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In 1837, Dr. John Deskins constructed Middletown's nine-room Stagecoach Inn and Tavern. George Dunlap purchased it and became the proprietor in 1838. The building still stands today, called the Dunlap House, and is the oldest wooden building of it's kind in Illinois. Abraham Lincoln later frequented Middletown and stayed at the Tavern when he was a traveling lawyer on the 8th Judicial Circuit.

Your visit to Edwards Place will include a guided tour through the newly-restored first and second floor.  The home is interpreted to 1857 and furnished with wonderful examples of Victorian furniture, including many pieces that belonged to the Edwards family. You will also see the authentic "Lincoln Courting Couch" from the parlor of the Ninian Edwards home where Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd were married and a piano that was likely played at their wedding.

Standing as the oldest surviving home in Springfield, the house was home to Springfield's first merchant and a friend and supporter of Abraham Lincoln. Iles served with Lincoln in the Blackhawk War of 1832, and helped Lincoln secure the state capital's move from Vandalia to Springfield.

Be sure to check out the lower lever and see the "Farrell & Ann Gay Museum of Springfield History: Illinois Watch Company." The Illinois Watch Co. is one of the more interesting chapters from the city’s past. From 1870 - 1932, the company produced high-quality railroad watches in its sprawling factory at 9th St. and North Grand Ave. It was also a well-known maker of pocket and wristwatches.

Housed in a home owned by Dr. William Fithian, Civil War surgeon and personal friend of Abraham Lincoln, the Fithian Home features the south balcony from which Lincoln gave a speech in 1858 and the bedroom he used on his many visits.  Each remain as they were during Lincoln’s time there.  The Joseph G. Cannon (Uncle Joe) room contains personal items of Cannon’s who served in the U.S. House for 46 years and was Speaker from 1903 to 1911.

Listed on National Register of Historic Places.

Governor Joseph Duncan, who served as governor of Illinois from 1834 to 1838, had this two-and one-half-story house constructed between 1833 and 1835.

The home served as the official executive mansion for the state of Illinois from 1834-38. It was used for State business during the term of Governor Joseph Duncan from 1834-1838. The early capitals, Kaskaskia and Vandalia, had no “Governor’s Mansion”. This three-story, 17-room mansion was built in 1834. The mansion is owned and operated by the Rev. James Caldwell Chapter NSDAR. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971, and houses many of the original Duncan family furnishings.

Tradition says that Lincoln visited the Duncan home, and it is quite possible that happened, given the fact that Lincoln lived in nearby New Salem and Springfield during the time both men were members of the Whig Party. Lincoln served his first two terms as a state representative while Duncan was governor. In addition, voting records show that Lincoln cast ballots for Duncan three times.

Once the home of John Wood, Quincy's founder and Illinois' 12th Governor, the John Wood Mansion is one of the Midwest's finest examples of Greek Revival architecture.

Wood’s 14-room mansion was built in 1835 and features many ornate details inside and out as well as four large Doric columns turned by Wood himself at a lathe he built for that purpose. The Wood family moved into their third Quincy home from a nearby, two-story log cabin in 1837. Later, the mansion was moved from its original site to its current location, about a block east, so Wood could build an even larger, octagonal mansion that was demolished in the 1950s.

The Society acquired the mansion in 1906 in order to save it from demolition, renovate, and preserve it. Many original Wood family and period furnishings are displayed throughout the house. 

This historically significant home was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1970 and in 2007 was named one of Illinois' 150 most important architectural structures. In celebration of the 2018 Illinois Bicentennial, the John Wood Mansion was selected as one of the Illinois 200 Great Places by the American Institute of Architects Illinois.

John Wood Mansion Website

Richard J. Oglesby is recognized as one of Decatur’s most distinguished citizens. He served his country well as a U.S. Senator, a Union General in the Civil War, a three-term governor of Illinois, and a close friend and colleague of Abraham Lincoln.

The Mansion was built in 1875-76 after his second marriage. The original plans for Oglesby Mansion were by William LeBaron Jenney, a Chicago architect who was best known for designing the first modern skyscraper. The Oglesbys modified the plans a great deal and hired a local contractor to build the house for them. Two of their four children were born while they lived in the house. In 1882 they moved to Lincoln Illinois and then to Elkhart where they built a much larger house on Elkhart Hill.

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. Now restored, you can explore rural life on the Grand Prairie of Illinois in 1860. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

An 1840s Greek Revival cottage built by Joseph and Melissa Beckwith Lamon. The house is named in honor of Ward Hill Lamon, Lincoln’s law partner and body- guard, and cousin of Joseph Lamon. It is situated in historic Lincoln Park.

Built before the Civil War, this ornate 50-foot-tall Italianate mansion was constructed by William Reddick, a leading philanthropist, businessman, LaSalle County Sheriff, and Illinois State Senator. Standing on the corner of Columbus and Lafayette streets in Ottawa, Illinois, the magnificent structure anchors the Washington Square national Historic District and remains as a tribute to the architecture, times, and people of a bygone era.

Commissioned in 1855 and completed in 1858 in time to witness the first Lincoln-Douglas Debate across the street in Washington Square, the splendid mansion was the home of the Reddick family for nearly 30 years. The twenty-two-room building was designed by two prominent mid-western architects: William B. Olmsted and Peter A. Nicholson.