Illinois Department of Natural Resources
agency of the state of Illinois, United States
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) is the code department of the Illinois state government that operates the Illinois State Parks and state recreation areas, enforces the fishing and game laws of Illinois, regulates Illinois coal mines and other extractive industries, operates the Illinois State Museum system, and oversees scientific research into the soil, water, and mineral resources of the state. In 2017, the Illinois Historic Preservation Division was added to its portfolio. It is headquartered in the state capital of Springfield.
History
The former Illinois Department of Conservation was reorganized into the Illinois Department of Natural Resources by executive order in 1995. The reorganization, codified into state law by Public Act 89-50, also added functions of the former Illinois Department of Energy and Natural Resources and the Illinois Department of Mines and Minerals to the agglomerated agency.
Organization
As of 2009, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources was divided up into 16 offices and bureaus
Administration
Architecture, Engineering and Grants
Compliance, Equal Employment Opportunity and Ethics
Director
Law Enforcement
Land Management
Legal Counsel
Legislation
Mines & Minerals
Public Events, Programs & Promotions
Public Services and Education
Realty & Environmental Planning
Resource Conservation
State Museums
Water Resources
State Surveys
In 2017, parts of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, were folded in the IDNR and became the Illinois Historic Preservation Division.
Today
As of fiscal year 2006, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources had a budget of $187.1 million Its headquarters is located at 1 Natural Resources Way, Springfield, Illinois 62702, adjacent to the Illinois State Fairgrounds.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Illinois Department of Natural Resources” is agency of the state of Illinois, United States. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Illinois, Department and Natural, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “agency of the state of Illinois, United States” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 8, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q16846582. VIAF identifies the subject as 152936137. The Library of Congress control number is no96032741. 4 of 4 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2017, 1995, 2009 and 2006.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Illinois Department of Natural Resources”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Illinois Department of Natural Resources primary sources, Illinois Department of Natural Resources archive and Illinois research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Illinois Department of Natural Resources”?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Illinois Department of Natural Resources” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.