Southern Illinois - Known as "Little Egypt," but Why?

[Al Dente]

28 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

On a related note, Southern Illinois is known - for whatever reason - as Little Egypt.

Cairo?

[DonRocks]

11 minutes ago, Al Dente said:

Cairo?

Possibly, but when I read about Cairo (which houses the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers), I wondered if it was a chicken-and-egg situation.

Just south of Marion, there's the Lake of Egypt.

[Al Dente]

There's also a Thebes, which I know is Greek, but maybe they had some kinda ancient civilization fetish.

[DonRocks]

2 hours ago, Al Dente said:

There's also a Thebes, which I know is Greek, but maybe they had some kinda ancient civilization fetish.

It's actually not Greek; it's Southern: They pronounce it "The Best."

I'm kidding!

[tfbrennan]

Don't forget Memphis a bit down the river (and Don, so you'll not be a rube when you visit Cairo, they pronounce it Kay-ro; kinda like how many US cities named Berlin put the accent on the first syllable).

[DonRocks]

4 hours ago, tfbrennan said:

Don't forget Memphis a bit down the river (and Don, so you'll not be a rube when you visit Cairo, they pronounce it Kay-ro; kinda like how many US cities named Berlin put the accent on the first syllable).

I'm sitting across from someone who just got a high school reunion notice - it's at the Resort at Egyptian Hills (Creal Springs).

Trivia: The Marion prison housed John Gotti and Pete Rose. Additional trivia: Ray Fosse is from Marion. Needless to say, the residents were more than happy to "host" Mr. Rose.

When they closed Alcatraz Island, they sent the hardest inmates to Marion, which was one of the most secure prisons in the country (a "Supermax"). At one point, it went on "permanent lockdown," i.e., every single prisoner was put in solitary confinement.