Day 5--Monday, July 2, 2007--Springfield, Illinois

Hey all you Simpsons fans, welcome to Springfield. Well, it may not actually be the hometown of the ficticious cartoon family, but it was the home of Abraham Lincoln, our 16th president. Here Mr. Lincoln practiced as a lawyer, lived in the only home he ever owned, raised 3 sons and was elected president of the United States. Here, too, his body was returned after being assasinated by John Wilkes Booth.

We decided to visit as many of the Lincoln sites as we could fit in and we managed to see quite a lot. Yesterday we drove to his tomb and walked around after all the tourists had gone home. We had the entire tomb to ourselves which made it seem so much more than just a tourist attraction. It was quiet, peaceful and without people making noise or fidgety kids running and climbing on things. It felt like the sacred place that it is.

Today, we awoke and walked into the center of town. Our hotel was next door to the state capitol building and an easy walk to most of the city sights. We walked the few blocks over to the "old" state capitol which is where Lincoln practiced law, where he made his famous "a house divided against itself" speech in 1858 and inside under the dome of the capitol his body lay in state for a couple of days so that people could file by and pay their final respects.

Next we walked across the street and toured Lincoln's law office. The tour guide told us that Lincoln's young sons often visited him in his office. Lincoln was a very permissive father and his kids would play baseball in the office using an ink well as a ball and a broom handle as a bat. As a result the walls of his office were splotched with ink that ran down the wall and Lincoln didn't seem to mind. Whoa! Don't any of you get any ideas!

We continued our walk around downtown Springfield stopping off at Pease's Chocolate Shop a Springfield tradition. Their specialty was the Lincoln Log which was one of those large stick pretzels dipped in caramel and then in chocolate. Yummy!

Next stop the Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum was was fantastic. It had lots of things to see and do for people of all ages. Here are some photos I took of the inside of it.

The photo on the left shows a copy of the front of the White House and Lincoln and his family are standing in front. They looked so lifelike and everyone wanted their picture taken with them. You could then walk through the front door of the White House and see clothing, china, and lots of other artifacts from when Lincoln was really in the White House. There were other huge rooms where they showed movies about Lincoln's life, one even had seats that shook when cannons went off and smoke and other special effects. Another exhibit took you through the front door of a replica of the log cabin he grew up in and then showed you exhibits of what his life was like growing up. It was really fun and educational. We weren't allowed to take any photos inside the exhibits, only in the main hall. But trust me, if you are ever in Springfield, go to this museum!

All that hiking around and museum hopping got us thinking about another famous local Springfield spot. Ever had a corn dog? Well of course you have. And if you enjoyed it then you owe a debt of thanks to the owners of our lunch stop--Cozy Dog! Cozy Dog in Springfield, Illnois is the place where the corn dog was invented. Here is a picture of one just before it disappears. At Cozy Dog they hand dip the hot dog on a stick and deep fry it to order so it isn't like the corn dogs you normally get that are already made and just need to be heated up. These are fresh and they also make great fresh french fries. That's fresh not like the frozen ones you normally get at McDonald's. It was fun!

Lunch over, we drove back into the center of town and stopped at a few other LIncoln historic sites. We saw the church pew that the Lincoln family always sat in at church. We took a tour of his home and we stopped by to see the actual railroad depot where Lincoln bid farewell to his friends in Springfield before taking the train to Washington to become President. Here are some of those photos.

Lincoln's home was just finishing getting a new paint job so there was scaffolding up around it the day we were there. This was the actual house, the only house, Lincoln ever owned. You can take a tour through the entire house.

While standing on the platform at the back of the railroad car that would take him to Washington, D.C. to become president, Lincoln made his famous farewell speech to the people of Springfield. It is so full of prophetic words that foreshadowed events to come.

My friends, no one, not in my situation, can appreciate my feeling of sadness at this parting. To this place, and the kindness of these people, I owe everything. Here I have lived a quarter of a century, and have passed from a young to an old man. Here my children have been born, and one is buried. I now leave, not knowing when, or whether ever, I may return, with a task before me greater than that which rested upon Washington. Without the assistance of the Divine Being who ever attended him, I cannot succeed. With that assistance I cannot fail. Trusting in Him who can go with me, and remain with you, and be everywhere for good, let us confidently hope that all will yet be well. To His care commending you, as I hope in your prayers you will commend me, I bid you an affectionate farewell.

Tomorrow we drive to Davenport, Iowa, another new state, the home to the John Deere Company and we cross the Mississippi River!