2021-03-29: Touring More Abraham Lincoln and Route 66 Sites in Illinois on Day 7 of Turning a 1400 Mile Road Trip into a 3404 Mile Adventure!

So today as we geocached more Illinois counties, we followed more footsteps of President Abraham Lincoln historical sites and jumped onto the Historic Route 66 to continue our southwest roadtrip. There's a LOT to see and do today, so let us go for a drive and get on down the road...

Waking up in Peoria County, Illinois this morning, it was still cold but not like it was yesterday morning. First thing first... breakfast, coffee, and hey look there's a geocache right there in the parking lot (GC42BCA)! Then next door into East Peoria and Tazewell County, we made a quick exit off the highway in this industrial area for a creative geocache (GC24KTM) that had a lot of favorite points. Luckily, truck traffic wasn't that busy. Parked on a side street and a short walk across the grass. Found the container quickly and another minute to figure out log sheet retrieval.

Southbound on I-55 into Logan County, we exit into the small town of Elkhart. A couple of blocks off of the Old Route 66 and near the town square, is this Veterans Memorial Statue honoring those in the community who have served in the various wars.

Just outside the east side of town are my next two geocaches (GC4MYJP, GC8P1YG). The first settler in the Elkhart area was James Latham. In 1824 he was appointed by President John Quincy Adams to the position of Indian Agent at Fort Clark (now Peoria). He moved the family there and in two years took ill and died. They brought him back to the hill and buried him in Latham Cemetery (not far from where his first cabin was built) which has the distinction of being the oldest cemetery in Logan County.

One of the highest points in the state is Elkhart Hill. Abraham Lincoln often stayed in the Kentucky House, a stagecoach stop on Elkhart Hill owned by his friend Richard Latham. He was also a friend of John Dean Gillett, who was once known as the “Cattle King of the World.” Gillett was the primary financier of Lincoln, IL, the Logan County city that bears Abraham Lincoln’s name.

The Elkhart Cemetery is located on the south side of Elkhart Hill. Near Gillett’s grave, is the Saint John's Chapel. It was built in 1890 by the Culver Stone Co. in memory of Gillett. Still owned by the Gillett Farm, it is the only privately owned chapel in Illinois.

Richard J. Oglesby, three term governor of Illinois and a close friend of Abraham Lincoln, married the Gillett's oldest daughter, Emma. They built their home across the hill from the Gillett house. Known as Oglehurst, the 46 room mansion had a pipe organ in the Great Hall, a fourth floor school room where the children were tutored and a music room with a musical score detailed in the gesso work around the ceiling. The Oglesby's are buried in a tomb on Elkhart Hill.

The cemetery is also the final resting place of Capt. Adam H. Bogardus, who toured with Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show and was known as the “Wing Shot Champion of the World.”

Connecting Elkhart Hill to Elkhart Cemetery is this bridge which was erected in 1915 by Emma Gillett Oglesby. It is said to be the only private bridge over a public highway in the state. 

This time I decide to stay on Old Route 66 instead of jumping onto the Interstate. Crossing over into Sangamon County and the town of Williamsville, I spot The Old Route 66 Gas Station and Garage. I couldn't buy gas at 31 cents a gallon, but I did drive away with some good photos.

Now moving down the road into Springfield, Illinois. Settling began in 1810 and eventually the town of Springfield became the state capital of Illinois. Abraham Lincoln lived in the Springfield area from 1837 until 1861. In May of 1839, construction began on this cottage for Reverend Charles Dresser. It wasn't until 1844 when Abraham Lincoln moved his family, wife Mary and son Robert, from a rural community on the outskirts and purchased a small cottage house within Springfield. The Lincoln's made multiple renovations and expansions over the next 17 years while they lived in the home. In 1861, now President Abraham Lincoln moved the family to Washington D.C.

Several tenants occupied the house up until Robert Lincoln deeded the house to the state of Illinois in June of 1887. President Nixon established the house as the Lincoln Home National Historic Site in 1971/72 (GC963C).

Pictured below is Abraham Lincoln's "campaign bus" which he used to travel around in while running for office. A big difference compared to today's 45 foot luxury motorcoaches!

Two blocks away from the Lincoln House is Union Square. Union Station opened in 1898 as the passenger terminal for the Illinois Central (IC) Railroad. Francis T. Bacon, an IC architect, designed the station. The current 110-foot-tall clock tower is a reconstruction replacement of the original which was removed in 1946.

Vacated by the railroad in 1971, Union Station was rehabilitated by the Scully family in 1985 for retail use. The State of Illinois leased the building for offices in 1990, eventually purchasing it in 1990. A rehabilitation began in 2005 returning the train station to the turn-of-the-century appearance.

On this public square and in surrounding buildings (GCMNH3), Lincoln and his family and friends purchased goods, attended parties, enjoyed picnics and parades, watched theatricals, and listened to concerts and lectures.

In law offices and courtrooms overlooking this square he honed his skills of persuasion. In storefront discussions and street corner gatherings he perfected the art of politics. Then, as his understanding matured and his convictions deepened, he took his place among the leaders of his time, addressing the people of the nation in powerful and eloquent words that echoed beyond this small prairie capital.

Our next stop in Springfield, Illinois along our President Abraham Lincoln Sightseeing History Tour was at the Oak Ridge Cemetery. Upon entering the cemetery, there are multiple veterans memorials near the entrance. This one pictured below is the Illinois Vietnam Veterans Memorial (GCE6FF).

After Lincoln's assassination and services in Washington D.C., his body was placed on a train for his final trip back home to Springfield. His casket, along with his son Williams who died at the White House in 1862, was placed in this receiving vault at the Oak Ridge Cemetery in May of 1865. They remained here under guard until December of 1865 when the construction of another temporary tomb was completed.

The granite monument below, erected in 1900, memorializes the location of the temporary second tomb. The temporary vault held the bodies of President Abraham Lincoln and his sons Edward and William from December 1865 until September 1871, when they were moved to the partially completed tomb. Built into the lower portion on the left side of the monument, is the marble slab which used to be inside the receiving vault upon which his casket was first put to rest. (looks like a white door in the photo)

In 1871, three years after construction began, Lincoln's body and three of his sons were placed in crypts in the unfinished structure. The memorial was completed in 1874. Now, you would think that this was the FINAL resting place of President Abraham Lincoln. However, I leave you to read "the rest of the story" as Paul Harvey used to say. Go to the National Park Service website to read about the attempted theft of Lincoln's body and that it was moved 5 more times before being placed ten feet below the floor of the burial chamber as requested by his only remaining son, Robert Todd Lincoln.

In the center of the chamber is this huge sarcophagus, ten feet above Lincoln's body. Along the back wall are five chambers, one for his wife Mary Todd Lincoln, three of his four sons, and a grandson.

Finally moving on into Decatur and Macon County. This Texaco Gas Station (GC7B80A) originally opened in the 1930's. Having changed hands several times, it eventually became an automotive detail shop. The building was in pretty bad shape until the current owner purchased it. Over a period of 6 years, the property was brought up to code and the whole place was restored to it's original 1930's state you see today. The station is slowly being filled with period equipment and furniture. The only thing missing now is the gas pump itself.

Also in Decatur at the Greenwood Cemetery is the Illinois Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers Memorial and another geocache (GC32HMJ).

Heading southeast down State Road 121 into Moultrie County, we make a quick geocaching roadside stop (GC3MV8K) at the Illinois Department of Natural Resources Public Archery Range.

I had decided to take this little detour south-eastward before continuing southwest in order to stop for more historical places along the Lincoln History Tour.

Reaching Coles County near the towns of Lena and Campbell, is our next geocache (GC1MEC5). It is here where you'll find the Shiloh Presbyterian Church and the Thomas Lincoln Cemetery. Thomas Lincoln died in 1851 and was buried in what was then called the Gordon Burial Ground. As was common in many poor rural communities, Thomas Lincoln's marker was probably no more than a simple rock placed to mark the gravesite. Many years later, however, Abraham Lincoln's nephew, John J. Hall, would tell a Lincoln biographer that Abraham had carved the initials T. L. onto a board which he placed upon the grave during his last visit in January 1861 before heading to the White House.

Whether Thomas Lincoln's marker was a stone or a board, no permanent marker could be placed by local friends and by Thomas' grandson, Robert Todd Lincoln. Those donation ensured the tombstones eventual erection in 1880. The current marker was actually installed later by the Illinois Lions Club to replaced the original, which unfortunately, had been chipped away at by souvenir seekers over the years.

Located on the Lincoln Highway, just down the road from the cemetery, the Lincoln Log Cabin State Historic Site preserves the last farm and home of Thomas and Sarah Bush Lincoln. The Lincoln family moved to the farm in 1837 and after Abraham had established his residence in Springfield. Although Lincoln never lived here with his father and stepmother, he stopped here to bid farewell to his stepmother on his way to the White House in January of 1861. There are also three geocaches here on the Lincoln Farm (GC8B2NZ, GC8B2WM, GC891A4).

From the Lincoln Farm, we drove south towards I-70 because we were running out of daylight and needed to put some miles behind us. We crossed over into Cumberland County and the town of Greenup for our next county geocache. It was located at the Greenup Cemetery (GC5C8CE). Located along the Old National Road, burials date back to the early 1800's. No time to look but just a quick glance around. Nothing got my attention so onto the Interstate westbound.

We drove straight through Effingham County because I had already completed that one from back in my truck driving days. Then stopping in Fayette County for two geocaches. The first was in the Guy Cemetery (GC2J8TY) in St Elmo. Again just a quick glance around and moved on.

Two exits later, we got back off into the town of Vandalia for a geocache with hundreds of favorite points. The Great Kaskaskia Dragon (GCHWFZ) is this huge metal sculpture of a fire-breathing dragon and knight in armor. Unfortunately the dragon's fire had been extinguished during our visit.

 

Now the camera brightens it up a bit and, at 7:30 PM, it was darker than it appears. Time to find some dinner and get some sleep!

2021-03-28: Visiting Presidents Lincoln and Reagan in Illinois on Day 6 of Turning a 1400 Mile Road Trip into a 3404 Mile Adventure!

Welcome back friends, family, RV'ers, Geocachers, Jeepers, and fellow travelers of the open roads. In this edition of our AwayWeGo Adventures blog, we pick up where we left off yesterday at the state line entering Illinois from Indiana. We spent the whole day in Illinois as we grabbed new geocaching counties and picked up some Presidents Lincoln and Reagan historical sites. And a really cool college ghost campus along the way! There's no debate about it, we've got lots to show you. So join us as we do some sightseeing along Illinois backroads...

So yesterdays blog focused on the General Lew Wallace Study / Museum and the Ben-Hur story. We did continue on and cross the state line that afternoon, but I wanted to hold those geocaching stops into todays Illinois post.

A geocache needed in Vermillion County was our next stop. Driving westbound on I-74 past Danville, is the Salt Kettle Rest Area. While many may stop for a much needed break at the rest area, few realize that there is a pioneer cemetery (GC35GC9) just a short hike along a trail to the east.

Edward M. Wilson was born 1785 in Ireland and immigrated to the United States in 1802 at age 17. He served in the Battle of North Point, in Baltimore, MD, which occurred on Sept. 12, 1812 and the following 2 days, the Battle of Baltimore at Fort Henry occurred. During this battle and bombardment on Fort Henry, Francis Scott Key penned the words to The Star-Spangled Banner. In 1832, Edward migrated west, married Caroline Searl on June 29, 1835 (she was born Feb. 23, 1811 in Mass.) and she died April 14, 1867 and is buried next to him here in Searl Cemetery. Edward died Sept. 4, 1840 age 55. Edward bought property in Vermilion County in 1832 and before he died, he amassed quite a bit of property which included this family cemetery.

Moving west along I-74 into Champaign County, the was another cemetery right near the exit. That made for a quick geocaching find for the county (GC2739Z).

Passing through the northeast corner of Piatt County, there was a quick park and grab geocache (GC6CA0A) right at the exit that allowed us to continue moving and putting miles behind us. And the same thing just a few miles further in DeWitt County (GC3X0ZC). I already had McLean County from my truck driving days back in 2008, so we turned north on I-39 in Bloomington to Woodford County. There we grabbed a quick roadside cemetery cache near the small town of El Paso (GC971CA), didn't know there was an El Paso in Illinois.

Continuing north into Marshall County, there was an earthcache (GC1BRDJ) I decided to stop for. An earthcache is a geocache without a traditional container and logsheet. To get credit for the cache, you are to observe something geological there and answer the specified questions within the description on the cache page. At this location in the middle of vast farmland is this huge boulder sitting where it's difficult to find even the smallest of rocks. Supposedly this was carried down to this location on ancient glaciers and left here when they melted.

Making good time and now up in LaSalle County, we stopped for a quick geocache (GC473T0), some fuel, and some food. Then a quick geocache (GC17KM8) stop at the Willow Creek Northbound Rest Area.

Then we took the Lincoln Highway east over into DeKalb County for two cemetery geocaches (GC7PRVY, GC8D9GA).

Back to I-39 northbound, we stopped for a quick roadside geocache (GC39RYA) near the exit in Ogle County. But it was missing and we had to DNF it. So I looked up another nearby cemetery geocache (GC4GVX3) that was a little further out and found that one to get credit for the county.

So that finished up Day 5 from yesterday. Today we began in Rockford, IL. Now the original plan for our extended roadtrip going from North Carolina to Texas via the LONGWAY across the northern states, had us jumping up into Wisconsin and Minnesota also. But this morning we were met with an artic blast of temps in the low 30's and an expected high of only 45 degrees! And that was for Rockford. Why would we even want to go further north?? Change of plans...

After some coffee and breakfast, we grabbed a quick parking lot geocache (GC28T0P) for Winnebago County.

Because of the artic blast, I head west on I-90 instead of north. The next stop was a geocache (GC5WQ5A) in Stephenson County. It was outside the old Lincoln School building. The front of the building says Lincoln School. On one side above the door it says Boys Entrance. On the other side it says Girls Entrance. I don't think it's a school anymore. Other than that, an hour of searching the web and I can't find any history on the building.

A few blocks away was the historical Debate Square. In 1858, the Democratic Party was the majority party in Illinois and Douglas was by far the most popular member of this party. Lincoln was not well known because his party, the newly formed Republicans, were still trying to create an organization. As a result, Lincoln had trouble drawing crowds as he canvassed the state in his bid to unseat Douglas.

Finally Lincoln suggested to Douglas that the two of them share their platform and divide their speaking time. Douglas had nothing to gain by agreeing with Lincoln, but loving a good political brawl, Douglas agreed to Lincoln's proposal.

Photo Bomb!

Seven debates were scheduled in each of the congressional districts in which the two had not already appeared in close proximity. Ottawa, Illinois was the location of the first debate on August 21, 1858. On this square in Freeport was the second debate on August 27, 1858.

On the corner of the Stephenson County Courthouse Square is this Civil War Memorial honoring those citizens of this county who gave their lives during the war.

One more county in the northwest corner of the state and we take the very backroads to get to the nearest two geocaches. The first was along a heavily wooded area on the north side of the Ward's Grove Nature Preserve (GC302PR). The geocache was hidden by the rock wall in the back near the shallow cave-like openings. As thick as this looks now, I'm just glad spring hadn't sprung yet and the whole area covered in foliage!

The second geocache (GC8PA44) in this county was further down a rural country road to view a tree carving on the lawn of a farm house. This is a carving of Chief Black Hawk, between this site and the Black Hawk Monument at Kellogg’s Grove is where the skirmish of 1832 took place. Makataimeshekiakiak (“Black Sparrow Hawk”) was known to European-Americans as Black Hawk. Born around 1767 in the village of Saukenuk, he grew up very anti-American supporting the British during the war of 1812. Commonly referred to as “Chief,” he has no official position in his tribe. He did, possess, however, natural leadership skills that caused many warriors to follow him.

Working our way south now towards warmer weather, the next county on the list is Carroll County. I have three geocaches selected here and the first two are in the town of Mount Carroll. The Shimer College Campus (GC8FXG4, GC5FGN9) was originally founded as the Mount Carroll Seminary in 1852 by Francis Shimer. It grew from just 11 students in one room to over 100 students in four main classroom buildings. And it was primarily an all girls school ranging in ages as young as 3 to college students. There were some boys that had attended over the years, but they were only allowed to be day students not living on campus.

In 1896, the school partnered with the University of Chicago and the Baptist Church and became the Francis Shimer Academy. Over the years there were many changes as the college struggled financially and admissions rose and fell. In 1950 the name was changed the Shimer College and it became coeducational school once again. The highest number of students was in the 1960's with just over 500 attending classes. Disagreements with the older more conservative faculty and the younger faculty and students of the late 1960's led to a third of the students and some faculty leaving. Several bankruptcies and school closers later, the yearly student enrollments fell below 100 and around 50 most of the time. In 1979 the school board decided to move classes to the town of Waukegan, Illinois.

During the 1980's, a group of Mount Carroll residents organized the Restoration College Association which later became the Campbell Center for Historic Preservation Studies to prevent the campus from being broken up. As I walked around this campus, the more than a dozen buildings appeared to be abandoned. I kept thinking to myself that these would be cool to own, restore and turn them into something useful. Well that is currently the intent. It is now call Shimer Square and more than $30 Million will be invested over the coming years to convert building to housing, business, and community amenities. You can read about the future plans and progress here.

OK, back to geocaching. From there we drove over to State Road 84 which follows along the banks of the Mississippi River, stopping for a quick cemetery cache in the town of Ayers (GC8C16J).

Continuing south into Whiteside County and the town of Fulton, we stopped at Calvary Hill Cemetery for our next geocache (GC39WDR). Resting atop the hill overlooking the great river is a historical headstone of presidential significance. Buried in this cemetery are President Ronald Reagan's paternal Irish ancestors. His great-grandparents, Michael and Catherine Mulcahey Reagan, emigrated in 1856 and after Michael's 1884 burial in Calvary Hill Cemetery, Catherine and three children moved to Fulton. One son, John, married Jennie Cusick. Both died in their thirties and left four orphans. One of those was Jack, whom became the father of the future president. A total of 16 Reagan relatives are buried here.

From there we drove over to the town of Tampico. The geocache (GC90AHG) happen to be missing at the time of our visit so we did have to log a DNF. But we did find some more presidential history. From the historical marker: "On February 6, 1911, Ronald Wilson Reagan was born in an upstairs apartment at 111 South Main Street. His father, John "Jack" Reagan, of Irish-Catholic ancestry, was a clerk in the H.C. Pitney Store also on Main Street, and gave Ronald the nickname "Dutch." His mother, Nelle Wilson Reagan, was of Scots-English background."

"The small town atmosphere of Tampico played an important role in Reagan's formative years. As a child he played on a cannon in the park. Both of Reagan's parents were known for their acting ability in productions at Burden's Opera House on Main Street. Ronald Reagan became a sports announcer, a well-known movie star, served as Governor of California from 1967-1975, and then President of the United States from 1981-1989. He died in 2004 and is buried at the Regan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California."

Unfortunately the Reagan Birthplace Museum was closed while we were here and we didn't get a chance to take the tour.

Now back over to the banks of the Mississippi River, we entered Rock Island County and the town of Rapids City. There we made a quick roadside geocache (GC33PJR) find for the county.

Being so close, we took the I-80 bridge across the river into Iowa to check off a bucket list item. The American Pickers is a popular TV show and they happened to be based right there Le Claire, Iowa, just outside of Davenport. There's also a geocache hidden there too (GC3MYET)! Well, we found the geocache but arrived just as two girls were locking the doors to leave. I didn't recognize either from the show, so no autographs.

Jumping onto I-74 eastbound, which in reality goes straight south through three counties, we stop at the rest area in Henry County for another quick geocaching find to claim the county (GC2BVRR).

Our jump over into Iowa for the cache at the Antique Archeologists put us back on track with our original planned route if we had gone up into Wisconsin, Minnesota and then down into Iowa. We would have then crossed back into Illinois to where we are now.

That's it for a long day today. Join us again next time for Day 7 as we continue finding more President Lincoln history and make our way over to the Historic Route 66.

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