We were floundering for which direction to head for a quick getaway from Chicago for Spring Break... Graceland in Memphis? Niagara Falls? Visit a friend in Lincoln, Nebraska? We definitely needed a change of scenery, but only had three or four days and not a lot of cash (read: driving trip). Since my husband couldn't get away from work I gave up on the 9-hour drive options and settled on seeing the sights in Springfield, IL.
It turns out it was an inspired (and inspiring) choice!
At about 200 miles from Chicago, Springfield is an easy, three and a half hour drive from Chicago with sights to see along the way. We headed out on a Thursday morning, stopping in Pontiac for a simple lunch at the Apple Tree Restaurant (107 East Madison Street, Pontiac, IL). It's only open for breakfast and lunch and offers a wide variety of sandwiches, burgers, grilled cheese and specials and at least half a dozen selections of homemade pie. The restaurant has a beautifully designed tin ceiling that's 18 feet high and a laid back atmosphere; affordable prices. The kids had grilled cheese and burgers and I opted for the tuna on rye with swiss cheese.
After lunch, we took a stroll around the square and then over to the Route 66 Museum (110 West Howard Street, Pontiac, IL), home to thousands of memorabilia from along Illinois' historic Route 66. Our favorite was the Volkswagen van, inspiration for the Fillmore character in the Pixar movie, "Cars."
The murals along the back of the museum are beautiful, including the Route 66 one!
Things to do in Springfield
Believe it or not, there are a number of great things to do in Springfield for a family. We were there in March, too early for the state fair or much outdoor activities, but perfect for walking the downtown to see the sights.
We started, as all family trips are apt to, with a swim in our hotel's pool.
Lincoln Ghost Tour
We started our tour of Lincoln with a ghost tour led by Garrett Moffett, owner of the Springfield Walks. In March, the only choice for the ghost tour is the "Lincoln's Ghost Walk: Legends & Lore", a 90-minute, 10-block tour that goes from the Old State Capitol building to Lincoln's house to the train depot where Lincoln left for the White House. You can tell that Garrett enjoys his job; he delivers the stories with great enthusiasm, humor and panache. My tween and teen daughters (11 and 13 years old) loved it -- they thought it was one of the highlights of the trip -- and even my 4 year old son enjoyed it! Garrett shows up for the tour with a candle-lit lantern and keeps the party moving and interesting for the duration of the tour. We learned about Mary Lincoln's interest in the supernatural -- and their participation and hosting of seances at the White House, in addition to strange dreams, sightings and noises heard both in the day and since. The stories are interesting, but not scary. Lincoln Home National Historic Site
We started our first full day in Springfield with a visit to the Lincoln family home. This is the home that Abraham and Mary Lincoln lived in for 17 years with their children as Lincoln made his way from a struggling young lawyer to becoming first a Congressional Representative, then 16th president of the U.S. The Lincoln Home National Historic Site is the only national park in Illinois and run by the U.S. National Park Service. The good news about that is it is FREE. The only admission was getting a timed ticket from the visitor's center. We got tickets for about one hour after arriving tot he visitor's center, so plenty of time to watch one of the two movies they offer and poke around the gift shop. The gift shop is filled with many books and Lincoln paraphernalia. All visitors must join a tour to see the Lincoln house. Tours are interesting and led by national park rangers. The tour took us through the whole house -- the salon and family rooms on the first floor; guest room and bedrooms on the second floor and back down through the kitchen. The rooms are furnished with period furnishings for the most part, though a few items are original, such as Lincoln's writing desk. The interesting thing about the house is its size -- about three times bigger than what they started with when they purchased it, but still quite small compared to today's standards. Most of the furnishings are small and our guide told us that since Lincoln really couldn't fit his 6.4" frame on any of the love seats in the house, he often laid on the middle of the floor in the family' living room while his wife read in a chair and kids jumped around. The national site is approximately two blocks long. There are two other houses to explore and they are expanding the site another two blocks. The sidewalks are made of wood and the streets of pebbles, replicating what life would have been like back in the 1860s when the Lincolns lived there.
Old Illinois State Capitol
We spent about an hour in the Old State Capitol, seat of Illinois state government between 1839 and 1876. The rooms are furnished as they would have been in the mid 1800s and are quite beautiful, really. In the Hall of Represenatives, we could just imagine Lincoln and Stephen Douglas' rivalry playiing out in speeches about slavery. Lincoln launched his 1858 Senate campaign against Douglas with his famous "House Divided" speech in the building. And, this is where Lincoln's body was broought to lie in state as more than 150,000 mourners passed by (the town was home to only 11,000 residents at the time).
Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum
By far the highlight of the weekend was a visit to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum. The museum exceeded my expectations - by a lot. There were three major exhibits; one showcasing Lincoln's life from a boy through is young married life and the beginning of his politiical career in Springfield. The other followed his life as the 16th president. Throughout both exhibits, there was much about the immense opposition and criticism he faces from pro-slavery politicians and citizens as well as intimate details about the personal pain he and Mary Lincoln faced with the death of three of four of their children to sickness and disease. Ultimately, the grief became overwhelming for Mary, who also witnessed the assasination of her husband and who's eldest son, Robert, worked to have her committed to an asylum. Both of the exhibits came to life with wax figures of Abe and Mary; multimedia and two entire rooms filled with framed political cartoons published during Lincoln's terms in the White House. Amazing stuff.
If that's not enough to spark some interest in history, the museum presents two shows that combine history with special effects for an engaging program. Do not miss either of these shows! Ghosts of the Library is a dramatic presentation that uses Holavision® to capture the sense of discovery that researchers and curators feel as they approach a great research collection. The ghosts of Lincoln and his contemporaries appear and disappear, their images drifting through the "Library." The second performance, "Lincoln's Eyes" is equally as compelling, focusing on Lincoln's personal and political life. It's told by an artist, who explains that while he was painting Lincoln’s portrait, he tried to understand all the things he saw in Lincoln's eyes: sorrow, resolve, hope, vision, forgiveness, and more. As he explains, he tells us a bit about Lincoln's life and the theater comes to life with images of a civil war, complete with gunfire, smoke and seats that rumble from the blasts.
The kids loved it.
The weekend was topped off with a few more visits to the hotel pool and a stop at the the Lincoln Family tomb in Springfield's Oak Ridge Cemetery. The tomb is huge -- 117 feet high -- sitting atop the highest point of the cemetery. All of the Lincolns are buried here, except for the oldest son, Robert, who is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, DC. We walked through the tomb, with hallways made of marble and small copies of some of the most famous Lincoln statues throughout the interior. It is a sobering and peaceful resting place. During summer months, there are Civil War reenactments every Tuesday and a flag lowering ceremony by the 114th Illinois Infantry.
When you go, be sure to rub Lincoln's nose on the statue in front of the tomb, for good luck!
Finally, don't miss Washington Park! Cool spinny playground toys and a HUGE park to run and play in. Definitely a great break from all the sites.
