Physiographic Divisions of Illinois

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Frequently-anticipated questions:


What does this data set describe?

Title: Physiographic Divisions of Illinois
Abstract:
This is an ESRI feature class showing boundaries for physiographic divisions in Illinois. Data are originally from ISGS Report of Investigations 129 by Leighton et al., 1948. The physiographic divisions of Illinois are divided into the following: Provinces, Sections, and Divisions. (The annotations are in the companion shapefile IL_Physio_Regions_1993_Anno_Ln). Scale is 1:3,00,000 to 1:3,100,000.

Central Lowland Province Ozark Plateaus Province Interior Low Plateaus Province Coastal Plain Province

Wisconsin Driftless Section Great Lake Section Till Plains Section Dissected Till Plains Section Lincoln Hills Section Salem Plateau Section Shawnee Hills Section

Rock River Hill Country Wheaton Morainal Chicago Lake Plain Green River Lowland Kankakee Plain Galesburg Plain Bloomington Ridged Plain Springfield Plain Mt. Vernon Hill Country

Supplemental_Information:
Recent updates to the data:

In April 2004 edition 1.1 of the data set was transitioned to storage in an Oracle RDBMS using the ArcSDE geodatabase model. The result was designated Edition 20040423. This shapefile was generated from that edition.

The provinces, sections, and divisions are labeled with annotation as most of the areas are not closed polygons (within Illinois). Refer to the companion JPEG image for a visual suggestion of how to best display the annotation.

  1. How should this data set be cited?

    Illinois State Geological Survey, 1993, Physiographic Divisions of Illinois: ISGS GIS Database GISDB_QTGEO.IL_Physiographic_Regions, Illinois State Geological Survey, Champaign, Illinois.

    Online Links:

  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?

    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -91.452685
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -87.437114
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 42.568874
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 37.102418

  3. What does it look like?

  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?

    Calendar_Date: 1948
    Currentness_Reference: publication date of source

  5. What is the general form of this data set?

    Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: vector digital data

  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?

    1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?

      This is a Vector data set. It contains the following vector data types (SDTS terminology):

      • String (28)

    2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?

      Horizontal positions are specified in geographic coordinates, that is, latitude and longitude. Latitudes are given to the nearest 0.000001. Longitudes are given to the nearest 0.000001. Latitude and longitude values are specified in Decimal degrees.

      The horizontal datum used is North American Datum of 1983.
      The ellipsoid used is Geodetic Reference System 80.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378137.000000.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/298.257222.

      Vertical_Coordinate_System_Definition:
      Altitude_System_Definition:

  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?

    IL_Physio_Regions_1993_Ln

    FID
    Internal feature number. (Source: ESRI)

    Sequential unique whole numbers that are automatically generated.

    Shape
    Feature geometry. (Source: ESRI)

    Coordinates defining the features.

    SYMBOL

    Entity_and_Attribute_Overview:
    Attribute items are in typical SDE feature class format. Those requiring explanation are:

    Arc attributes: SYMBOL - Defines line thickness, which in turn divide the various regions: 9 - Thick line, separates major physiographic provinces 5 - Medium weight line, separates physiographic sections (within provinces) 1 - Thin line, separates physiographic divisions (within sections)

    Annotation Attributes: Physiographic division names are indicated by annotation (labels) in the companion shapefile IL_Physio_Regions_1993_Anno_Ln. Provinces, Sections, and Divisions included are:

    Central Lowland Province Ozark Plateaus Province Interior Low Plateaus Province Coastal Plain Province

    Wisconsin Driftless Section Great Lake Section Till Plains Section Dissected Till Plains Section Lincoln Hills Section Salem Plateau Section Shawnee Hills Section

    Rock River Hill Country Wheaton Morainal Chicago Lake Plain Green River Lowland Kankakee Plain Galesburg Plain Bloomington Ridged Plain Springfield Plain Mt. Vernon Hill Country

    Entity_and_Attribute_Detail_Citation: none


Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)

  2. Who also contributed to the data set?

  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?

    Contact_Instructions: Please refer to the Distribution Information section.


Why was the data set created?

This data set records information about the physiographic divisions of Illinois. The data set was digitized so that it could be included as an inset map on the 'Shaded Relief Map of Illinois', ISGS OFS 1995-6, reissued as IMAP 6.

The data are not appropriate as a geodetic, legal or engineering base. The data set was not and is not intended as a substitute for surveyed locations, such as can be determined by a registered Public Land Surveyor. Although useful in a GIS as a reference base layer for maps, the data set has no legal basis in the definition of boundaries or property lines.


How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?

    RI 129 (source 1 of 1)
    Leighton, M. M., G. E. Ekblaw, and L. Horber, 1948, Physiographic Divisions of Illinois: ISGS Report of Investigations 129, Illinois State Geological Survey, Champaign, Illinois.

    Type_of_Source_Media: paper
    Source_Scale_Denominator: 3000000
    Source_Contribution:
    Source map was a photocopy of an original 1:3,000,000 map (Figure 1). Source contributed lines and physiographic division names.

  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?

    Date: 1993 (process 1 of 3)
    Originally digitized in November, 1993. Arc topology present. Source map was a photocopy of an original 1:2,000,000 map (Figure 1, RI 129). Tics at county intersections were used as registration points.

    Date: Jun-1998 (process 2 of 3)
    Data set was reviewed in May, 1998. Review was limited to internal logical consistency of attribute items. Locations of features and accuracy of item values were not checked, except in cases where possible errors became apparent as a result of logical consistency checks. No checks were performed that involved plotting of hardcopy maps and manual overlay with source materials.

    Some changes were made, as follows:

    Values indicating line type were stored in the cover-id. A new item called SYMBOL was added the values to that item. The cover-ids were recalculated to be unique.

    Date: 23-Apr-2004 (process 3 of 3)
    Source coverage (physio) converted to double precision and reprojected to GCS_NAD83 using Workstation ArcInfo 7.2.1.

    The features were imported into the ISGS SDE enterprise database following steps outlined in ISGS procedure GISDB_0009.

    Metadata updated.

    Person who carried out this activity:

  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?

    , ISGS Terms of Use.

    Online Links:

    , University of Illinois Web Privacy Notice.

    Online Links:

    , University Copyright Policy (stated in the General Rules Concerning University Organization and Procedure, Article III, Section 4).

    Online Links:

    , Policy on Appropriate Use of Computers and Network Systems at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

    Online Links:


How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

  1. How well have the observations been checked?

    No report.

  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?

    Horizontal positional accuracy is verified by visual comparison of source and hard copy plots to be within one line-width. See sources for a determination of the accuracy of source materials. These are generalized boundaries of gross physiography in Illinois and are not intended to represent sharp lines of transition from one area to the next.

  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?

  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?

    This is an accurate representation of the Leighton et al. (1948) map.

  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?

    No report.


How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?

Access_Constraints:
ISGS information must be obtained directly from the ISGS or from an authorized distributor. Be aware that ISGS information obtained from an unauthorized third party may have been altered subsequent to original distribution, or may no longer be current.

Any access to these data, Web sites, computer systems, electronic services, and electronic networks is governed by University and campus policies, in particular, but not limited to, the Policy on Appropriate Use of Computers and Network Systems at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the ISGS Terms of Use document available at the ISGS Web site, and the University of Illinois Web Privacy Notice.

Links to these are provided in the Cross References section.

Use_Constraints:
ISGS information is the property of and copyrighted by the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois with all rights reserved.  University copyright policy is stated in the General Rules Concerning University Organization and Procedure, Article III, Section 4. A link is provided in the Cross References section.

Individuals or entities may make fair use of copyrighted ISGS material, such as reproducing a single figure or table, or using a brief text quotation, without obtaining formal permission, but in all cases the Illinois State Geological Survey must be credited as the source of the material. To reproduce ISGS information beyond the fair use standard, permission must be obtained from the ISGS Information Office, 615 East Peabody Drive, Champaign, Illinois 61820, 217-333-4747, isgs@isgs.illinois.edu. License fees and a license agreement may be required, depending on the proposed usage.

Any use of these data is governed by University and campus policies, in particular, but not limited to, the Policy on Appropriate Use of Computers and Network Systems at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the ISGS Terms of Use document available at the ISGS Web site, and the University of Illinois Web Privacy Notice. Links to these are provided in the Cross References section.

Map information is to be used at a scientifically and cartographically appropriate scale, that is, at a scale no greater than indicated on the map or as described in the documentation of the map or map data.  Map information is not appropriate for, and is not to be used as, a geodetic, legal, or engineering base. Map information has no legal basis in the definition of boundaries or property lines and is not intended as a substitute for surveyed locations such as can be determined by a registered Public Land Surveyor.

The data do not replace the need for detailed site-specific studies.

  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)

    Information Office, Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS), a division of the Institute of Natural Resource Sustainability (INRS) of the University of Illinois
    615 East Peabody Drive
    Champaign, Illinois 61820
    USA

    217-333-4747 (voice)
    isgs@isgs.illinois.edu

    Hours_of_Service: 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday, U.S. Central Time
  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?

  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

    Refer to the Legal Notices of Terms and Conditions of the University of Illinois Web Privacy Policy (there is a link in the Cross References section) for policy statements regarding the following:

    Disclaimer of Liability Disclaimer of Warranties and Accuracy of Data Disclaimer of Endorsement Disclaimer for External Links Disclaimer of Duty to Continue Provision of Data Security Choice of Law

    By obtaining these data you agree to the provisions of the University of Illinois Web Privacy Policy, regardless of the manner in which the information was obtained.

  4. How can I download or order the data?

  5. What hardware or software do I need in order to use the data set?

    The data are intended for use with GIS software. The ISGS uses ESRI ArcGIS software, however, ESRI formats can be imported into many different GIS software packages. It is expected that customers who obtain these data have the technical expertise to use GIS software. The ISGS does not provide software support of any kind.


Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:
Last modified: 24-Feb-2009
Metadata author:

Contact_Instructions: Please refer to the Distribution Information section.
Metadata standard:
FGDC Content Standards for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)
Metadata extensions used:


Illinois Natural Resources Geospatial Data Clearinghouse

Generated by mp version 2.8.25 on Thu Apr 02 09:54:08 2009