A Century of Record Pole and Line Catches in Illinois

Many things have changed over the last 100 years regarding fishing in Illinois. Thanks to the addition of 75 years of the Federal Aid in Sportfish Restoration Program and the work of professional fisheries biologists working throughout Illinois, fishing prospects are better than ever in our rivers, streams, lakes and ponds. So much so that state record fish are still being caught today, even though the record fish program has been operating for many decades. Let’s take a look at some pole and line records over the years.

Illinois’ Oldest State Record Fish

Before you read further what’s your guess as to Illinois’ oldest state record fish? If you guessed common carp (labelled as ‘carp’) you were correct. This record was a 42-pound fish taken from the Kankakee River in 1928.

Longest Standing Fish Record

The harvest of a 48-pound buffalo (not differentiating between species of either smallmouth or bigmouth buffalo) taken from the Adams County stretch of the Mississippi River in 1936 remains an unbroken record. The North American records—76 pounds, 8 ounces for a bigmouth buffalo caught in Wisconsin and 88 pounds for a smallmouth buffalo from North Carolina—prove there’s room to grow. Gauntlet down! Who can break a record standing for 79 years?

Records are Meant to be Broken

The award for the greatest number of times the state record has been broken goes to the shovelnose sturgeon, with anglers breaking the record an amazing eight times. The current Illinois record is a 12-pound, 15-ounce fish caught on January 1, 2024, from the Rock River (Whiteside County). Considering that the average weight of a shovelnose sturgeon is 1.5 to 2 pounds that’s certainly a trophy specimen. Look for these fish on gravel or sand bottom in the open channels of large rivers.

Record-breaking Years and Dry Spells

Since 1986, the years 1994 and 1995 had the most records broken with six records broken each year. Dry spells have occurred, with no new state records in 1996, 2014 and 2023.

The Biggest State Record Fish

Of the eligible state record fish species, Tim Pruitt’s blue catfish holds the record as the biggest state record fish in Illinois to date. A record that has stood since Pruitt caught that fish on May 21, 2005. Measuring 58 inches long and weighing 124 pounds the catfish was hauled in from the Mississippi River in Maddison County. Not only did Pruitt capture an Illinois record, that fish also stands as the North American record-holding blue catfish!

Blue catfish hold the top three spots on the biggest fish caught in Illinois. The fourth biggest fish is the 81.4-pound state record flathead catfish caught on Sangchris Lake (Sangamon and Christian counties) on August 29, 2015, by James Klauzer. The fifth biggest fish caught in Illinois is the 79-pound state record grass carp that was caught on April 12, 2011, from Crescent Lake in Henry County.

Once Upon a Time

The largest known fish ever caught in Illinois was a 310-pound, 7-foot, 11-inch-long lake sturgeon caught in Lake Michigan in 1943. Once thought to be ‘a bad, useless sort of fish,’ sturgeon were intentionally removed from their waters. Fast forward to the mid-late 1900s when the need for resource conservation was realized, the lake sturgeon was the only fish species to qualify as ‘threatened’ upon the inception of the Endangered Species Act in 1973. This is likely why a record was never recognized for lake sturgeon. (Fish that are threatened or endangered are ineligible for state record reviews as those fish need to be immediately returned to the water where they have been captured).

The lake sturgeon is making great strides in recovery on the Mississippi River due to effort of Illinois and sister states. Click here to learn about the Illinois Lake Sturgeon Recovery Program.

Another rare fish in Illinois that has the potential to grow very big like the lake sturgeon is the alligator gar. The legitimate record alligator gar caught in Illinois—there are stories of bigger fish, but are not recognized as legitimate—is a 130-pound fish caught out of Cache River-Mississippi River Diversion Channel in 1966. Unlike the lake sturgeon, alligator gar were listed as threatened from 1977 to 1994, then delisted and declared extirpated in Illinois. Alligator gar are not eligible for the record fish program.

In 2010, IDNR initiated an alligator gar reintroduction program. Read more about the alligator gar reintroduction program here.

Let’s Hear it for the Little Guys

The smallest current state record fish is a pumpkinseed that weighed 1 pound and 12 ounces. Standing since June 19, 2020, that fish was caught at The Wetlands Initiative’s Hennepin and Hopper Lakes in Putnam County. Pumpkinseeds can be found in vegetated lakes and ponds, and in the quiet pools of creeks and small to large rivers.

In all, Illinois recognizes 58 species and hybrids for state records and lists them annually in our Illinois Fishing Digest next to the U.S. record. These records are also on display at the Illinois State Fair Fisheries Tent in Conservation World. Good luck to those seeking record fish!