Bears.

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Read more Robinson’s work on IMDb