Shawnee Hills is the initial American Viticultural Area (AVA) in the state of Illinois located between the Mississippi River and the Ohio River in the state's southern region. The wine appellation encompasses over 2,140 square miles across segments of Alexander, Gallatin, Hardin, Jackson, Johnson, Pope, Pulaski, Randolph, Saline, Union, and Williamson counties. The area stretches approximately 80 miles (130 km) on an east–west axis by 20 miles (32 km) north-south and includes the vast majority of the Shawnee National Forest. It was established on November 27, 2006 by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), Treasury after reviewing the petition submitted by Dr. Theodore F. Wichmann, president of Owl Creek Vineyard, Inc., and Dr. Imed Dami, a Illinois State Viticulturist, on behalf of themselves, the Illinois Grape Growers and Vintner's Association, and the Illinois Grape and Wine Resource Council, proposing a viticultural area in southern Illinois named "Shawnee Hills." The area is named after the Shawnee, an indigenous people that settled in southern Illinois during the mid-18th century. The Shawnee Hills Wine Trail was created by the owners of the first three wineries in southern Illinois to promote the state's enotourism.