n.
City (pop., 2000: 111,454), capital of Illinois, U.S. Springfield lies along the Sangamon River in the central part of the state.
The first settler there built a cabin in 1818; in 1837, largely through the efforts of Abraham Lincoln and other members of the Illinois legislature, the state capital was transferred there. Lincoln lived in Springfield until he became president in 1861; he is buried there. An educational and government services centre, it also is a market centre for a rich farming area.