The Macon County Historical Society had its birth on May 25, 1916, when twelve people met in the Decatur Public Library, adopted a constitution, and elected temporary officers. In August, 1916 there was an appeal for members at the Old Settlers’ Picnic for any items of historical interest. The Society had plans “to establish a library of local and state history, to maintain a museum, and to cultivate the historic sense and diffuse knowledge upon these subjects by meeting and publications”. On more than one occasion over the years the Society became inactive and then reorganized. In 1962 several local citizens met to discuss the reactivation of the Society, with meetings being held in Decatur’s old Carnegie Library until the Society purchased the old North Cumberland Presbyterian Church to establish their new museum and a meeting place.

This five-acre site contains a number of buildings that help to interpret the heritage of the area. Called the Prairie Village, this complex contains the Mueller Gun Shop, which by means of a recently produced video retraces Lincoln’s history in Macon County. An old Log Court House, originally on another site was saved and moved to this property. It is significant because Lincoln tried two cases in this building.

www.mchsdecatur.org/

Address: 5580 North Fork Road Take the Airport Road off of east or west bound Route 36, turn north past airport to first stop sign which is North Fork/Country Club Roads, turn right to 5580 North Fork Road
Contact: (217) 422-4919	Hours: Tues - Sat : 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Sand Creek Conservation Area

Walk in the Footsteps of Abraham Lincoln on the Paris-Springfield Road.

The Paris-Springfield Road was one of the earliest roads in Central Illinois . Named for the two towns it ran between (Paris, Illinois and Springfield, Illinois) the road gave settlers a way to move farm products and other goods between nearby towns and states as it connected with other roads. Locally, it ran through Macon County and helped Decatur grow before railroads were built.

The Paris-Springfield Road's most famous traveler was Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln and his extended family used the road when they made their first Illinois home in Macon County in March of 1830. Lincoln later used the road as a politician and as a lawyer on Illinois' eighth judicial circuit when he tried cases in many towns including Decatur, IL.

One part of the road is now preserved and open to visitors at Sand Creek Conservation Area. You can learn a piece of Illinois history by walking in the footsteps of Abraham Lincoln. At the east end of the parking area look for a large informational display which tells more of the story of this important road.

The Paris-Springfield Road is part of the Sand Creek Conservation Area.

Address: Sand Creek Conservation Area is a 755-acres open space site, located just south of the City of Decatur off South Franklin Street

Contact: Phone: (217) 423-7708 Email: mccd (at) maconcountyconservation .org

Richard J. Oglesby is best known both as a friend and political ally of Abraham Lincoln. Oglesby helped form the "Railsplitter Candidate" image which put Lincoln in the national spotlight during the 1860 presidential election. Oglesby was also with Lincoln when he died in 1865 and as Governor of Illinois he lead the effort to build Lincoln's Tomb in Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield, Illinois. In his later years Oglesby helped preserve Lincoln's historical legacy and shape the heroic legend of Abraham Lincoln through his speeches and interviews.

His life was filled with many accomplishments including being elected three times as Governor of Illinois and appointed a United States Senator. Oglesby made a small fortune in the California Gold Rush and also fought in both the Mexican War and Civil War eventually becoming a general. Governor Oglesby had the Mansion built around 1874. The highlight of the Mansion's history is a visit by former Civil War General and United States President Ulysses S. Grant in 1880. From one of the Mansion's verandas Grant spoke to a crowd of people during an encampment of the Grand Army of the Republic, a Civil War veterans' association.

Oglesby Mansion Part 2

The Mansion possesses features of the Italianate style including brackets under the eaves, the low-pitched roof with belvedere (a flat deck area at the roof's center with a balustrade), bay windows and verandas. The interior features vibrant parquet wood flooring, seven fireplaces and a walnut staircase. Throughout the house are furnishings of the era including several items owned by the Oglesby Family.

Address: 421 W. William St., Decatur, IL	Contact: Phone: (217) 921-0760 To schedule a group tour: (217)429-9422
Hours: June - August, Wed & Sat : 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm Last Sunday of the month : 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm March - Novermber Admission: $2.00 Oglesby Mansion Part 1

Arguably one of the most important downtown areas in Lincoln lifetime, visitors can trace his very beginnings in Illinois to his run for the presidency. At the corner of Main and Merchant Streets a statue of Lincoln commemorates the site of his important “Stump Speech” that propelled him into political prominence. At Main Street Bank & Trust parking lot, plaque marks the site of “The Wigwam” where Lincoln was nominated for President by John Palmer during the 1860 Illinois Republican Convention. Also introduced at this site was Richard Oglesby’s famed slogan, “Abe Lincoln, The Rail Splitter Candidate for President of 1860.”

At the Southwest Corner of Main and Main Streets, A bronze monument marks the original site of the old log cabin courthouse where Lincoln tried five cases. The original building sits on the site of the Macon County Museum Complex. These sites and many more await and, scattered around, telling the tales of Lincoln in Decatur are more than ten Looking for Lincoln Story Trail Waysides. He arrived in Decatur, he worked here, and he moved on from Decatur after more than two decades. Much of it happened right in this historic downtown.

Downtown Decatur Part 2

Bursting with unique boutiques, specialty shops, and restaurants, you will also find five art galleries within a one-square block area. The oldest building still standing in Downtown Decatur was built in 1856 and first used as a church. Now restored, it holds apartments and commercial space. The hub of their thriving community, downtown is famous for its many street festivals and seasonally coordinated special events.

www.experiencedecatur.com/index.php

Address: The Decatur Area Convention & Visitors Bureau 202 E. North St. Decatur, IL 62523

Contact: Toll Free: (800) 331-4479 Fax: (217) 423-7455

Downtown Decatur Part 1

Rock Springs Conservation Area

The Trobaugh-Good House
Walk into the past to an exciting place where the days before the Civil War live on. Homestead Prairie Farm is built around the Trobaugh-Good House located at Rock Springs Conservation Area. It has been restored to let visitors explore rural life on the Grand Prairie of Illinois in 1860 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996. Originally constructed by an unknown builder around 1850 as a one room log house, its name comes from the first two families who lived there.

Joseph Trobaugh from Tennessee, his wife Elizabeth born in Illinois and their family were the first known occupants of the house and owned it from 1853 to 1866. Trobaugh was a farmer and sawmill operator. He changed the house by adding rooms and making other renovations.

Homestead Prairie Farm Part 2

Emanuel Good, a Civil War veteran, along with his wife and children were the second family to live there. The Goods owned the house from 1866 to 1903, selling it one year after Emanuel's death.

Today the house is furnished to reflect the lifestyle of the Trobaughs, their boarders, hired hands, and neighbors in 1860, whose lives were being affected by the important changes sweeping the nation in the last years before the Civil War.

www.maconcountyconservation.org/

Address: Rock Springs Conservation Area and Nature Center 3939 Nearing Lane, Decatur, IL	Contact: (217) 423-7708 Email: mccd (at) maconcountyconservation .org
Hours: June - October, Sat - Sun : 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm Special tours and programs may be scheduled by appointment at other times for students or various groups. Admission: FREE! Homestead Prairie Farm Part 1

Friends Creek Conservation Area

Step back in time in a one room country school. The name "Bethel School" has a long history in Friends Creek Township. The first Bethel School built in the 1850's in Section 7 of the township was a log structure. By 1890 with a donation of land from John Brown in Section 8 the current Bethel School was built. For nearly 56 years the school served the neighborhood students until 1946 when it was closed. As part of a statewide trend in the 1940's and 1950's most one room schools in Macon County were closed and the students transferred to larger schools. Purchased by Sam Kohler the Bethel School was moved to his property about a mile south to be used as an implement and tool shed.

With the purchase of his property in 1969 by the Macon County Conservation District the school was moved yet again in 1982 a short distance to its present location as part of Friends Creek Conservation Area. From 1982 to 1985 with help from several donors including the Winings Trust along with dedicated volunteers and staff it was restored to its current appearance. Historic Bethel School is part of the Friends Creek Conservation Area.

www.maconcountyconservation.org/

Bethel School Part 2

Address: Rock Springs Conservation Area and Nature Center are located at 3939 Nearing Lane in Decatur, IL	Contact: (217) 423-7708 Email: mccd (at) maconcountyconservation .org
Hours: May - October, first Saturday of each month : 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm Programs may be scheduled by appointment at other times for students or various groups. Admission: FREE!

Bethel School Part 1

In 1838, Court was still being held in the log building that was under construction on the square when the Lincoln's arrived in 1830. The reconstructed log courthouse now stands at the Macon County Historical Museum. The building was an eighteen by twenty-four foot one and a half story building that had a door on the north and one on the south, with but a single room on each floor, which was heated by a single fireplace. When it was sold following the construction of the second courthouse, it was purchased by a local farmer, moved and then used as a house and then a barn.

In March of 1837 Leonides Munsell of Paris was selected to build the new brick courthouse. The contract specified that it was to "be equal to or superior to the McLean County courthouse." In fact Munsell built the courthouse in Bloomington in 1836 after building the courthouses of Paris and Shelbyville in 1832 and Charleston in 1835. All of them were made of brick and of the coffee mill construction, square with a cupola in the center. The Macon County courthouse was 32 feet square and was built at a cost of $10,000. The first floor was offices with the courtroom on the second floor.

It is believed that Lincoln appeared for the last Circuit court session held in the log building, as the new brick courthouse across the corner was nearing completion when Lincoln arrived, but was running behind schedule and had not yet been completed.