Route 66

The Postville Courthouse was a courthouse where one of the most famous presidents of all time practiced law.  President Abraham Lincoln traveled and worked in many surrounding areas, but this courthouse has been reconstructed to its original look and feel, in the city of his own namesake Lincoln, Illinois.    Lincoln has many memorials and many historical markers in Illinois and The Postville Courthouse is definitely one worth visiting.  The old courthouse has been turned into a miniature Lincoln museum and has a lot of history to share with the passers through.  The Mill, a old windmill turned restaurant to serve Route 66 travelers is also a must see piece of history in Lincoln, but no longer serves food, but is still a cool little piece of history!

The Old Pig Hip Restaurant was established in 1937 and served many Route 66 travelers until 1991. This establishment is one of the more iconic stops on The Mother Road.  Serving barbeque sandwiches to hungry travelers for over 20 years, the Old Pig Hip Restaurant is no longer in business, but now has been converted to a Route 66 museum since the owners have retired, but has a great view into the past and the way thing used to be. Located in Broadwell, Illinois the Old Pig Hip Restaurant is a must stop for any Route 66 enthusiast.

Lincolns Tomb and The Dana-Thomas House are both some really amazing places to experience as you make your way westward across Old Route 66 in to Springfield the state capitol.  Springfield has many great areas for visitors, but these are 2 must see locations in this great city.  Springfield has many areas that are supposedly haunted and are well documented by paranormal societies and yes, both of these locations are included in the list. Lincoln’s Tomb has many historical markers and was dedicated as a national historic landmark in 1966.  Constructed in 1874 this huge 117-foot tall tomb is simply amazing.  With polished marble and bronze trim the interior of the tomb this really is a historical maker worth seeing whether you are Cruising route 66 or not.  The Dana house is a work of art by the famous Frank Lloyd Wright.  Wright was best known for his many artistic structures that were built all across the central states, but this one in particular is open to the public Wednesday through Sunday for tours of his amazing architectural skill.

Ariston Café, a cozy corner diner in Litchfield, Illinois has been in business since 1924 and is still going strong.  You can stop here for a quick lunch and amazing dessert as one of your last stops before your route 66 journey takes you out of Illinois. This restaurant has been serving Route 66’ers for over 80 years and it did move, but don’t worry they just went across the street.  Litchfield is another city that was built during the big railroad boom right before the turn of the century and has thrived economically since, with 2 coal mines and claim to the first commercial oil production in the state.

Luna Café noted for its steak, chicken and seafood has been serving up good food for over 60 years and still resides on the side of old Route 66.  So if you missed our last food stop, you should come on in and get a real meal here in Mitchell, Illinois, before you are on to Missouri. This restaurant used to be considered a very expensive fine dining restaurant and because of this, it is said that it was frequented by Al Capone and other mobsters of the time.

That concludes our top ten stops on Route 66 in Illinois; we sure hope you enjoyed the ride as much as we did.  There are many more great stops on The Mother Road, but for now we bid you farewell and happy cruising!

Originally posted 2010-01-03 23:02:45. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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