Illinois Route 71 is a southwest-to-northeast state highway in north central Illinois. It runs from the end of Interstate 180 in Hennepin to U.S. Route 34 in Oswego. This is a distance of . In 1938, IL 71 moved onto a new route as US 30 was rerouted through Twelvemile Corner. It traveled from IL 29 near Bureau Junction to IL 23 at Ottawa. Before that, it was part of Illinois Route 89 as well as Illinois Route 7A, and Illinois Route 89A. In 1942, IL 71 was extended towards US 34 in Oswego. In 1947, the road between Norway and Yorkville was finished and then opened to traffic. In 1969, IL 71 was truncated from Bureau Junction to Hennepin after IL 26 was extended to Peoria.
Points of interest
Just south of Norway, there is a memorial dedicated to Norwegian immigrants who settled in the area, with a small park, a cemetery, and a plaque from King Olav V. This memorial commemorates the Fox River Settlement. Dating from 1834, this was the location of the first permanent Norwegian-American immigrant settlement in the Midwest.
Near E. 26th Road, south of Norway, Illinois, there is also a crashed airplane that serves as a "memorial" of sorts to commemorate the 1980s agricultural crash, which affected the rural farming county.