Passport to Illinois Part 2: Touring history ahead of nation's 250th birthday

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Illinois and Chicago played a major role in shaping America and now there's a fun way to explore it.

Illinois Humanities has created a special "passport" highlighting key sites across Chicagoland.

As the country prepares to celebrate its 250th birthday, we're taking you along for the journey.

In part two of our tour, we begin at the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture.

"It's highlighting the Puerto Rican diaspora as a collage of histories of colonialism, resistance and survival. But it's also honoring, a celebration of our roots," Alyssa Corrigan-Cuadrado with the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts & Culture.

RELATED: Passport to Illinois celebrates state's role in American history ahead of nation's 250th birthday

As the United States gears up to celebrate its 250th birthday, the museum is inviting artists to show off their unique culture.

"This is an exhibit that is very much intentionally designed to tap into, right, the hearts of the Chicago Puerto Ricans, but also the Puerto Ricans that are coming from Ohio," Corrigan Cuadrado said.

Puerto Rico is a U.S territory and has been since 1898. The museum includes multiple installations, like this one, that pay homage to how Spanish culture merged with Puerto Rican and much more.

Then we move to The Chicago History Museum, where "US at 250: Civic Action in Chicago" is on display. One exhibition in particular, highlights the Latino community, as a whole.

"It chronicles the ways that Latino people within the state of Illinois, and in particular the city of Chicago, have engaged in varied types of civic action, whether it's through direct protests, art making, placemaking, establishing businesses," Erica Griffin, the Elizabeth F. Cheney Director of Education.
You can also see a copy of the Northwest Ordinance. The document that helped establish Illinois as a state and banned enslavement in the area.

"And what we hope that people take away from our project is that the development of Chicago is an echo of the nation," Griffin said.

Then there's the Newberry Library, where the "Free & Independent" exhibition lives. Inside you can find all kinds of original documents central to the founding of the nation.

"When we say original, we mean original," Will Hansen of the Newberry Library said. "So these are real things that are 250 or so years old. Printed or in some cases handwritten by The people who were there at the time, making this revolution happen in the what is now the United States of America.

And last but not least, Graceland Cemetery on Chicago's North Side. It's one of the city's most historic resting places. Known for its landscaped grounds and striking monuments, it became the final home for many of Chicago's most influential figures, including architects and business leaders.

Next week, we'll explore even more stops featured in the passport released by the Illinois America 250 Commission.

For more information, visit https://www.il250.org/passport.