Meet someone from out of state and they'll tell you the entire state of Illinois is made up of people from Chicago.

Little do they know, the entire state is actually made up of more cities, towns, and counties than any other state in the US.

How many people live in some of those towns and cities is another story.

Governing.com says "of 38,779 general-purpose governments in the United States in 2017, along with another 51,296 special districts" 2,828 of them are in Illinois and more than everyone else and you know what, it's not really that close.

Minnesota ranked second overall, with over 100 fewer cities, towns, and counties than Illinois. While they may be the "Land of 1,000 Lakes," they are actually the "Land with 100 Fewer Cities, Towns, and Counties Than Illinois."

The real question is, what's the significance? Honestly, I'm not sure. However, I've seen enough lists where Illinois is featured in the middle or near the bottom but rarely at the top. So maybe, this is just a bragging rights thing. If you do tell someone we have more cities, towns, and counties than any other state in the US, just hope that that person doesn't follow up with "Why?".

97 ZOK logo
Enter your number to get our free mobile app

Sweet Lenny is the brand manager of 97ZOK, Q98.5, and Operations Manager for Townsquare Media Rockford. Catch him afternoons 3 to 7 on 97ZOK. Follow him on Twitter, Instagram, and like his page on Facebook.

LOOK: 50 photos of American life in 2020

More From 97 ZOK