Kaskaskia

Kaskaskia
Kas·kas·ki·a (kəs-kăsʹkē-ə) n. pl. Kaskaskia or Kas·kas·ki·as
1. A Native American people forming part of the Illinois confederacy.
2. A member of this people.

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      village, Randolph county, southwestern Illinois, U.S. It is situated on Kaskaskia Island in the Mississippi River, just west of Chester. Kaskaskia Island is the only portion of Illinois located west of the Mississippi River. Illinois and Iroquois Indians were early inhabitants of the area; the village is named for one of the tribes of the Illinois confederation. The original settlement (now underwater) was founded in 1703 as a Jesuit mission and developed as a French trading post and a farming community. Initially incorporated as a town by the French in 1725, it was granted special rights by King Louis XV of France. French-built Fort Kaskaskia (1733) was destroyed in 1766 by villagers when the British occupied the region. In 1778 George Rogers Clark (Clark, George Rogers) captured it for the United States. Kaskaskia became the capital of the Illinois Territory in 1809; after Illinois achieved statehood, Kaskaskia briefly served as the state capital (1818–20) until the administrative centre was transferred to Vandalia. The original village (incorporated 1818) was, beginning in 1844, gradually inundated as the Mississippi River changed its course, creating the island. The island was completely cut off from the mainland with the great flood of 1881, and by the early 20th century the remainder of the original settlement had disappeared. The name was transferred to the present village, a little to the south. The village was again devastated by flooding in 1973 and 1993 but was rebuilt each time.

      Made of hand-hewn timber, the nearby home (1802) of Pierre Menard, the first lieutenant governor of Illinois, is preserved as a state historic site. Fort Kaskaskia State Historic Site, which contains still-visible portions of the French fortification, is to the north. Other area state historic sites include Fort de Chartres, which contains the reconstructed garrison (built in the 1750s and abandoned in 1771), and Kaskaskia Bell, which showcases the 650-pound (300-kg) bronze bell (known as the “ Liberty Bell of the West” after the city's capture from the British) given to Kaskaskia's church by Louis XV in 1741. Pop. (1990) 32; (2000) 9.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Kaskaskia — Kaskaskia …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Kaskaskia — était un établissement franco indien au Pays des Illinois, en Haute Louisiane (Nouvelle France) jusqu à la cession du Traité de Paris de 1763. Au départ la mission jésuite de l Immaculée Conception en 1703[1] fut le noyau autour duquel vint… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Kaskaskia — Villa de los Estados Unidos …   Wikipedia Español

  • Kaskaskia — Kaskaskia, IL U.S. village in Illinois Population (2000): 9 Housing Units (2000): 5 Land area (2000): 0.108458 sq. miles (0.280905 sq. km) Water area (2000): 0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km) Total area (2000): 0.108458 sq. miles (0.280905 sq …   StarDict's U.S. Gazetteer Places

  • Kaskaskia, IL — U.S. village in Illinois Population (2000): 9 Housing Units (2000): 5 Land area (2000): 0.108458 sq. miles (0.280905 sq. km) Water area (2000): 0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km) Total area (2000): 0.108458 sq. miles (0.280905 sq. km) FIPS code …   StarDict's U.S. Gazetteer Places

  • Kaskaskĭa — Kaskaskĭa, 1) Fluß im Staate Illinois (Nordamerika), entspringt in der Grafschaft Champaign, u. fällt nach einem Laufe von 65 Meilen in den Mississippi River; 2) Postort in der Grafschaft Randolph im Staate Illinois, am K. River; der älteste Ort… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Kaskaskia — The Kaskaskia were one of the several cognate tribes that made up the Illiniwek Confederation. Their first contact with Europeans reportedly occurred near present day Green Bay, Wisconsin in 1667 at a Jesuit mission station. The Illiniwek are… …   Wikipedia

  • Kaskaskia — Sp Kaskãskija Ap Kaskaskia L u., g tė JAV (Ilinojus) …   Pasaulio vietovardžiai. Internetinė duomenų bazė

  • Kaskaskia (Illinois) — Kaskaskia L établissement Kaskaskia était un établissement franco indien au Pays des Illinois, en Haute Louisiane jusqu à la cession du Traité de Paris de 1763. Au départ la mission jésuite de l Immaculée Conception en 1703 fut le noyau autour… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Kaskaskia River — Einzugsgebiet des Kaskaskia River Daten …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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