A Weekend Visit to Lincoln Country

Mom wanted to see Uncle Wyett
and so last Saturday morning we drove about 300 miles to Salem, IL. The little town is located in southern Illinois, in direct horizontal alignment to Vincennes, IN.

On Sunday morning, we awoke to a snowy, blizzardy day but Tom and I had planned to travel to Springfield, IL to visit the Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.

On our way, we stopped in Vandalia, IL, the old State Capitol. The courthouse was the Statehouse from 1836-1839, during the time of Lincoln's State Senate years. In the park across from the courthouse is Lincoln Park. This picture, with Lincoln setting outside the courthouse, is a replica of one I saw at the Presidential Museum.

The Lincoln Presidential Museum and Library in Springfield was completed in 2004. It is a cross between a historic museum and the fertile minds of animators, such as those who work at Disney world.

Photos cannot be taken inside the museum, but as you enter the main corridor, the Lincoln family greets you outside the White House. Pics can be taken in this area only. In this pic are the Lincoln children, Tad, Willie and Robert and President and Mrs. Lincoln.

The tour of the museum is absolutely fantastic. It begins with the boyhood years in Indiana, and ends with the assassination of the President and his final tour cross-country back to Springfield, IL.


The artifacts on display are many and varied, from hand-written invitations to tea from Mrs. Lincoln to actual legal cases won by Lincoln when he was an attorney.

There are two presentations, one entitled "Lincoln's Eyes" and the other, "Ghosts of the Library". In "Lincoln's Eyes", we are asked to look at Lincoln as people saw him during his presidency. He didn't become an icon of history until after his assassination. During his White House years, he had many detractors, just like we have today. The presentation shows that Lincoln had the courage to do what he felt was right, even when it was hard on him, his family and the nation.
The "Ghosts of the Library" was my favorite part of the tour. It is a magical special effects presentation that uses Holavision to tell the story. What seems real can disappear in a puff of smoke. I still haven't decided whether the library curator was real or a figment of imagination. But it doesn't make any difference, the presentation was unforgettable.


We also toured the Lincoln home in Springfield and I wish we had had the time to tour Lincoln's neighborhood. Our trip ended with Tom going down what we thought was a one-way street and being in the lane for turning traffic. A nice and friendly Springfield policeman pulled us over and then gave us directions to get out of town free!!

We visited cousins and great-cousins I hadn't seen in years. Uncle Wyett and mother had a very nice visit. But for me, the coup de grace of the weekend was this....just like the MasterCard commercial.....

Two nights in the local hotel, $140......tickets to the Museum, $20......Clipping down the interstate with my 96 year-old uncle driving us in his new van....PRICELESS!!!!!

Thanks to all my Illinois family for a wonderful weekend!