Illinois Route 2 (IL 2) is a north–south state highway in northern Illinois. It currently starts at Illinois Route 40 in Sterling and ends at the Wisconsin state line in South Beloit, very near the intersection with U.S. Route 51, Illinois Route 75 and Illinois Route 251. Illinois 2 is long.
History
right|thumb|Sign located in Ogle County
SBI Route 2 originally ran from South Beloit to Cairo. It followed a part of current IL 2 from South Beloit to Dixon. It then followed south on (roughly) present-day US 52, IL 251, and US 51. In 1935, US 51 supplanted IL 2 south of Mendota. With the appearance of US 52 in 1936, IL 2 was removed south of Dixon. Then, in 1938, IL 2 was briefly extended to Muscatine, Iowa, replacing IL 84 and IL 86 in the process. It soon got cut back to Rock Island in 1939 after IL 92 was extended to Muscatine. By 1979, IL 2 was removed west of Sterling as Illinois Route 5 (now I-88 east of I-80) was extended to Rock Island. To this day, exit 2 on I-88 is designated as "Old IL 2", referencing the pre-1979 routing of IL 2.
IL 2 was designated a Blue Star Memorial Highway on November 4, 1970. The sign can be found in a wayside just west of the Winnebago County line in Ogle County along the Rock River.