Illinois
Sightseeing and scenic drives were not all that was planned for this cross country drive.
I had in mind to do a bit of genealogy and visit some ancestor gravesites in Illinois.
I won’t bore you with photos of ancestor’s headstones (even though this would be the month to do it). My children get enough of that as it is, but they are kind to indulge me.
Although this was a ‘graveyard day’, one could still find plenty to see if one looked around. Upon passing through Jacksonville, Illinois, the first thing that caught our eyes was this lovely chapel.
*Clicking on a photo will give you a closer look!
The chapel belonged with a complex of buildings that made up MacMurray College.
MacMurray College was originally founded by the Illinois Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church as the Illinois Conference Female Academy in 1846. It stayed all female until 1955 when the MacMurray College for Men was started, however, the two sexes were kept separate, even eating separately, until 1967 when the dining hall went coed. In 1969 the two colleges merged.
Over the years, the college suffered budget struggles, falling enrollment, lack of updates (such as air conditioners and computers), disrepair, staffing issues, majors being eliminated, Covid and more.
After seventy-two years of MacMurray history, the college closed in 2020 and the buildings were auctioned off to various buyers for $600,000.
Apparently, the Hubster and I should’ve spent more time in Jacksonville. From the Wikipedia link above:
The attorney Abraham Lincoln occasionally had legal business in Jacksonville, frequently acting either as co-counsel or opposing counsel with David A. Smith, a Jacksonville resident. In what is now Central Park, Lincoln delivered a strong antislavery speech on September 6, 1856, in support of the presidential campaign of John C. Frémont, lasting over two hours.
Built in 1840, the Woodlawn Farm became an important stop on the Underground Railroad for runaway slaves escaping the terrors of slavery in the South.
One of Lincoln’s early political rivals, Stephen A. Douglas, settled in Jacksonville in 1833, where he first got involved in local politics. He quickly rose up the ranks of Illinois politics and was elected to the House of Representatives in 1842.
In the summer of 1965, in order to keep up with customer demand for records by the Beatles, the wildly popular English band, Capitol Records opened a vinyl record pressing plant on the western outskirts of Jacksonville.
We also drove through Bath, Illinois.
This is where I was beginning to get a sense of the time and place of my ancestors. They lived in this area when Abraham Lincoln was here.
Did they know him (It is possible as one of them is named Abraham Lincoln)? Did they turn out for his speeches? Did they agree with Lincoln?
They could have been standing in the crowd right here in 1858!
Gives me chills.
One more small town that I will share was Lewistown, Illinois.
The courthouse is beautiful, and the bell still rings. I heard it while taking photos; very cool!
So much history…so little time!
A very old section of town indeed.
See the world around you!
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