2025 PRESIDENTIAL HISTORY ADVENTURE - IT'S ALL ABOUT LINCOLN

 

Well, today is day #6 of this little Midwest adventure and it is off to a rocky start. I spent the night at the Comfort Inn near Route 66 here in Springfield, Illinois, and while the hotel was just fine, I can’t say the same for some of the guests.

When I was checking in yesterday, I noticed there were a lot of kids in the hotel, which is never a good sign. It seemed most of them were somewhere around 11-12 years old and were players on a couple of youth baseball teams that were playing in a tournament here in Springfield.

Thank goodness I was on the top floor of the hotel, and they were all on the lower floors. So, thankfully noise was not really a problem. But this morning, a little after 6:30 a.m. I was awakened by the hotel fire alarm.

I was tempted to ignore it and just stay in my room but all of the other guests on my floor seemed to be taking it seriously and were leaving their rooms and heading downstairs. So, I joined everyone else and made my way out through the lobby and into the parking lot.

The fire department was already on the scene and was in the process of resetting the alarm and giving all clear. It seemed on of the kids had left a waffle in the waffle iron and it burnt, setting off the alarm.  It took the Fire Department about 15 minutes to clear everything and give the ok for us to return to our rooms. 

Once back in my room, I packed up and prepared to check out. The breakfast area was nothing but chaos as it was overrun by a herd of kids, making it almost totally impossible to even get a cup of coffee. So, I decided to check out and hit the road.

I pulled out of the parking lot at 7:55 a.m. I need gas so I headed to a nearby Casey’s to fuel up and grab a much-needed cup of coffee. I had planned on making Oak Ridge Cemetery my last stop before heading out of town.

But it was only 8:15 and none of the other sites that I wanted to see here in Springfield were open. So, I made the 10-minute drive to the north side of town to visit the tomb of President Abraham Lincoln.

Contrary to what many people think, Lincoln’s Tomb is NOT a National Historic Site and is NOT administered by the National Park Service. Rather, it is a State Historic Site that is administered by the State of Illinois.

The tomb was dedicated on October 15, 1874, and is the final resting place of President Lincoln, his wife Mary Todd Lincoln and three of their children, Eddie, Willie and Tad. Robert Todd Lincoln is the only child that reached adulthood and he is resting in Arlington National Cemetery.

At the front of the tomb is a bronze recasting of President Lincoln’s Head that was created by Gutzon Borglum. It is said that if you rub his nose, you will encounter good luck. From the looks of the shiny nose, a lot of folks have tried it, including me. What could it hurt. The Borglum's original marble bust is in the U.S. Capitol, in Washington D. C.

Inside the tomb's ground level entrance is a rotunda, visitors are greeted by a reduced scale reproduction of the statue by Daniel Chester French that is in the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D. C.

A connecting hallway of the rotunda leads you to the burial chamber where President Lincoln is resting in a lead lined casket that is encased in concrete some 10 feet beneath the red marble monument.

Entombed in the wall across from the President’s Burial Monument are the remains of Mary Todd Lincoln, and their Children, Eddie, Willie and Tad.

Before leaving the Cemetery, I made my way down the hill, behind the tomb to the receiving vault where the bodies of President Lincoln and his son, Willie rested from May 4,1865, until December 1865 when their remains we moved to a temporary tomb that was constructed about halfway up the hill. That temporary tomb was demolished after the Current tomb was built.

After leaving Oak Ridge Cemetery, I made the short drive back into Springfield to visit the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum. I have been here once before, but it was late in the day and I was kind of rushed to finish my visit before closing time. Today, I am going to be able to take my time and enjoy the visit.

Once again, most people think that the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum administered the National Archives. It’s not, it is controlled and administered by the State of Illinois.

Upon entering the Museum, visitors are greeted by life-size wax figures of President and Mrs. Lincoln along with their children, Willie, Eddie and Tad. Behind these statues is a façade of the White House which contains the exhibits pertaining to the Civil War and his life in the White House.

The other side of the statues is a log cabin which highlights Lincoln’s early life as a “Rail Splitter,” and Circuit Lawyer.

The museum contains life-size dioramas of Lincoln's boyhood home, areas of the White House, the presidential box at Ford's Theatre, and the settings of key events in Lincoln's life, as well as pictures, artifacts and other memorabilia including the original hand written Gettysburg Address, Emancipation Proclamation, his glasses and shaving mirror.

I have been to several of the Presidential Museums, and this one has to rank right up there as one of my favorites.  I still think that the Eisenhower and Truman Museums are my favorites but this one along with Bush 41 and Bush 43 are a close second.

After Finishing up my visit to the Lincoln Museum I started to make my way back into downtown where I had intended to revisit the Old Statehouse and the Current Illinois State Capitol. But for some reason traffic in downtown Springfield was basically at a standstill.

I pulled over into a Casey’s for a closer look at Google Maps which should solid red throughout the downtown area. After grabbing a cup of coffee, I quickly decided to leave Springfield Behind and begin my trek back east.

Back on Interstate 74, I am once again reminded just how bad Illinois roads actually are. Leaving Springfield, I have no Idea just how far I will make it. It’s just a little after 12 noon when I head est on I-74 and there is a remote possibility that I could make Indianapolis tonight, which is almost 250 miles away. Bust a more Likely destination will be Crawsfordsville, Indiana.

It’s a little after 2 p.m. when I stop at the Love’s Travel Center in Oakwood, Illinois. From here to Indianapolis is only about 100 miles. So, I decide to make a hotel reservation at the Drury Inn & Suites on the Northside of Indianapolis.

I was happy to leave the horrible Illinois Roads behind, only to find that Indiana Roads are just as bad. But despite the horrible roads and loosing an hour when I crossed from Central Time back to Eastern Time, I arrived at the Drury Inn at about 5:15, Just enough time to check in, and get settled in my room before heading down for supper at the Drury 5:30 kickback.

The Kickback tonight was especially good, featuring pulled pork sliders, baked beans, coleslaw and a baked potato. Like I keep saying, I have yet to have a bad experience at a Drury Inn.

Today was kind of a hit or miss day. The Misses were getting woke up by the fire alarm at the hotel, the heavy traffic in downtown Springfield, and the horrible Illinois and Indiana roads. The hits were Lincoln’s Tomb and the Lincoln Presidential Museum. Even though I have been there before, I enjoyed visiting again.

Today’s journey from Springfield, Illinois to Indianapolis, Indiana covered a total of 223 miles, bringing the total miles for this trip to 1,490 miles.

Tomorrow I will continue my trek east and start thinking about bringing this adventure to an end.